E228: Why Alcohol Automatically Captures and Holds Your Attention

If you’ve stopped drinking, have you noticed that when you walk into a room your eyes immediately go to where the alcohol is? Or how you keep track of how quickly everyone is drinking and what drink they’re on without any effort? Or how you never realized how much people in TV shows and movies drink until now? This is because alcohol can capture and hold our attention, leading to increased cravings that make it difficult to not drink. In this episode you’ll learn what’s going on in the brain to get our attention stuck on alcohol, how this makes it more difficult to quit drinking, what factors increase the ability for alcohol to grab and hold our attention, and how we can overcome this to be successful in sobriety. What to listen to next: E224: alcohol makes your brain stop working E211: the anticipation of a drink E197: making the decision to quit drinking Sober Powered Skills Bonus Episode: 3 Exercises to Increase Top-Down Control of Your Brain https://www.soberpowered.com/skills Sober Support: Community & Meetings: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Anger Management Program https://www.soberpowered.com/anger Weekly emails on Fridays https://www.soberpowered.com/email Free resources https://www.soberpowered.com/free   Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors. Learn more: https://www.soberpowered.com/sponsors If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpowered Sources are posted on my website Disclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Being sober isn't a punishment. Sober life is not a last resort for weak-willed losers who aren't strong enough to figure it out. You can be sober without feeling deprived or left out. Millions of people wake up with another hangover and Google, "how do I know if I'm an alcoholic?". We get stuck on the label and the stigma, when instead we should be asking ourselves, "is alcohol making me miserable?" and "would I be happier if I quit drinking?" In the Sober Powered Podcast, Gill, a former biochemist turned sober coach, walks you through the latest research on alcohol use disorder using her own sober story as a case study along the way. The science of how alcohol affects the brain can help you depersonalize your drinking experience so you can finally say goodbye to your hopes and dreams of moderating someday (because you clearly can't moderate!). Getting sober doesn't mean you are a weak-willed loser with no self-control, it simply means you are a person who can't drink. Your brain loves it too much and you are too hardcore. Each episode features in depth explanations of what is going on in the brain along with the tools and mindset shifts that Gill works on with her clients to help them accept being sober, let go of shame, and learn the coping skills required to manage stress and emotions sober -in the hopes of helping you do the same. Website: www.soberpowered.com