3563: Cultivating Wellness AND Am I Drinking Too Much? by Becca Shern of Minimal Wellness on Alcohol Reduction

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[00:01:01] This is Optimal Health Daily. Cultivating Wellness and Am I Drinking Too Much? Both by Becca Schoen of minimalwellness.com, and I'm Dr. Neal Malik, reading you some of the most popular health and fitness blogs out there, with permission from the websites, of course. So, let's jump right in. Let's get to our two posts today as we optimize your life. Cultivating Wellness by Becca Schoen of minimalwellness.com.

[00:01:32] It's easy to feel that our world is falling apart at the seams. When was the last time you read or turned on the news and found an uplifting story? It's been a while. Spreading negativity congregates eyeballs, but it doesn't cultivate wellness in any aspect of life, public or private. When we view life through a pessimistic lens, we are drawn to unnecessarily restrictive diets, punishing exercise routines, and endless lists of hazards.

[00:01:58] This mindset causes anxiety about our food choices, hatred of our naturally beautiful and amazing bodies, and fear of environmental toxins. Instead of obsessing about what to restrict, eliminate, and avoid, we can focus on what positive actions we can take to cultivate wellness, build vibrancy, and feelings of good health. What can we add so our plates, bodies, hearts, and lives are alive, abundant, and full of love?

[00:02:23] We can enjoy more energizing greens and satisfying savory vegetables, more whole food sources of succulently sweet fruit, luxurious fats, strength-building proteins, and satiating starches. More meals that leave us feeling truly nourished. If we slow down and tune in to how we feel physically and emotionally during and after meals, we can use those insights to inform and motivate future choices.

[00:02:48] We can be physically active in a way that honors our innate need to move, but doesn't feel punitive or forced. We can curiously and playfully experiment with different movements that help us feel grounded, calm, and strong. We can take more long, lazy walks. We can head to the hills for hot, sunny, dusty hikes. We can slow down and connect with the earth by gardening or by taking a cleansing cold plunge into a lake, river, or the ocean.

[00:03:13] We can get lost in organic, passionate, and physical expression with dance, tai chi, yoga, or s***. Even running intervals in the rain, dripping with sweat while spinning, or building calluses weightlifting can be positive and rejuvenating with the right mindset. We can prioritize laughter and connection with a friend or loved one instead of checking email for the tenth time that day. We can get that desperately needed sleep instead of endlessly scrolling through social media. We can do something unexpectedly kind for a stranger.

[00:03:42] We can take five long, slow, deep, restorative breaths. We can listen to music that makes our soul sing. We can cultivate wellness by smiling and focusing kindly on the moment before us. Am I Drinking Too Much? By Becca Schoen of minimalwellness.com Once a week, while having dinner with Ella, I join her at the table, dinner on one hand, cold IPA in the other. Then, twice a week.

[00:04:12] Then, three times. It's just a nice way to end the day, to relieve the stress of parenting, I thought. But eventually, I found myself in the kitchen most nights, glass in hand, justifying my mounting habit with flippant dismissals. What's the big deal if I'm tipsy? I'm relaxed. This is what most parents do. I'd mutter to myself and then take a sip. Investigating less desirable behaviors and admitting that some of our actions might not be in line with our best selves is not an enjoyable activity.

[00:04:40] Taking corrective action, meaning not doing the thing we've been doing, confronting the shame we might be harboring, and addressing the reasons that led us to the behavior is difficult. But the benefit of paying attention to our habits, good or bad, is that we can correct problems in their infancy. Habits are behaviors on autopilot that have environmental or emotional triggers. Identifying and addressing our triggers is the key to correcting a negative habit.

[00:05:06] Recently, I spent a month away from alcohol, interrogating my consumption patterns in an effort to unravel some unhealthy trends I saw developing. I realized that when I was in LA, I drank infrequently and always in the context of social gatherings, which felt fine. But in Montana, I started to struggle keeping my intake at levels I felt comfortable with. Winding down with a glass of wine on Friday night morphed into hanging out in the kitchen several nights a week with a beverage or two.

[00:05:34] And if the contents of the fridge were less than inspiring, I'd justify dining out more than our budget allows so that I could enjoy a drink with dinner. Then I read a recent study which shows that even moderate alcohol consumption increases the risk of death. I realized my habits around booze were out of sync with some of my health and wellness values, like quality sleep, vibrant health, and cooking my family dinners.

[00:05:58] Upon deeper inspection, I acknowledged that during my weeks in Montana, the day-to-day grind of solo parenting was weighing on me. The evenings and weekends often included times where I yearned for a little excitement, an escape, some soothing. Instead of seeing, respecting, and addressing the dull pains of boredom, loneliness, and monotony, I engaged in avoidance. But after a few weeks of abstinence, the powerful force of ritual faded,

[00:06:23] and I realized the occasional emotional discomfort I experienced wasn't that hard to work through. I've come to appreciate the pangs of angst, and I'm learning to embrace the opportunity for self-reflection they provide, without reaching for liquid reprieve. The urge to take the edge off is one that's heavily reinforced in our culture. The basic message being broadcast around alcohol is that it's okay to drink at any time for any reason. Few people seem to care about the current statistics around women and liquor, which are horrific.

[00:06:52] Alcohol is sold as a luxury, as a reward, as critical for all social gatherings, and as the salve for the stresses of daily life. The reality of this consumerist elixir of choice is that it's an expensive, addictive, and carcinogenic toxin. Sure, for most people, it's fine to enjoy an adult beverage from time to time, but if good physical and emotional health are values we hold, it shouldn't occupy a prominent position in our lives.

[00:07:18] Societal norms around alcohol and stigma attached to alcohol abuse can lead us to rationalize or ignore behaviors we might otherwise recognize as incongruous with our best selves. By viewing our habits and triggers without judgment can help us adjust, create boundaries, and establish new patterns that will enable us to positively evolve. You just listened to the posts titled, Cultivating Wellness and, Am I Drinking Too Much?

[00:07:48] Both by Becca Schoen of minimalwellness.com. And I'll be right back with my commentary. Shaq here. What's it like to buy a car from Carvana 100% online and get it delivered to your door? Let me tell you. Your car is here, Mr. Shaq. Thank you, Mr. Carvana guy. Can't wait to take it for a spin. Only the best for you, Mr. Shaq. Hey, have you always been so big, tall, and handsome? Not always. I was 6'10 once. Seven days to love it or return it, Mr. Shaq. Not that I would. You never do.

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[00:08:47] With Ultra. Shop now at ultrarunning.com. That's A-L-T-R-A running dot com. Dr. Neal here for my commentary. What does wellness really mean? Have you ever thought about what health means and what wellness means? And are there actual differences between those terms? There are, in fact. Wellness was actually what Becca described in her post. Think of health this way. Let me start with that definition first. Health is the absence of disease.

[00:09:16] Well, that's a simplified version of that definition. Health, the absence of disease. Makes sense. Wellness is different. Wellness is what steps do you take? What behaviors do you follow to improve your physical, mental, social, and emotional well-being? Becca described eating more energizing greens. She talked about moving in a way that doesn't feel punitive or forced. Basically staying active. She talks about doing tai chi and yoga.

[00:09:45] Spending time in the actual presence of others instead of on social media. These would all be examples of wellness. These are behaviors that will lead to the improvement of your overall health. Now, does drinking alcohol in moderation? Would that count as a form of wellness to help improve our overall health? Would drinking alcohol as a behavior improve our overall health? Well, I'll share with you a little secret.

[00:10:10] The Harvard School of Public Health states that there are clear benefits to alcohol when consumed in moderation. Oh, but they also say if you don't drink, there's no need to start. Why? Because you can get the same benefits if you eat a nutritious diet and exercise regularly, manage your stress, you know, all the other stuff we talk about. But if you do drink, what they would recommend is for women, no more than one drink per day, and for men, no more than two drinks per day.

[00:10:39] What's a drink? One drink, well, there are different ways to look at it. The Harvard School of Public Health and the USDA say that one drink would be equivalent to a six-ounce glass of wine. That would just count as one drink itself. Or a shot of hard liquor like whiskey or gin, or a 12-ounce beer. Each of those would be considered one drink. So I want to be clear there. If you had a glass of wine, about six ounces, and a shot or an ounce and a half of hard liquor

[00:11:07] like whiskey or gin, if you had all of those, that would be three drinks. And so the studies, when we look at the data, what we're finding is when drinking in moderation, again, for ladies, that would be like one glass of wine each day, it may lead to a decreased risk for cardiovascular disease like heart attack and stroke. But again, that doesn't mean everybody needs to drink in moderation. You have to pay attention to your health history, whether you're on medications. And also remember, you can get the same benefits without drinking by eating a nutritious diet,

[00:11:38] exercising, managing your stress, getting enough sleep, you know, all the other stuff we talk about on this show. All right, that'll do it from me for today. I'll be back here tomorrow for our usual Friday Q&A. So stay tuned for that, where your optimal life awaits.