I LOVE reading from the Web, there is just SO much information out there and I love the way that I just kind of fall across good stuff. Here is a blog that’s been written by someone else but has put me on a journey of learning that I feel I have to share. That goes for all of the other posts that I’ve posted actually, and this morning I’ve summarised what I’ve been doing.
Hat’s off to all of the bloggers who contribute to this website.
I started with reading a blog about Re-Learning once you’ve stopped drinking, only because of a notification on my phone of a new post on Medium I have to add, and I came across an abundance of info in that one blog, that I feel like I have to share, it would be selfish not too, so here goes, it starts here and the blog was written by a guy called Ken M. Middleton who has a writing spot on Medium with a page called AINYF. The guy has a wealth of information on the subject and I’d suggest looking if you have any kind of drink problem.
The multitude of ways alcohol affects us are so many that I would go well over the 7-minute recommended Medium length if I went into all of them. One of the most important ones to note, however, is the harmful effect alcohol has on our ability to learn and pick up new skills.
I talk about this in detail in the AINYF article Why Alcohol KILLS Your Ability to Learn and How to Fix it. If you are looking for the science behind this, you will find it in that article.
And it was from inside that link above that I found a lot of science behind what happens to the brain while drinking. Not that I am a regular drinker I have to say, I just find it fascinating how it affects the brain, and for you out there that I know do have drink problems I feel it could be of great benefit to all of you. Please follow the links to read on.
What Alcohol Really Does To Your Brain and below is a useful summary from the website HowStuffWorks explaining how alcohol affects different parts of the brain:
Why drinking makes you less inhibited:
- Cerebral cortex: In this region, where thought processing and consciousness are centered, alcohol depresses the behavioral inhibitory centers, making the person less inhibited; it slows down the processing of information from the eyes, ears, mouth, and other senses; and it inhibits the thought processes, making it difficult to think clearly.
Why drinking makes you clumsy:
- Cerebellum: Alcohol affects this center of movement and balance, resulting in the staggering, off-balance swagger we associate with the so-called “falling-down drunk.”
Why drinking increases sexual urges but decreases sexual performance:
- Hypothalamus and pituitary: The hypothalamus and pituitary coordinate automatic brain functions and hormone release. Alcohol depresses nerve centers in the hypothalamus that control sexual arousal and performance. Although sexual urges may increase, sexual performance decreases.
- Medulla: This area of the brain handles such automatic functions as breathing, consciousness, and body temperature. By acting on the medulla, alcohol induces sleepiness. It can also slow breathing and lower body temperature, which can be life-threatening.
Alcohol, Memory, and the Hippocampus Over time with repeated use of alcohol especially by people who binge drink alcohol can cause actual damage to the hippocampus leading to more sustained cognitive and memory problems. Interestingly the hippocampus is a unique structure in which new neurons are constantly “being born” and this neurogenesis plays a very important role in learning and memory. One of the ways in which alcohol can damage the hippocampus is by disrupting neurogenesis.
It’s no secret that alcohol affects our brains, and most moderate drinkers like the way it makes them feel — happier, less stressed, more sociable. Science has verified alcohol’s feel-good effect; PET scans have shown that alcohol releases endorphins (the “pleasure hormones”) which bind to opiate receptors in the brain. Although excessive drinking is linked to an increased risk of dementia, decades of observational studies have indicated that moderate drinking — defined as no more than one drink a day for women and two for men — has few ill effects. (A drink equals 1.5 ounces of 80-proof spirits, 5 ounces of wine, or 12 ounces of beer.) However, a recent British study seems to have bad news for moderate drinkers, indicating that even moderate drinking is associated with shrinkage in areas of the brain involved in cognition and learning.
Dr. Majid Fotuhi says Can you grow your hippocampus? Yes. Here’s how, and why it matters. It’s fascinating and you can read it here
Research shows that we have the capacity to grow new neurons above and beyond what is generally produced in our hippocampus and to make them become mature and strong within weeks and months. The best way to generate new hippocampal neurons is to exercise. Studies have shown that people who exercise regularly and are physically fit have a much bigger hippocampus. The more you walk, the bigger your hippocampus will get and the less would be your risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
How Stuff Works is a great place to learn and on here I found this article about Alcohol and the Brain which again describes how our brains are affected by alcohol. Most of us have witnessed the outward signs of heavy drinking: the stumbling walk, slurred words, and memory lapses. People who have been drinking have trouble with their balance, judgment, and coordination. They react slowly to stimuli, which is why drinking before driving is so dangerous. All of these physical signs occur because of the way alcohol affects the brain and central nervous system.
At this time in my life where I have had a drinking problem in the past, it fascinates me now to find out that I can actually make repairs to my organs, the brain in particular.
After having an emergency Laparoptomy a few years ago, going through a recovery process, and then a hernia operation, I consider myself lucky to be alive in the first place.
Lucky to be here and even luckier to come across all of this info. that I’m able to pass on.
