TECHNIQUES

It is common knowledge that over-activation of the stress response is harmful and leads to health issues. Alcoholics attempt to soothe their nervous system and often report self -medicating to self-regulate. Alcoholism can be associated with increased stress and lack of ability to cope with stress. Stress is due to a substantial imbalance between demand (stressor) and response capabilities in which failure to meet the demand is perceived to have deleterious consequences. This means that stress can be reduced either by reducing the stressors or perceptions of the stressor and by increasing positive coping strategies. Stressors can be both emotional (e.g., divorce, death, a move, a change in work; Sherman, 1997), and physical (e.g., physical threats; Pinel, 2008). The magnitude of stress an individual experiences depends on the stressor, the individual, and coping methods. 

Stress has a self-reinforcing relationship with anxiety and muscle tension. Typical stress responses are in the form of anxiety, which may lead to physical symptoms, such as muscle tension and pain. Pain can magnify negative emotions like depression and anxiety, which in turn reinforces muscle tension and pain. Alcoholics often report high levels of anxiety and pain and when abstinent from substances there is an obvious need to reduce these levels. Alcoholism may be a way to cope with stress and “using” in itself can be traumatic and stressful and promote pain and discomfort. 

Choose your thoughts and change your life. Cognitive restructuring helps you to change your thoughts by first noticing self-sabotaging thoughts, tracking whether these thoughts are accurate, and using techniques to test their accuracy. Mindfulness techniques can be used as part of cognitive restructuring to enhance coping skills. This involves focusing on one’s breathing and the sensory experience of breathing. Whenever thoughts arise, the individual simply brings one’s focus back on the breathing. Focusing on breathing, as described above, is one technique to help one relax and can be done during the course of one’s day to help one cope with stress and anxiety. 

Tension, stress, and anxiety are self-reinforcing, and the stress response is associated with compromised breathing. Diaphragmatic breathing techniques teach patients to slow and deepen their breathing voluntarily. This optimal breathing pace affects the parasympathetic nervous system, which prompts the body to “rest and digest”. The training of diaphragmatic breathing includes first introducing the physiological differences between chest and abdomen breathing; abdomen breathing is optimal.