Is it okay to take a shot of alcholic beverage to battle anxiety?
Friday, November 20th, 2009 at
8:20 pm
I suffer from anxiety and sometimes really lose it when it comes to public speaking. Is it okay and normal to have a shot of some alcholic beverage to calm my nerves? I was on Lexapro briefly and it didn’t help.
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Filed under: Anxiety Attacks
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It’s not ideal in the long run and their are lots of various treatments (talk and tablets) that can enable you to be a confident public speaker and person. From experience i would advise you to see a Cognitive Behavioural therapist if your see it as a problem that causes you regular anxiety
I say why not
If you are not getting drunk and it helps to take a shot I cannot see any harm
Depends on how much you public speak…
Father Jonna Eli Pulli was so nervous at his first mass that he could hardly speak. Before his second week in the pulpit, he asked the Monsignor how he could relax. The Monsignor said, next week it may help if you put some vodka in the water pitcher. (*Hmmm… nice idea.. hehee..*)
After a few sips, everything should go smoothly. The next week, the priest put the suggestion into practice. He was able to talk up a storm and felt just great. Upon returning to the rectory however, he found a note from the Monsignor:
1.Next time, sip rather than gulp.
2.There are ten commandments, not twelve.
3.There are twelve disciples, not ten.
4.David slaid Goliath, he didn’t kick the shit out of him.
5.We do not refer to our saviour Jesus Christ and his Apostles as J.C. and the boys.
6.Next week there is a taffy pulling contest at St. Peter’s not a Peter pulling at St. Taffy’s.
7.The Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost are not referred to as Big Daddy, Junior and the Spook.
8.We do not refer to the Cross as the "big X".
9.The recommended grace before meals is not "rub-a-dub-dub, thanks for the grub, yeah God".
10.And you don’t refer to the Virgin Mary as Mary with the Cherry.
It’s not a good habit to get into.
NO…it only causes more drinking. Talk to doc about antianxeity meds like zanax or somethin similar like paxil.
I would go back to your doctor and tell them that the Lexapro didn’t help, maybe get something stronger
maybe dont do shots? have some wine to calm you down instead
NO…it only leads to a desire to do it ALL the time..an addiction in the works. Use relazation techniques! Google it.
it might cause an addiction :[
like a reliance…
no. then you will sound like a boozer. get a beta blocker - it will slow your heart rate
No its not ok. You will soon begin to rely on it to calm you down and will turn into an alcoholic. Pray about it!
ONE shot of alchol a day is enough to calm your nerves and keep your blood thinned. It’s actually good for your health if you only have ONE shot of alchol. Don’t mix it with drugs and don’t overdue it and yes, it’s quite normal.
Hope this helps,
the alcohol is just going to make your more nerves because u will still have the anxiety problems and then you are adding alcohol to the situation, especially if you are under 21 dont bring the alcohol into the situation
It might be ok once in a while. However, if you take a shot once a day, it’s a different story. Getting addicted to an alcoholic beverage is not good for your body and for your wallet
Alcohol was lexapro before lexapro existed. It’s fine, just don’t make it something you need to have every time. You don’t want to have that type of dependence on any drug.
that sounds like a one way track to alcaholism. Self medicating with alcahol is NEVER a good idea. Talk to a doctor about other medications that could help better.
The thing with alcohol it can become addictive.
there are other medications for anxiety you should ask your doctor
Good move
Can the meds and turn to Jack Daniels instead.
I got a lot of good ol buddies, but Jack Daniels is a friend of mine.
I would not recommend it. I do drink, but not before an important event. If you start to drink before an important speech, you might start drinking at other times and just use that for everything. Not to mention that would be very unprofessional, and you don’t want to slur or anything at all during your speech!
ive always considered doing it myself. as long as you dont make yourself tipsy, I don’t see why not.
Some tips:
1) do it Rarely! the more often you do it, the less of an impact it will have on you, and you run the risk of becoming dependant.
2) do not do it while taking any anti-anxiety medicine or any medicine of any kind!
3) limit yourself! even if you dont think 1 shot did enough, taking anymore may push you over the edge. if 1 does nothing for you, then don’t bother.
no. because you are going to get addicted. My mom deals with this kind of thing for her job. I know it JUST helps your nerves now but pretty soon your going to need more and more and more to calm your "Nerves" I say go to your local doctor or therapist. Tell them what is going on. Trust me it will help. My mom helps people with these kinds of things for a living.
that’s how people become alcoholics. look at stage performers - there have been actors who drank or used drugs every time before they went on stage, and more often then not, would wind up coming out on stage drunk, making a fool out of themselves. drinking before you go out on stage, even a little bit, makes you dependent on alcohol. after a while, your body will build up a tolerance to alcohol and you will need to drink more and more to get the same effect that one shot used to have on you.
a better method of battling anxiety, and especially stage fright anxiety, would be to talk to your doctor about getting on different medication. xanax is often used for short-term, intense anxiety. i myself have used xanax for stage fright and it works wonders.
Of course it is. Drinking relives you and calms you down. But, don’t take any drink too strong or often.
No. Alcohol is a sedative. Any drugs or controlled substances are NOT good for you. A more powerful way to deal with anxiety is to be present to it, to see what it is that you are avoiding or afraid of? A survey once indicated that the two top fears people have is dying and public speaking. Fear of public speaking is number one, death is number two. So you are in plenty of company.
I do a lot of public speaking and there are several methods of learning how to deal with the anxiety. One is to pick out one person in the large group, and talk to just them. Another is to picture them all naked. This is hilarious. Another is go up there and tell them you are terrified and don’t try to cover up. Another (used by a lot of professionals) is to go into the bathroom before a presentation and actually throw up. The famous comedian and television star, Red Skelton used to do this regularly. Taking a shot of alcohol can lead to two shots, three shots, intoxication, and alcoholism.
I am totally craking up at all of the discussion that this will somehow lead to addiction. What a bunch of ninnies.
At one time, this was a very common prescription for anxiety. In fact, until the mid seventies, women were often told to have a glass of port to ease the anxiety of breastfeeding! You’re not going to develop an addiction by having a bit of booze to help. I would, however, visit your doctor to see what else might help. Valium is great for public speaking and still prescribed for anxiety.
im not saying its right but it helps me
take 23 shots. it makes you smarter.
I really would not recomend it. Performance anxiety the hardest anxiety to overcome (this includes, public speaking, stage fright, ect). This is when your abilities have to be at their best, your mind the clearest, your reactions sharp, and you must have a unaltered mind to really be at your best.
Alcohol can relieve anxiety but it works by numbing you to it. It softens the impact of what is making you anxious. To give someone a shot of alcohol after they have just gotten some devistating news (the death of someone close, unfavorable medical prognosis, ect) is a very acceptable idea. It can help the person to not fall apart at that time.
But before going on stage doing this can cause your preformance to be less than stellar. In fact, it can damage your career / reputation. The reason that alcohol can do this is because of the human ‘fight or flight’ reaction to anxiety. One of the main componets of this is that the piloric valve of the stomach closes off to keep food from moving through the digestive tract. This valve relaxes after the stress that causes the anxiety has passed. If there is a shot a alcohol caught behind this valve, when the valve opens it will go straight into the bloodstream and some times affect you like having a few shots.
I know that if you look into the biographies of many of the great stars of stage and screen you will find that some used alcohol this way but you will also find that many times the practise resulted in tragic mistakes.
Personally, I find that some deep breathing and concentration on what I am going to do works wonders even in the most tring of times. I also stay ways from many of the energy drinks because high levels of caffine can cause you to have more anxiety than you would have normally. When you go out on stage people have very high expectations and doing things that dull any of your senses just takes away from doing your best.