Corking the Bottle

My brain was fried when I was drinking. I didn't drink to have a good time. I drank to kill the brain cells that were making me hurt. But alcohol doesn't discriminate between brain cells. In my last post I blogged about a sobering (pun intended) episode of Dr. Phil. Have a look back at it. In it, the good doctor listed effects and defects to the brain when we drink: Slower Clumsier Dumber Irresponsible Unpredictable Immature Impulsive Our brain becomes a version of itself. So whatever you started with goes straight downhill, according to Dr. Phil. Alcohol limits parts of the brain from communicating with other parts. What is going on in our heads when we reach .08, the legal definition of drunk? Tune in tomorrow.

(Reprinted from my blog post July 31, 2018) The debate rages: Is alcoholism a matter of choice or is it a disease? Well, maybe not "rages." But the question does go "blip" in some circles. My cousin, in a phone text, referenced a blog post I wrote on May 20 about the disease question and she pointed me in the direction of a YouTube address by Dr. Kevin McCauley ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2emgrRoT2c ). It's well worth the investment of an hour, 12 minutes, and 13 seconds for an easy-to-follow analysis of addiction and our brains. The prefrontal cortex is the part of the brain that controls conscious thought, behavior, decision making, and the like. Experiments with mice prove that's not where addiction attacks. The midbrain is the survival brain. It handles eating, killing (self protection), and sex. This is the part of the brain where alcohol and other drugs work, which means we are tricked into believing we need more and more for survival. Not...

(Reprinted from my blog post July 28, 2018) We store pains in our brains and issues in our tissues. Sounds to me like a good excuse to drink, huh? At least it was a good excuse for me. If you think too much, you may drink too much. Go ahead, self-medicate, that evil little voice inside me used to say. Did it work? You know the answer already. If it did, my brain right now would be fogging, not blogging. My corpuscles would be clogging. I'm going to stop this rhyme, just in time. (It sounds pretty stupid, and I don't want you to miss the point.) That is that alcohol is poison, bad medicine, addictive, and dangerous. To remove pain from your brain and issues from your tissues, try God. Pray daily. Take your higher power on vacation with you. It will fit in a carry-on. Your gray matter matters.

[First published July 31, 2018] The debate rages: Is alcoholism a matter of choice or is it a disease? Well, maybe not "rages." But the question does go "blip" in some circles. My cousin, in a phone text, referenced a blog post I wrote on May 20 about the disease question and she pointed me in the direction of a YouTube address by Dr. Kevin McCauley ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2emgrRoT2c ). It's well worth the investment of an hour, 12 minutes, and 13 seconds for an easy-to-follow analysis of addiction and our brains. The prefrontal cortex is the part of the brain that controls conscious thought, behavior, decision making, and the like. Experiments with mice prove that's not where addiction attacks. The midbrain is the survival brain. It handles eating, killing (self protection), and sex. This is the part of the brain where alcohol and other drugs work, which means we are tricked into believing we need more and more for survival. Nothing else th...

[First published July 28, 2018] We store pains in our brains and issues in our tissues. Sounds to me like a good excuse to drink, huh? At least it was a good excuse for me. If you think too much, you may drink too much. Go ahead, self-medicate, that evil little voice inside me used to say. Did it work? You know the answer already. If it did, my brain right now would be fogging, not blogging. My corpuscles would be clogging. I'm going to stop this rhyme, just in time. (It sounds pretty stupid, and I don't want you to miss the point.) That is that alcohol is poison, bad medicine, addictive, and dangerous. To remove pain from your brain and issues from your tissues, try God. Pray daily. Take your higher power on vacation with you. It will fit in a carry-on. Your gray matter matters.

[First published May 25, 2018] I don't believe in exorcising spirits, but I sure do believe in exercising spirits. No priest or holy water are required for the latter. A good pair of shoes and maybe some Gatorade and you are all set to exercise. Your spirit will soon be in good spirits. Working out is essential to the health of all, but an alcoholic needs workouts as much as an AA sponsor to feel well again. After I finish writing this post, I will go out and work in the yard. It's a far cry from my prime when I ran marathons and often 20-plus mile training runs. Bad knees, old age, and alcohol have all taken a toll on my physical well-being. Nevertheless, I can't allow myself to collect cobwebs in my easychair. So I walk. Or use my elliptical machine in the basement. Or cut grass and do other yard work. If going to the gym, riding a bike, or swimming are more your athletic cup of tea, go for it. Just do something to raise your heart rate for at least 30 minutes fou...

The debate rages: Is alcoholism a matter of choice or is it a disease? Well, maybe not "rages." But the question does go "blip" in some circles. My cousin, in a phone text, referenced a blog post I wrote on May 20 about the disease question and she pointed me in the direction of a YouTube address by Dr. Kevin McCauley ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2emgrRoT2c ). It's well worth the investment of an hour, 12 minutes, and 13 seconds for an easy-to-follow analysis of addiction and our brains. The prefrontal cortex is the part of the brain that controls conscious thought, behavior, decision making, and the like. Experiments with mice prove that's not where addiction attacks. The midbrain is the survival brain. It handles eating, killing (self protection), and sex. This is the part of the brain where alcohol and other drugs work, which means we are tricked into believing we need more and more for survival. Nothing else then matters. We drink to live and l...

We store pains in our brains and issues in our tissues. Sounds to me like a good excuse to drink, huh? At least it was a good excuse for me. If you think too much, you may drink too much. Go ahead, self-medicate, that evil little voice inside me used to say. Did it work? You know the answer already. If it did, my brain right now would be fogging, not blogging. My corpuscles would be clogging. I'm going to stop this rhyme, just in time. (It sounds pretty stupid, and I don't want you to miss the point.) That is that alcohol is poison, bad medicine, addictive, and dangerous. To remove pain from your brain and issues from your tissues, try God. Pray daily. Take your higher power on vacation with you. It will fit in a carry-on. Your gray matter matters.

I don't believe in exorcising spirits, but I sure do believe in exercising spirits. No priest or holy water are required for the latter. A good pair of shoes and maybe some Gatorade and you are all set to exercise. Your spirit will soon be in good spirits. Working out is essential to the health of all, but an alcoholic needs workouts as much as an AA sponsor to feel well again. After I finish writing this post, I will brave the Kentucky heat to take a brisk walk through my neighborhood. It's a far cry from my prime when I ran marathons and often 20-plus mile training runs. Bad knees, old age, and alcohol have all taken a toll on my physical well-being. Nevertheless, I can't allow myself to collect cobwebs in my easychair. So I walk. Or use my elliptical machine in the basement. Or cut grass and do other yard work. If going to the gym, riding a bike, or swimming are more your athletic cup of tea, go for it. Just do something to raise your heart rate for at least 30 min...