Researchers have found that alcohol takes a psychological and physiological toll on the body and may actually compound the effects of stress. Drinking alcohol may seem to provide some relief in the short term, but as stressful events continue long-term, heavy alcohol consumption can lead to medical and psychological problems and increase the risk of developing alcohol use disorders.
What Is Stress?
Physiologically, stress is defined as anything that challenges the body to function in its usual fashion. Injury, illness, or exposure to extreme temperatures can cause stress to the body. Grieving, depression, fear, and even sexual activity can cause psychological stress. The human body has developed a complex and extensive process of adapting to harmful or dangerous situations created by stress to keep a physiological balance, a state known as homeostasis. When the body experiences stress, or even perceived stress, it mobilizes a variety of physiological and behavioral changes via the nervous and endocrine systems to achieve a goal of maintaining homeostasis and coping with stress.
Alcohol’s Effects on Stress
The body’s hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis system works hard to maintain a delicate physiological balance, but when alcohol is added to the mixture, it puts the body at even greater risk for harm. Alcohol causes higher amounts of cortisol to be released altering the brain’s chemistry and resetting what the body considers “normal.” Alcohol shifts the hormonal balance and changes the way the body perceives stress and changes how it responds to stress. Studies have found that cortisol interacts with the brain’s reward or pleasure systems, which can contribute to alcohol’s reinforcing effects—forcing people to consume greater amounts to achieve the same effect over time. Cortisol also can promote habit-based learning, increasing the risk of becoming a habitual drinker and increasing the risk of relapse. Additionally, researchers have linked cortisol to the development of metabolic disorders and to the development of psychiatric disorders such as depression. Alcohol prevents the body from returning to its initial hormonal balance point, forcing it to set a new point of physiological functioning. This is called allostasis. The establishment of a new balance point puts wear and tear on the body and increases the risk of serious diseases, including alcoholism. Studies have found these factors of how stress relates to alcohol use:
Men and women who report high levels of stress drink moreStressed men are 1.5 times more likely to binge drink than womenMen are 2.5 times more likely to have alcohol use disorders
Causes of Stress
Researchers have identified four main categories for causes of stress:
General life stressCatastrophic eventsChildhood stressEthnic minority stress
General-Life Stressors
Some examples of general life stressors include major changes like moving, starting a new job, or getting married or divorced. Illness, a death in the family, or problems at home or work can also be significant causes of stress. Drinking too much alcohol can cause some general life stress, such as losing a job, causing relationship problems, or causing legal problems.
Catastrophic Events
Studies have found that alcohol consumption increases within 12 months following a major disaster, either man-made or natural. Some studies have found that alcohol use disorders increased after catastrophic events like September 11, Hurricane Katrina, or the Oklahoma City bombing. However, other studies have found that catastrophe-induced increases in alcohol consumption tend to wane after a year and other studies have found no increases in alcoholism following major disasters.
Childhood Stress
Maltreatment during childhood—emotional, sexual, or physical abuse or neglect—can have long-lasting effects, resulting in a significant percentage of all adult psychopathology.
Ethnic Minority Stress
Stress resulting from a person’s minority status can range from mild to severe and can be emotional or physical. Stressors can range from being overlooked for promotion on the job to experiencing a violent hate crime, for example. Determining how much minority-related stress is linked to increased alcohol consumption has been difficult for researchers to determine due to other risk factors among minority groups—such as drinking patterns and differences in alcohol metabolism.
Coping
When the body experiences stress, it quickly shifts its normal metabolic processes into high gear, relying on the intricate hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis system to change the levels of hormonal messengers throughout the body. The HPA axis system targets specific organs to prepare the body to either fight the stress factor or to flee from it—the body’s fight-or-flight response. The hormone cortisol plays an important role in the body’s response to stress by increasing energy through increasing glucose levels and by increasing nutrient supplies through mobilizing fat and protein metabolism. A healthy body’s response to stress includes a quick spike in cortisol levels followed by a rapid decrease in those levels when the threat or stress is over.
Resilience
Resilience is the ability to cope with stress. Someone who is resilient is able to adapt to the psychological and physiological factors involved in the body’s stress response. Research has found that people who have a positive, optimistic outlook and have good problem-solving and coping skills tend to deal with stress effectively. People who do not handle stress well and are therefore at risk for developing alcohol use disorders include:
Those with a history of family alcoholismChildren whose mother drank during pregnancyPeople who experienced childhood abuse or neglectThose with other mental health issues
Stress and Alcoholism Recovery
Stress can continue to have an effect even after someone stops drinking. The HPA axis, the system that deals with stress response, has been traced to symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. Many newly sober people begin drinking again to relieve the symptoms of withdrawal. Therefore researchers are trying to develop medications that will return balance to the body’s stress-response system to alleviate alcohol withdrawal symptoms and help prevent relapse in recovering alcoholics. The research into the relationship between stress and alcohol can help healthcare providers by identifying patients who are most at risk of alcohol relapse in early recovery and help patients deal with how stress can motivate them to drink. For more mental health resources, see our National Helpline Database.
