I Need a Drink!

Many years ago I was out for dinner with a friend, at a diner of all places, and the minute we sat down she fairly collapsed in on herself, and looked up at me and said “I need a drink”! OK, I don’t judge, have a drink, we could have gone to a bar instead of a diner, but hey, whatever—you need a drink? Have one, I need a burger, or a Reuben, or some onion rings…  I have never, even at the lowest most desperate moments of my life said, or even considered the phrase “I need a drink”. Please don’t think for a minute that I think this makes me any better than those of you who say this once in a while, or even several times a day, I often feel like I need a cookie, some Cheetos, or some other means of high calorie comfort. The fact that I prefer my comfort in food, rather than liquid form is merely an interesting preference for me to consider.

A week or so ago I saw a piece on The Today Show about play-dates during which while the kids played the moms drank wine. Holy crap! I couldn’t do that, I am not a good enough drinker. If I have wine or worse hard liquor in the afternoon, I generally need to go home and go to bed, and I am not exaggerating. I certainly couldn’t take care of or drive a child… I cannot drink with the big kids, and though I never really could, the older I get, the worse it is. I understand the physics of alcohol consumption and body mass, but my body doesn’t seem to follow those rules. I have never liked beer, however in college I relied on cold beer to get me through parties, as I could make one beer last me for several hours, just because I would take tiny sips of it.

I have had my share of drunken foolishness, and regrettable behavior. I have puked my guts out in enough inconvenient places to understand the joys of overindulgence, but I have found that my hangovers tend to last days rather than hours, and really, it’s just not worth it! Still there’s that issue of the feeling, the internal nagging, the craving for a drink, or maybe the urge for the release of tension that drink brings on, but that’s never been my impulse. There are plenty of reasons you may say you need a drink. Oddly enough I once had a friend counsel me that she was concerned about my drinking! WHAT??  I’m grateful I had the sense to ignore her, rather than head down that particular road. Believe me, I have any number of character flaws, but my use of alcohol has never been one of them.

We all have our moments, and times we seek comfort from someone or something external. Those moments are often when we revert to our worst, or rather our self-destructive impulses. Food and alcohol are just two of a very long list of things we humans rely on to take the edge off. There are those noble folk who go for a run, or choose meditation, and I wonder, is it ever too late to become one of those people? Sometimes I even make a better choice, like calling a friend, writing, or just going to sit outside and breathe. Can we redirect our impulses? It may be a good thing that I don’t drink, but that doesn’t make all my choices wise ones. What do you reach for when you feel a meltdown coming on? Do you give in? Do you reach for Ben, Jerry, or Johnny Walker? How do you cope with those ‘I need a drink moments’?