Carol

As some who gets hangovers lasting a week, Carol never drank too much - Once she got to a sensible age! However as a patient with an auto immune illness, since she was a teenager she has to drink very little. So she really understands how Irish society makes this very difficult. Carol is responsible for all aspects of Lifewise operations that Valerie and Angela do not cover.

Posts by Carol

6 top tips to feel happy

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Mental health, Practical tips

We’ve been working with the nice folks in Mental Health Ireland and thought you might find their top tips  to  feel happy useful.

1.Connect

The research shows people with good social relationships tend to be happier. This is n’t about spending time on social media but actually meeting people face to face.

So try to make time every day to chat to people you know- even if it’s just a 15 minute chat with a work colleague away from your work desk.

If you’re finding it difficult to connect to people, because in Ireland it always seems to involve drinking you can find out about alcohol free events here.

 

2.Be Active

You’ don’t have to get all sweaty to be active. A daily walk to the shop instead of taking a car is great. Even better is a relaxing walk in nature- such as the beach or country side. It really does help me to feel happy and more grounded. Exercise is also great for filling the wine shaped bottle hole as Lucy explains here.

You can find lots of help on getting more active here.

 

3.Take notice

Life is so busy, it’s easy to just rush from one thing to another. Actually stopping for a moment and paying attention to our own thoughts, feelings and the world around us can make a big difference.

 

4. Keep Learning

Learning new ‘things’ can boost our self-confidence, self-esteem, build a sense of purpose and help us connect with others.  It does not have to be classroom type learning, even trying out a new cooking recipe helps.

 

5. Give

From small acts of kindness to volunteering, giving can give us a sense of purpose, community and connection to others. Giving can be a simple as saying thanks to the bus driver.

We would add a caution, on giving though.  Sometimes people who are drinking too much or in relationships where the other person is drinking too much can be “co-dependent”.

Co-dependent is a word used to describe people who give too much. So if this is you, giving more will not help you feel better. You can find out more about co-dependency here.

One final tip  from us.

 

6.Drink less

Stay within the low risk drinking limits shown below and you’ll start feeling better. It may take a while, but even moving towards one day a week without alcohol will make a difference.

feel happy

If you would like more information on safer drinking click here.

 

Interested in more stuff  which will help you feel happy?

If you liked these tips, Mental health Ireland run free “mind your mental health” courses nationwide which you might enjoy. Find out more here

 

Bigger wine glasses are making us drink more

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Social Life

Are bigger wine glasses encouraging us to drink more?

Yes, according to a study carried out by the University of Cambridge

They found that people drank nearly 10% more when they drank from larger glasses. They’re not sure why, but think it might be because our view of what we’re drinking changes and we drink faster.

 

Wine glasses are getting bigger

300 years ago the average size for a wine glass was just 65ml, now your average glass size is 450ml which is a massive 500% increase.

Most of this increase occurred in the 1990’s.

Wine varies in alcohol strength but assuming 12.5% alcohol, a 100 ml wine glass would be one standard drink.

So the old smaller wine glass was less than one standard drink. But now if you fill your average 450ml glass with wine, you’re drinking three standard drinks from one glass of wine.

 

Wine glasses design

Wine experts believe the shape of wine glasses influence the taste of the wine.

For example, a wider glass is suggested  for red wine as it strengthens the smell of the wine and  a narrower glass is advised for white wine to keep  the white wine  cold.

I took a look at my own glasses and found my small champagne flutes hold 200ml.  but the red wine glasses come in at a shocking 640 ml. I knew these glasses were big. I just loved the design when I bought them but never copped the quantity they hold.

 

Just one glass and I’m binge drinking

So a full glass of these 640ml monsters and I’m binge drinking. I’m  also encouraging my friends to binge drink whenever they visit because one glass is never enough.

Binge drinking is six or more standard drinks and  these glasses hold six standard drinks.

Now we never fill up these glasses totally, but even if we only half fill them, two glasses in, we’re binge drinking and creating likely health problems for ourselves  in the future.

 

A quick tip to reduce your drinking

So, I think I’m going to have to stop using these glasses. It seems to be hard to find smaller wine glasses though. So maybe we’ll just use the champagne glasses and accept the differences in taste. None of us are wine experts anyhow.

If you’re trying to cut back on your drinking, why not measure out the wine glasses you’re using at home and see what size they are.

It might help to drink from a smaller glass and put the wine bottle firmly out of sight and reach of the chair you’re sitting in.  That way any time you want a refill it’s more of an effort to get out of the chair and this slows down your drinking.

If you’d like more   quick tips on reducing your drinking click here

 

PS Know your Bottle sizes as well

The quarter bottle of wine, (187 ml) you buy in the pub is nearly 2 standard drinks depending on the alcohol strength.

The standard bottle of wine (750ml) from the supermarket or off licence can range from six to eight standard drinks.

Interestingly in England some of the supermarkets are now selling bottles which have just  single servings of sparkling wine as reported here

 

 

Alcohol Headlines July 8th 2017

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The big picture

Our occasional round up of alcohol headlines July 8th 2017

Alcohol Bill delayed again

As the alcohol industry uses money and influence to delay the alcohol bill yet again, Francis Black penned this excellent article on why the alcohol industry should not own the arts industry.

Click here to see the article

 

Drink driving is increasing again

April this year was the worst month for drunk-driving offences in five years.

Click here to see the article

 

Alcohol makes you fat!

TV presenter Amanda Byram on  why she gave up alcohol,  the women she sees drinking alcohol then  wondering why they can’t lose weight.

Click here to see the article

 

Media people, alcohol consumption went up in 2016 not down!

Loads of media reports, from the Irish Times to the Sunday Business Post fed by big alcohol that alcohol consumption is declining.

As you can see from the graph below, alcohol consumption went up 4.8% in 2016 and while we drink less than in Celtic Tiger times, we’re still drinking nearly three  times more than the 1960’s

alcohol headlines 8th July 2017

 

Alcohol industry now funding $100 million research trial and journalist training

Lots of controversy over the decision of the US NIH to accept funding from the alcohol industry  as opponents claim

“Research shows that industry-sponsored research almost invariably favours the interests of the industry sponsor, even when investigators believe they are immune from such influence,”

The alcohol industry are now also sponsoring training for journalists. Given the way big alcohol influence the media this  means we can expect even more  treatment of alcohol as just another every day  product which has no risks.

More details here.

 

Bigger wine glasses are encouraging us to drink more

The size of our wine glasses are increasing. 300 years ago the average size for a wine glass was just 65ml, now the average size is 450ml.

Click here for the full article



 


			



							
				


	
	

		
				
		

			
Alcohol free social events becoming popular
		

		
				
		


	

					

	

		
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		Social Life	


		
			


	

		
If you’re hanging out with friends who drink a lot, alcohol free social events might be just the ticket. I wrote here about how I ended up with a hangover because of pressure to drink and the research shows we tend to follow our friends behaviours.


 


 One won’t hurt


But if your whole social scene is about drinking with friends, it’s difficult to cut back on the drink. How often have we heard?


“One won’t hurt”


Or “you’re no fun without drinking”


Or arrived back at the table to find another yet drink beside your already full glass.


Or as Sinead found when she stopped drinking


“Are you pregnant?”


The pressure to drink from friends can lead to us drinking more.


 


A social life without drinking is difficult


So having a social life without drinking can be difficult, and as Irvine found he was much more creative when he did n’t live in Ireland, because he drank less. But things are changing.


 


Alcohol free social events becoming popular


Alcohol free events can be useful to get you started in developing a new social life without the hangovers and meet a new bunch of friends who like you want to drink less.


And no, it does n’t  mean joining AA. A whole new alcohol free social scene is developing in Dublin and is moving throughout the country.


Some examples include


 


Funky Seomra


Funky Seomra has alcohol free dance events in Dublin, Cork and Galway. Over 37,000 people have attended events so far. They have no events planned at the moment, but sign up for their newsletter  to hear about their next event.


 


Sober Slice


Sober slice can be found here. They welcome all types of people, male, female, Irish, International and the aim is to do fun activities sans alcohol.


They do everything from Yoga, interactive cinema where the audience gets to direct the story and board games.


 


Club Soda


Well established in England, Club Soda is a mindful drinking movement which has many Irish members.


Dublin member Kathryn is hosting their very first lunchtime event in Dublin on the 3rd of September. More details here


Now it can be intimidating going to these events on your own, but the very nice Club Soda people will arrange to meet you in advance so you don’t have to walk in to the venue on your own.


Their website has great help on managing your drinking –everything from low alcohol beers and wines to drink suggestions. Worth checking out. You can also sign up for their newsletter here.


 


Irish culture is changing


Irish culture is changing, alcohol free social events are  now becoming popular.  So you don’t have to become a social outcast if you want to reduce your drinking!


Finally check out our anonymous  free online course to see if you’re a social drinker or if you’re drinking in a way that will harm you.


			



							
				


	
	

		
				
		

			
Irvine likes a couple of beers, but can’t live in Ireland as it’s too difficult
		

		
				
		


	

					

	

		
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		Personal stories, Social Life	


		
			


	

		
Irvine Welsh the celebrity film director of Trainspotting likes a couple of beers. He’s in the news again because he’s just produced a new novel “The Blade Artist” and a sequel to his famous movie Trainspotting.


In an interview with the Sunday Business Post, Irvine recounts his time spent taking a range of drugs and six happy years living in Dublin.  He apparently spent a lot of time flushing drugs down Dublin toilets. Trainspotting fans kept giving him drugs as the film is about drugs! At that stage after three transitions he was no longer taking drugs.


 


 Irvine likes a couple of beers


Irvine is  now into healthy living, he works out and eats well. Except when he’s in Dublin or Scotland. He finds when he’s in Dublin or Scotland he drinks too much. And he gets less work done.


He told the interviewer


“In Chicago when friends say “Let’s go out for a couple”  They mean a couple of beers, as opposed to a couple of days. They mean two beers and then you go home.”


 


Binge drinking is normal in Ireland


Irvine’s views are supported by the research. According to the Health Research Board we have the second highest rate of binge drinking in the world. Over 75% of the alcohol we drink is drunk in a binge drinking session.


 


What can we do to reduce binge drinking?


First, be aware of the number of drinks which are binge drinking. Six  standard drinks or more as you can see in the image below.


couple of beers


 


Second, sit out a round, make every second or third drink a glass of water.


Third, choose drinks which have less alcohol in them.  For example Low alcohol beers or wines with less alcohol.


You can find plenty more tips on reducing alcohol harm in our free online course here.




 


Yeah, I’m happy with my place in life


So Irvine now lives in Chicago, it’s


“… Great for me, because it means I get on with more work and drink less”


And he says he’s happy with his place in life.


“If you’d offered it to me back then, I’d have taken it”


 


We’re losing out


So Ireland loses a great talent because our culture does not accept normal drinking as a “couple of beers”.


Wonder how many other great talents are wasted because we’re drinking too much?


 


You can see the full interview with Irvine here. (Subscription required)


			



							
				


	
	

		
				
		

			
Three reasons we feel we’re missing out when we drink less
		

		
				
		


	

					

	

		
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		Social Life	


		
			


	

		
We’ve all felt it when we’ve tried drink less. We feel like we’re missing out on something, or we’re the odd ones out.  We’re not normal, or why can’t we drink like everybody else? A major reason why we feel like this, is the influence of the  society we live in. The alcohol industry has created what experts call an “alcogenic” society where too much drinking is normal and a number of myths about drinking exist.


 


Myth one:  Drinking alcohol is normal


Because of big alcohol’s brilliant and creative marketing we are brainwashed into thinking people who drink are sociable, happy, healthy and attractive.


Big alcohol also sponsors major sporting organisations such as the  IRFU in their efforts to link alcohol with sports and success.


drink less


While the government tried to ban alcohol sponsorships in the draft public alcohol bill, big alcohol put so much pressure on politicians this provision was taken out. The watered down bill has still not been passed despite years of debate.


 


“IRFU are sponsored by the heroin industry”


You probably are outraged by this headline and image.  Unlike alcohol, heroin is illegal. Yet according to respected experts   the overall most harmful drug to us  is not heroin but alcohol.


drink less


Yes, alcohol is more harmful to people than drugs like heroin, marijuana etc.  We look down on people smoking joints or using heroin but because of big alcohol’s marketing we think it’s ok to drink a drug that is far more harmful to us in order to feel like we’re connected to other people and  part of society.


 


Myth two: People who drink too much are social deviants


Big alcohol wants us to believe that only a small number of people abuse alcohol. Homeless people, people living on park benches, people with mental health issues.  Not ordinary people like you and me.


In Ireland however, the majority of people (54%)  who drink are actually harming their health.


less drinking


By creating this image that if we can’t drink less, we’re social deviants, big alcohol makes us feel that we’re the problem rather than the real problem being the relentless marketing we’re subjected to making us think drinking alcohol is normal every day activity.


As explained here, the reality  is big alcohol needs heavy alcohol users to be profitable and they  hide this fact.


So we’re encouraged to drink too much and then when we try to cut back, we feel like we’re social deviants thus making it more difficult to drink less.


 


Myth three: People who don’t drink or drink less, don’t matter


Big alcohol want us to believe that alcohol is mainly consumed by hip, attractive and healthy adults. People who don’t drink or drink less are not part of society or our culture or are not healthy.


They produce reports stating people who drink less are less healthy. But because of bias in the comparison groups where they select people who have given up drinking for health reasons e.g. diabetes, these reports are incorrect and misleading.


Yet even in Ireland, nearly one fifth of our population don’t drink at all, but we don’t hear much about these people. Very  common beliefs about people who don’t drink is they are  pregnant, or  are no fun,stuck up  or look down on people who don’t drink. Or  to use that really awful term they  are  “recovering alcoholics”


 


How can I avoid feeling like I’m missing out when I drink less?


There are a number of ways to do this, but here’s three quick tips.


First, keep reminding yourself that your tipple of choice is really toxic and used in everything from cleaning dirty car engines to getting rid of  smelly feet. See more details on alternative uses of alcohol here. If you keep reminding  yourself alcohol  is toxic, eventually alcohol will feel less attractive to you.


Second, keep reminding yourself that far from being a social deviant, you’re an  intelligent person who is ahead of their time and the way society thinks. Remember when it is used to be ok to physically hit children, lock them away in institutions  and no one batted an eye lid?


In the future we will look back at how we accepted too much drinking as normal with the same horror and wonder how we let it go on for so long.


Third, keep reminding yourself of all the positive benefits of drinking less. You’ll look better, you’ll have more energy, and you’ll have more time to do other things you enjoy because you’re not sleeping off hangovers. If you’re not sure what your benefits from drinking less are you can use our course here to find out or check out this blog post.


You can find out more about the  evidence that  big alcohol creates myths  to make us drink more here.


			



							
				


	
	

		
				
		

			
Even moderate drinking affects your brain power
		

		
				
		


	

					

	

		
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		Mental health, Physical health	


		
			


	

		
It’s so hard to know what is safe moderate drinking. Different countries use different measures and there are so many  research studies saying  different things from moderate drinking protects your heart to there is no safe level of drinking.


 


 Why is there so much confusion about moderate drinking?


A big problem is the money spent by big alcohol to fight  efforts by government and public health care professionals  to develop common standards. Recently here in Ireland they launched an “independent” report stating alcohol consumption was declining when alcohol consumption actually went up 5% in Ireland last year.


Many of the earlier studies showing there are health benefits from moderate drinking are now shown to be flawed. They compared people who had given up drinking for health reasons to people who were still drinking. This meant the people who had given up drinking had more health problems than the people who were still drinking!


 


There is no safe level of drinking


The reputable British journal  the  Lancet brought together a number of experts who concluded that overall alcohol is a more harmful drug than even heroin or cocaine.


So the public health experts have concluded there is no safe level of drinking. 


So now they talk about low risk drinking limits and moderate drinking.  For women this is  eleven or less standard drinks and two drink free days. See the picture below for an example of a low risk drinking week.


  moderate drinking


 


Even moderate drinking decreases your brain power


Worryingly a new research study states that even moderate drinking can affect your brain power. The researchers did brain function tests including  MRI scans and adjusted for age, social class and smoking. They found that even those people drinking to low risk guidelines were more likely to have damage known as hippocampal atrophy. The hippocampus is a key part of the brain for remembering and learning. The researchers found  even moderate drinking  affects memory and ability to move around spaces.


The more people drank the more brain damage they had. 


 You can see a report on the study here.


  


The majority of people who drink, drink too much.


In the same article, of 800 people who responded 57% felt they needed to reduce their drinking. This confirms earlier HRB reports that the majority of Irish people who drink are abusing alcohol.  




 


 moderate drinking


 


 


Reducing your drinking is a good idea


So for the sake of our poor brain and to reduce the risk of dementia we should reduce the amounts we drink. For some quick tips on reducing the harm that drinking can cause  please click here.




			



							
				


	
	

		
				
		

			
Bressie’s six top tips for good mental health
		

		
				
		


	

					

	

		
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		Mental health	


		
			


	

		
We were at a very interesting event  where Bressie, the celebrity mental health campaigner gave his top tips for good mental health. They’re worth sharing.


 


1.Limit exposure to toxic people


These are the people  you meet who are  always moaning or being negative. They don’t even have to be nagging you, they may just be giving out about the world and how bad it is  in general. Limit the time you spend with these people as they will lower your energy levels.


 


2.Draw a circle


If you do have to spend time with toxic people, then before you meet them, take a few minutes to draw a high, thick colourful imaginary circle around yourself. Then tell yourself, nobody can get into your circle. When you’re with this person keep thinking of  the person being outside your imaginary circle and you’ll be impacted less by their negative energy. This is a very helpful tip for people who have a lot of empathy and tend to absorb other people’s emotions.




 


3.Be grateful


Each day before you get out of bed, think of a list of 30 things you’re grateful for. These can be as simple as you’re glad you’re awake, to looking forward to your breakfast, to meeting a friend. Initially it can be hard to think of 30 things, so start with 10 and build up. What this does is changes your mind set so your day starts on a much more positive note and you’ll have more energy to get through the day.


 


4.Limit the amount of bad news you listen or read to


We’re biologically wired to respond more to fear, because as cavemen the ability to react to threats kept us alive.  So the media attract our attention by always focusing in on bad news and creating a sense of fear.  They rarely report on all the good things happening because that does not sell enough newspapers or attract social media attention.


So limit the amount of bad news you read or listen to especially when there’s yet another dreadful tragedy. It does not mean you don’t care about the people involved. Does reading every little minute detail about a tragedy really help anybody? Why not focus your energy on something more positive instead to show you do care?


Try just two  days without reading or listening to any  news and you’ll be surprised how positive your mood becomes.


 


5.Stop judging people


As Atticus Finch, said in to “To kill a mockingbird”


“You never really understand a person, until you consider things from his point of view, until you climb into his skin and walk around in it”


bressie


Yet, we spend a lot of time and energy judging people and what they do. Getting annoyed or angry at what someone does or does not do. Wasting a lot of energy on our thoughts saying,


“Well she was right out of line, saying that, she’s so mean and unfair, does she not realise I worked so hard on that”


We need to accept we can’t control what other people do and all we can control is our reaction to other people.


We don’t know what is going on in their lives. There may be very good reasons why they are acting the way they are.


So assuming you’re not in a toxic  relationship and need to take action to protect yourself, don’t waste time judging and analysing other people.


 


6.Don’t use alcohol as a crutch


Bressie has been very open about his own struggles with mental health and using alcohol to manage his anxiety. While the first drink of alcohol can initially help you relax  all the research shows  alcohol makes you depressed.  So don’t binge drink.  Drink less than six standard drinks each time your drink  and have two days off alcohol every week.


bressie


For more information on managing your drinking and avoiding hangovers, please click here.




Bressie has set up “Lust for Life”


If you find these tips helpful, Bressie and his team have set up a useful website on all things mental health  and well being and you can find it here.


 


			



							
				


	
	

		
				
		

			
Alcohol Headlines  May 27th 2017
		

		
				
		


	

					

	

		
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		The big picture	


		
			


	

		
Fine Gael say big alcohol profit is more important than people’s health


As the alcohol industry continue to delay the alcohol public health bill, a Fine Gael politician says in the Sunday Business Post (subscription required)  alcohol industry profits are more important than people’s health.


“Alcohol is the only high margin item, they have left. They’re struggling and I’m not going to take it away from them”


So Mr Darcy believes that alcohol industry profits are important than people’s health.  This is despite the fact that three people a day die from alcohol abuse?  If you’ve been affected by alcohol abuse don’t vote for Mr Darcy. Tell Fine Gael here, you support the alcohol public health bill.


Alcohol headlines 27th May


 


Norah Casey, An inspirational and strong woman who puts people first


Norah Casey, the broadcaster, business woman and publishing entrepreneur went public on the Late  Late show last night on her experience with domestic violence. Her first husband beat her up and threatened her with a knife in an alcohol fuelled horrific attack. Unlike Mr Darcy, Norah is brave enough to confront alcohol’s role in hurting so many people.  We need more people like Norah in politics.


You can watch the interview here.


If you’re living with domestic abuse, please click here for help.


alcohol headlines 27th May


 


Big alcohol tell porky pies again


Big alcohol produced another impressive looking report written by independent economists. The Alcohol Beverage Federation of Ireland  report argues against the Alcohol Public health bill. On the very first page it gives misleading information, stating alcohol consumption has gone down.


What it should have stated was that in 2016 alcohol consumption has gone up by 5% according to latest Revenue Commissioner Figures. Click here for details.


Remember when ever you see a report saying the alcohol public health bill is not necessary or a report on the benefits of drinking alcohol, always check who the publisher is. More than likely you’ll find it was written by someone with links to the alcohol industry.