We’re all experiencing much lower satisfaction with life in the COVID19 pandemic. That’s according to a social impact of COVID study, from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) this week.
Last month, just 12% of people rated their overall satisfaction with life as high. A major drop compared to 43% of people in 2018. So if you’re feeling down you’re not alone.
Alcohol consumption during the COVID19 pandemic
Men and women both showed a similar increase in alcohol drinking at 21% and 23%. But very few women have managed to decrease their alcohol drinking (9%) compared to men at 26%.
Older people were less likely to report increased alcohol drinking with the biggest increase in drinking happening in the 18 to 44 years age groups
Is our Wellbeing affected by alcohol?
As you can see in the picture below, the study found that people who were feeling more downhearted or stressed tended to increase their drinking more.
But are people who are more downhearted or stressed likely to drink more or do we drink more because we’re downhearted and stressed? The old question of which comes first the chicken or the egg?
The research is very clear. Alcohol is a depressant. Initially we feel better, when we drink, but then the effects wear off and we end up feeling worse. Red Lady’s story shows how this made her feel.
A similar trend can be seen when people are stressed about staying at home. They tend to drink more as can be seen below.
Look after our well being
So what all of this shows is looking after our mental health and well being is a great way to manage our drinking.
So don’t nag yourself, if you’re drinking more than you’d like in this Covid19 pandemic, look after your mental health instead.
Lots of ways to look after yourself
There are so many ways to look after yourself. The simplest is to go for a walk in nature- even if it’s just a green area near you.
We’ve lots more tips for looking after your mental health here.
If the family are driving you round the bend, Mental Health Ireland have a very nice family tool kit here
Most of all remember, we can’t control this COVID19 pandemic situation, however we can control how we respond to it. We can look for any positives, such as no long commutes or more time with family?
You can read the full CSO study here
