Meditation helps stop DRINKING habit

Chapter 27

DRINKING

The habit of drinking has become a headache to our society. We pity every lady whose husband has this habit. We start imaging him coming home fully drunk at night and fighting with his wife. The wife spends every evening in fear of her husband waiting for him to come home. This is becoming the main cause for so many broken families and even suicide and murder.

Alcohol is formed when grains, fruits or vegetables are fermented. Fermentation is a process where yeast or bacteria is used to change the sugar in food into alcohol. When alcohol is taken, it is absorbed into the blood stream. It effects the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), which control almost all the body functions. Alcohol is a depressant and hence it slows down the central nervous system. It blocks some of the messages trying to go to the brain. This changes the person’s action, movement, eye sight and hearing. Alcohol can make the drinker do stupid or embarrassing things that make people laugh. Drinking gives the person a bad breathe and no one likes a hangover.

What is there in this alcohol that makes men fall for it? Many people start drinking to show off in front of their friends or to be accepted by friends and society. Some are bullied and forced into drinking. Some people start drinking to forget their problems. Once they start drinking they get addicted to it and are not able to give up in spite of the bad effects. Soon they start drinking daily and it becomes a bad habit.

Alcohol is also trapping women nowadays. In fact it is now taking an important place in all big meetings and parties. All efforts to reduce the consumption are failing. When a pregnant woman drinks alcohol it reaches the baby through the placenta. But the baby is not able to process it easily so it is exposed to the alcohol for a longer time than you are. The alcohol can effect the development of your baby’s brain so avoid drinking when pregnant. Drinking during first three months of pregnancy can lead to miscarriage. A woman who is breast feeding a baby should not drink for the alcohol can reach the baby through milk. It will make the baby too sleepy to feed. It may even have digestion problems.

There is absolutely no nutrition in alcohol. Hence it is called as a source of ‘empty calories’. Alcohol is very high in calories. Hence a person who wants to reduce weight should keep away from alcohol.

Taking a little alcohol helps one to relax after a long day of hard work. But it is a form of addiction and hence it is dangerous. Drinking when you are in depression makes you even more depressed.

Drinking causes lack of judgement, loss of coordination, slurring of speech, blurring of vision and a loss of balance. If you drive when drunk you can have a sever accident. You may loss consciousness, go into coma and even die.

Taking alcohol regularly can cause loss of brain cells, damaged liver, stomach ulcer, cancer, high BP, epilepsy, damaged nerve and heart attack.

Many people try to give up the habit of drinking when they come to know that it is spoiling their health and family relations. But it is very difficult to give up drinking. First of all you have to avoid your usual drinking friends and the usual places of drinking. Tell your parents or doctor about it so that they can guide you properly. Avoid attending parties. If you cannot avoid then arrive late and leave early. If tension or depression is trying to make you drink then think of ways to get rid of this tension or depression. If you have the habit of drinking after dinner, then go for a walk or listen to your favourite music. 

Meditation helps to calm the mind and remove the thoughts of drinking.You do not have to put any efforts towards stopping the habit. Just start doing meditation and see how even the smell of the drink will be nauseating to you.