E244: Boredom in Sobriety

Sober Powered: The Neuroscience of Being Sober

Gillian Tietz, MS, CPRC

Science, Self-improvement, Education, Health & Fitness, Mental Health

4.9 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 30 August 2024

⏱️ 23 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

It’s very normal to feel bored when you quit drinking. We get used to constant excitement, dopamine and chaos while we’re drinking, so it can be difficult to adjust. Plus, many of us give up our hobbies that don’t involve alcohol, so when we get sober we don’t know what to do with all of our free time. In this episode I’m going to discuss why some of us are prone to boredom when we try to stop drinking. Throughout the episode I am going to build on our definition of boredom and why it develops. Then we’ll discuss strategies for managing boredom in sobriety. What to listen to next: E162: what to expect cognitively when you quit drinking E235: dopamine and loss of control E226: using alcohol to escape your life E228: why alcohol automatically captures and holds your attention Sober Support: Community & Meetings: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Tired in Early Sobriety Course https://www.soberpowered.com/why-am-i-so-tired-after-quitting-drinking Anger Management Program https://www.soberpowered.com/anger Weekly emails on Fridays https://www.soberpowered.com/email Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors. Learn more: https://www.soberpowered.com/sponsors If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpowered Sources are posted on my website Disclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	It's very normal to feel bored when you quit drinking.
0:03.6	We get used to constant excitement, dopamine, and chaos while we're drinking,
0:09.1	so it can be difficult to adjust.
0:11.2	Plus, many of us give up our hobbies that don't involve alcohol
0:14.9	so when we get sober we don't know what to do with all the free time. In this
0:19.7	episode I'm going to discuss why some of us are prone to boredom when we try to stop drinking.
0:26.0	Throughout the episode I'm going to build on our definition of boredom and why it develops,
0:31.0	and then we will discuss strategies for managing boredom in sobriety.
0:35.6	Before we dig in I'd like to say a quick thank you to my sponsors who made this episode possible.
0:42.0	I cherish my daily walks. They're my moment of peace and
0:46.2	essential for my mental health. And let's be honest, bragging about my step count is
0:51.5	pretty fun too.
0:52.8	Recently I got my first smartwatch from a Mays Fit
0:55.8	and it's been interesting to look at all of my health data.
0:58.9	With a Mays Fit I can track more than just my steps.
1:02.2	It gives me real-time updates on my heart rate
1:04.7	and monitors my sleep patterns
1:06.5	to help me understand how well I'm resting
1:09.0	and how to improve my sleep quality.
1:11.3	One of the things I love the most is the battery life. It keeps going for days on a single
1:16.9	charge so I never have to worry about it dying on me even during my busiest weeks. It's perfect for those times when I'm traveling or just forget to pay attention to it.
1:27.0	A Macefit has over 42 million daily active users and is in more than 90 countries around the world.
	...

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