It’s been a long day. You are ready to chill out on the couch and watch some Netflix, and then you have this urge to pour yourself a glass of wine or have a cold beer from the cooler or some of that fancy brandy whose bottle is gathering dust on the shelf. This urge doesn’t just present itself as a thought, it feels like it’s taking you by the hand and dragging you there.
And you’re thinking, “Who’s running the show here?” because it probably doesn’t feel like you. It feels like this craving is! And it’s not a lack of willpower. It’s not even personal. It involves biology, chemistry, and some ancient survival wiring.
Dopamine, Serotonin, and the Roots of Craving
Want to know how to hack it? Then stick with me…
First of all, you need to know about dopamine because it’s more than just a feel-good chemical. What happens is when you drink alcohol, dopamine rushes through your body, and the experience is tagged in your memory like a neon sign that says ‘Do This Again.’ Over a period of time, your mind links alcohol to reward, whether you are celebrating something or chilling out after a long day at work.
And dopamine doesn’t care if the reward is healthy or not! It just craves more. So, if boredom or stress arise, your mind is going to go to the thing that has readily solved the problem before. If it was a G&T, then that’s going to be top of the go-to list!
And here’s how one drink leads to “I’ll just have one more…” because that’s a common experience brought about by serotonin, a chemical that helps you feel emotionally steady, calm, and focused. A first sip of alcohol will give you that serotonin boost; however, the crash that follows leaves your mind scrambling for another fix, which is why you end up negotiating with yourself about having another drink. It’s your mind playing chemist and scrambling to fix what feels out of whack.
The Power of Neuroplasticity
Every time you grab a drink of alcohol to manage stress, ease tension, or celebrate an event. You are creating a neural pathway, and the more you repeat it, the more deeply engrained that becomes, and hey presto, that’s how a habit is formed. That pathway becomes a fast, smooth, easy route to the point where a craving doesn’t feel like a choice; it’s more like autopilot because it’s deeply entrenched in the mind. This is neuroplasticity at work. The good news is that these neural pathways can be rerouted based on repetition to create new, effortless habits that support you in healthy lifestyle choices.
Because these days, stress, for example, is a common experience, isn’t it? Family dramas, a work email, traffic jams, whatever it might be, cause the body to dump cortisol and adrenaline into the nervous system. Alcohol temporarily dilutes the stress response, and that initially seems ok in the short term. But longer term, it boosts cortisol, making that “calming” drink today the reason you wake up feeling edgy and anxious tomorrow.
Rewriting the Script
How, then, do you rewrite this script?
Get conscious of craving a drink. When one arises, pause and question what is it I really need in this moment? Feeling of connection? Then call a friend. Stress? Go for a walk. Bored? Choose a dopamine-friendly alternative like a fancy sparkling water in a wine glass.
Plus, you can boost your serotonin levels to stabilize your mood by purposefully getting out in nature and into the sunlight. Along with moving your body, walk, dance, or do some yoga. And these new choices or new responses will weaken the old neural pathways that once led you to alcohol as a form of relief or reward. And because of neuroplasticity and your mind’s ability to rewire itself, you can create new neural pathways that take you to different outcomes that support your wellness. The more you use these new pathways, the more these options become effortless habits.
Cravings are habits that are stuck on repeat. But actually, they can be reprogrammed. And with this little bit of neuroscience understanding, you can put yourself in the director’s chair and swap that tired old script for something fresh.
Explore the Unconscious Moderation app to discover more.
