Alcohol - a delusional frenzy

Amalshan GUNERATHNE

For some, the whole world spins around their treasured alcohol glass. Under the illusion that happiness, excitement and joy revolve around their precious wine glass, they consume the chemical. The users call it the magical aroma and their doorway to heaven. However, do alcohol and drugs have the capacity to create such euphoric effects? Do chemicals in alcohol have the potential to provide the user with such sensational feelings? Is it the gateway to happiness that many believe it to be? How true are these preconceived notions? These are the few questions that we expect to explore, as we intend to remove the myths that are associated with alcoholism and drug habbits.

The crisis has built up to a level where users associate all their pleasurable feelings with alcohol and drugs. “No party or get together is fun without alcohol they say”. Ironically however, what it actually does is limit your happiness. As the addiction overwhelms you, the user fails to find any sense of happiness, if certain moments are not associated with alcohol. Being dependent on alcohol for excitement restricts you from cherishing life to the full. The alcohol is a dull chemical and it does not have the capacity to arouse such feelings of euphoria. Contrastingly, the chemical could create torturous feelings of dizziness and nausea on the user.

However, we find that often the users are not addicted to the chemical effects of alcohol, but rather to its psychological effects. The preconceived notions of alcohol being associated with fun and excitement play a major role in drawing users towards the alcoholism.

Joining with Punch, the Executive Director of Alcohol and Drug Information Center (ADIC) Sri Lanka, Pubudu Sumanasekara noted, "When you are psychologically addicted to the drug, you feel that you cannot enjoy a party or a festive evening without alcohol. You associate your fun feelings with alcohol. Alcohol becomes a symbol of fun and relaxation. You become dependent on it which eventually restricts you from enjoying your moments to full.”

However, the tragedy lies in people trying to justify the use of alcohol by coming up with excuses that can rationalize their addiction. When we inquired from university students who are in to alcohol use, they justified their addiction saying that it provides them with a means of relaxation that can relieve them from exam stress.

These kinds of justifications are quite common in modern times and it is such preconceived false perceptions that draw others towards alcohol use. Expressing his thoughts on the dilemma, Sumanasekara commented, “Sometimes students get together after exams and take alcohol to celebrate the end of their exams.

“They claim that it helps them to release the exam-stress. But this is not true. It is not alcohol that brings them such a sense of freedom and relaxation, but rather it is the end of hectic exam sessions that provide them with a relaxing feeling. They feel free and relaxed, because exams are over, not because of any magical effect created by alcohol."

Some rationalize the use saying that there is no harm in using alcohol, if you take it without exceeding a certain limit. These types of users, you can often find in glamourous cocktail parties and other social functions.

Such social drinkers glamorize the whole process with their lavish and extravagant ways and draw more users towards alcoholism. “There is a huge misconception going on that being a social drinker is not a bad thing. The hidden, underlying message in it is that alcohol is fun and there is nothing wrong in having it in a controlled level. They are very self-righteous about it. In-fact they are the ones who attract young ones to drink. They are respected, have good jobs and wealth, so when young people see them, they feel inspired to take alcohol,” Sumanasekara says.

Also such social drinkers consider alcohol as an integral element in their socialization process. They believe that such functions provide them with a chance to get to know esteemed people and venture in to business associations with them. “Yes, we have discovered that sixty percent of the people do not actually enjoy alcohol, but they take it, because it is the accepted norm of the evening and sometimes they take it to get their business deals done. If that is the case, they should not spread the notion that alcohol is a fun thing to have. Say that you took it to get the business deal done. Alcohol is a dull chemical, but it is the evening and people that you find fun and enjoyable.”
 

As ridiculous as it may sound, in certain peer-groups man’s masculinity is measured on how many alcohol shots he can take. If a certain individual lacks the capacity to consume alcohol while being with a certain peer-group, he is often being looked down upon and considered as an imbecilic person. He is being looked down upon as a dead-bore, who does not have the capacity to enjoy life. Therefore, often we find certain individuals getting in to alcohol to be with the group, to find a sense of belonging with the group.

“People need the group, so to be with the group he takes it. You cannot stand the fact that you have been ignored, so you take it. Even in such a scenario, alcohol is not the source of enjoyment, but the companionship of that certain peer-group and it is the yearning for that sense of belongingness which drives you to take it,” Pubudu explained.