Alcohol

If you use alcohol, or intend on using, below are some tips on how to reduce the harm, when using the drug.

14 units per week. It is advised that both males and females should not exceed consuming more than 14 units a week. This is equivalent to 6 pints of medium-strength beer or 10 small glasses of wine. If you intend to drink up to 14 units of alcohol a week, it is advised to spread this amount over the 7-day period and to have more alcohol-free days than alcohol-fuelled. On average it takes your body 1 hour to process 1 unit of alcohol. Regularly drinking above this recommended limit can increase the risk of experiencing negative effects associated to alcohol use such as health problems and dependency.
Don’t mix alcohol. Avoid mixing drugs with alcohol. It can lead to unpredictable and unwanted side effects. Alcohol can cause prescribed medications not to work effectively; it can increase the risk of an overdose, such as when used alongside valium or heroin; and it can also cause interactions within your body, such as when consumed with cocaine, it can lead to your liver producing cocaethylene, a more toxic drug than either alcohol or cocaine separately. Mixing different alcoholic drinks can also increase the risk of making you feel ill.
Eating isn’t cheating. If you intend to drink alcohol, try and consume a substantial meal beforehand. This will help your body process the alcohol. Drinking on an empty stomach can lead you to feeling unwell.
Keep hydrated. Aim to be as hydrated as possible, by drinking water before you start drinking alcohol. Alternate your alcoholic drinks with soft drinks, such as water or orange juice, during your session too. One of the main causes and symptoms of a hangover is dehydration.
Look after your mates. Alcohol affects people in different ways. If a friend is experiencing negative effects due to alcohol use, take them to a quiet place, help them get home safely and if they fall asleep, put them in the recovery position and regularly check on them, to avoid them choking on their own vomit.
Drinking out? If you are intending to go out to the pubs or clubs, avoid buying drinks in rounds. It can not only become expensive but you are also more likely to drink alcohol quicker than if you bought your own drinks at your own pace. Make sure you know how you are getting home safely too. A good tip is to keep some money back at home, just in case you spend it all on your night out, so you can still afford a taxi.
Drinking at home? Our measurements when pouring our drinks at home don’t tend to be accurate as we tend to measure by ‘eye’. Therefore you may be more likely to consume more alcohol than you intend. You can buy measuring cups or spirit measures to help you dose more accurately.
Start Low Go Slow. If you have never drank alcohol before or you have had an extended break, your tolerance could be quite low. Therefore you don’t need to consume much to start feeling the effects. If you drink quickly, or a lot, you are more likely to feel adverse effects such as feeling sick or becoming unconscious.
Think about consent and safe sex. Alcohol reduces your inhibitions and adversely affects your decision making. In the event of where you may have sex, ensure each person involved consents before and during sex. If someone says no, it means no. Also, be prepared. If you do end up having sex, carry contraception such as condoms or dams, to reduce the risk of transmitting and contracting various infections and viruses. Free condoms are available from any of our services. You can also get free home STI testing kits from Frisky Wales.
Reach out if you are worried. If you are worried about your own, or a loved one’s alcohol use, get in touch with your local service. Here at Barod, we provide free, confidential support to anyone affected by substance use. You can chat to a trained support worker via our Live Webchat Service too. If you are over 50, you can access the dedicated helpline supporting those affected by alcohol use, by calling 0808 801 0750 or clicking here for more information.

WATCH our top 10 harm reduction tips here.

To gain an understanding of how much you are drinking, how it compares to other people and for instant feedback, why not check out the Drinks Meter.

Below are the common signs of someone experiencing an alcohol overdose and how to effectively respond to a situation. In the event of an overdose, call 999.

The benefits to reducing your alcohol intake will vary from one person to the next. Some people will have specific things in mind such as improving their physical health, while others may want a bit of extra cash in their pocket to spend on other things.

Many people who have accessed Barod for support around alcohol use and achieved their goals have identified the following benefits:

Better sleep – Alcohol disrupts your sleep and therefore can make you feel tired the next day. This is primarily due to alcohol interfering with your neurotransmitter, glutamine, a natural stimulant. Alcohol supresses this, but once you stop drinking and are ready for bed, the production of glutamine is ‘revved up’ again, meaning you are likely to be tossing and turning throughout the night, while also being easily woken.

Improved physical health – Alcohol affects most parts of you body, none more so than your liver. Heavy drinking over a long period of time can also lead to significant issues with many of your organs including the development of liver cirrhosis and alcohol related brain damage (ARBD). For more on ARBD can be found within our ‘Grey Matters‘ campaign.

Improved mental health – Many people have identified alcohol as having a detrimental effect on their mental health, whether that be rising anxiety levels or experiencing depression-like symptoms.

More energy – Alcohol is known to be full of calories and has no nutritional value and so by reducing your drinking could help you improve your diet. With that in mind, as well as the benefits mentioned above, you are more likely to enjoy the things you do, whether that be spending time with the family or doing certain hobbies and activities.

More money – Drinking alcohol can be costly, regardless of how much you drink. Therefore, by reducing your intake can lead to you having more money in your back pocket.

Improved relationships – It can be hard to see a loved one be negatively affected by alcohol use and therefore it can put strain on relationships. Reducing alcohol consumption could mean more quality time spent with family and friends.

Martin’s story – Check out what benefits Martin has experienced, since he stopped drinking

Reach out for support. Services like Barod provide free, confidential one-to-one support for anyone affected by substance use. We also facilitate mutual aid groups, such as SMART Recovery, where people can gain peer support, from people who may find themselves in a similar situation. While accessing services may not always be possible for some, we’d still recommend reaching out to someone you feel could help you achieve your goals.
Drink-free days. Think about how many days each week you don’t have a drink. Depending on what number that is, you could look to increase it by one. For example, if you drink everyday, identify one day each week that would be realistic for you not to drink. When that becomes comfortable, identify a second day and so on. Ideally, you should have more alcohol-free days, than alcohol-fuelled. Alcohol-free days can also help improve your physical and mental health. Plus it could free up time to do other things such as hobbies and interests.
Track your drinking. Using tools such as a drinks diary, can help you identify any potential patterns to your alcohol use. Without knowing it, you could drink more at a certain time of the day or week, or when you are with certain people. Therefore, this provides you with a starting point of where you can start to cut down.
Identify and develop strategies for managing triggers. If you are successfully reducing your alcohol use, there may come a time when you come across a ‘trigger’, something that could lead you to drink alcohol at that time. A trigger could be anything from a specific situation, a person or place, or a feeling and emotion. Building effective coping mechanisms will provide you with the best possible chance of overcoming these triggers. However, if you do lapse or relapse, it is not the end of the world, and it happens to many people. You could use it as a learning experience moving forward.
Plan ahead. There may be times when you know you are going to face one of those triggers, such as a potentially stressful, busy week ahead. So before you encounter those situations, plan to do something different. This could also act as a reward for getting through that day or week.
Set SMART goals. When thinking about reducing or stopping your alcohol use, it is important to be realistic and not to think that if you don’t do it by tomorrow, you can never do it. Change in behaviour takes time and it’s not always easy. SMART goals can provide focus and help you take one step at a time, at a pace that suits you. SMART stands for: Specific; Measurable; Achievable; Realistic; Time-bound. Below is a simple example:

Specific – To stop drinking alcohol completely.

Measurable – I currently drink everyday and want to aim towards having drink-free days before stopping altogether.

Achievable – I plan to attend SMART Recovery meetings and utilise Barod’s Live Webchat Service for additional support.

Realistic – Yes. I have done it before and feel like I can learn from my last relapse. I also feel that by stopping will help sleep better and improve my relationships.

Time-bound – I will take my time and take each week as it comes. However, I hope to increase the number of drink-free days every month and be alcohol-free after 12 months.

There are lots of great digital, online tools available that can help you make those first few steps in your journey of reducing or stopping your alcohol use.

Drinkaware – Digital tools to help you assess, track and set goals to reduce your drinking.

Drinks Meter – To gain an understanding of how much you are drinking, how it compares to other people and for instant feedback, check out the Drinks Meter.

Alcohol Change UK – Interactive tools to help you check your drinking and to cut down

Below are links to some inspiring stories and testimonies from people who have overcome their personal issues with alcohol.

Tasha

“I’ve been wanting to write this letter to you for a very long time, yet I didn’t know when to start. At first you were my best friend. I went through many painful times in my life and truth be told, in those times, you held my hand and made everything seem that little bit better”. Read Tasha’s goodbye letter to alcohol here.

Martin

“I stopped drinking on November 11th (2019). It’s a significant date for many people. It’s the armistice day, It’s the day the second world war stopped. Its when the war ended. For me it feels like the war ended with alcohol”. Watch Martin talk about his recovery journey here.

Sam

“My advice to anyone who is looking to make a change in their life, like reduce or stop their drug or alcohol use, is to give it a try. Contact someone like Barod, there are people there to help”. Watch Sam discuss how his life has changed since starting his recovery journey from alcohol use, here.

We provide support to anyone affected by alcohol use, including those affected by a loved one’s use. Below is the list of areas we currently cover. Just click on the service for more information including their contact details. Alternatively, access our Live Webchat Service and speak to one of our trained support workers.

DDAS (Adults) and Choices West (Young People) – covering Dyfed including Llanelli, Carmarthen, Haverfordwest, Cardigan and Aberystwyth and everywhere in-between

Swansea (Adults) and Choices Swansea (Young People) – covering the City and County of Swansea

CTDAS (Adults) and Cwm Taf Young Persons – covering Merthyr Tydfil and Rhondda Cynon Taf including Pontypridd and Aberdare

GDAS (Adults) and Gwent N-Gage (Young Persons) – covering Gwent including Newport, Ebbw Vale, Monthmouth, Caerphilly and Torfaen.

Over 50? We have a dedicated Over 50s Alcohol Helpline where you can access free, confidential one-to-one support over the phone. Call 0808 801 0750 or visit our dedicated page here

Sometimes it is hard to know where to start when you are concerned about a loved one and their substance use, especially how to start and have a conversation with them about their use. Here are some tips we have put together which may make having that conservation a little easier.

Stay Calm – when talking to a loved one about their substance use it can often be a very emotive subject and they may become defensive and angry. Stay calm in order to reduce the conversation escalating into an argument. It is very difficult to argue with a calm person.

Time – choose a time that is good for both of you. If they are intoxicated or have had a bad day this may not be the best time to talk about their substance use. Choose a time when you are both calm and don’t have any distractions around so you can have a meaningful conversation.

Listen – it is important to allow your loved one to talk – that is the whole point of a conversation. Listen carefully to what they are saying and don’t interrupt.

Don’t be judgmental – your loved one probably knows that their substance use is having an impact on the people around them and often feel a great sense of guilt and shame. You may not agree with their actions but try not to judge or accuse them as they probably already feel judged by the people around them and may become defensive.

Ask open questions – ask questions where it is difficult to give one word answers. This can help a conversation flow and avoids an easy “yes” or “no” answer.

Positives – your loved one is probably very aware of all the negative things they may be doing. Try and let them know of the positives they are doing. Everyone likes to know when they are doing something good and it encourages us to keep doing that positive thing.

Knowledge – research information on drugs and alcohol. It may help you understand some of their behaviours and recognise when they are intoxicated and what support is available.

Get support – Barod offer support for loved ones who may be concerned or affected by someone else’s drug or alcohol use as well as support for loved ones who are using substances.

Sometimes a loved one may not be ready to have a conversation about their substance use. It is important to let them know you are there and ready to have that conversation. Don’t be disheartened if they don’t wish to talk about their substance use straight away, the fact you have approached the subject in a non judgmental and supportive way shows them you care.

WATCH our short video on how to start a conversation with loved one, regarding their alcohol use, here.