Hidden Mechanisms - Part 4 of 5
Part 1: Mild Withdrawals: Why They Mislead Us
Part 2: The Mental Shortcut: Why We Avoid Internal Conflict
Part 3: Overloaded Thinking: When Drinking Thoughts Take Over
Part 4: Why Alcohol Memories Can Trigger Cravings ← you’re here
Part 5: The Social Scam: How We Were Conditioned to Drink
Recap: Hidden Mechanisms That Keep Us Drinking (Recap)
We might be getting on with our day when something brings an old drinking memory back. It could be a photo, a song, a smell, a certain time of day or a place we used to drink.
And it might be more than just a thought. We might feel some excitement, warmth or a sudden feeling that a drink would be good.
That reaction can be confusing, especially when we know we don’t want the life that came with drinking. So we wonder whether the feeling means we still want alcohol.
It doesn’t have to mean that at all.
Why a memory can feel like wanting
Our brain learns from things that bring quick rewards or relief. If we drank in the same situations many times, people, places, smells and routines became connected with what alcohol did next.
After a while, that place, smell or routine could bring the feeling up before we had even poured a drink. That’s why the reaction can feel physical and immediate.
We’re not sitting there choosing to miss alcohol. Our brain has seen something familiar and brought back the feeling that used to go with drinking.
The feeling is real, but we don’t have to follow it.
What dopamine is doing
Dopamine is often called the pleasure chemical, but it does more than that. It helps the brain learn what to notice, remember and go after.
When alcohol changed how we felt quickly, dopamine helped our brain connect the drink with the things around it. Later, seeing or hearing one of those things can bring that feeling back.
So the memory might suddenly feel more important than it really is, even when we’ve already decided alcohol isn’t part of the life we want.
Our brain is remembering an old connection. It isn’t deciding that we want to drink.
The memory leaves out half the story
Alcohol memories can leave a lot out. We remember the first drink on holiday, the laughter at the table or the feeling of finishing work and finally switching off.
But we might barely think about how much we drank, the poor sleep, the argument or the anxiety the next morning. So the good part comes back first and the rest can almost disappear.
The rosy version of drinking can make the memory look much better than the whole experience really was. And when only the good part comes back, the memory can seem very convincing.
How the memory turns into a drinking rehearsal
The first memory might last only a second. The problem can start when we keep following it.
We picture the drink, imagine how it would feel and start thinking about when we could have one. Then we plan how we’ll make sure this time is different.
Now that quick memory has turned into a full drinking rehearsal. And as those drinking thoughts take over, the drink can start feeling more and more likely. So it helps to notice the first memory before we start adding to it.
What to do when it happens
We don’t need to panic or treat the memory like a warning that we’re about to drink. We can stop and notice what brought it up.
Was it a photo, a place, a smell, a person or the time of day?
Then we can remind ourselves that something has brought back an old drinking memory. If the memory is showing us one good moment, bring back what happened afterwards and how we felt the next morning.
We’re just remembering it properly, including what came afterwards. Then let the feeling pass without turning it into a plan.
Old connections can lose their pull
That old connection can feel strong because it has been repeated so many times. But seeing the photo or hearing the song doesn’t mean we have to drink.
We can hear the song, pass the place or see the photo and carry on without drinking. And after doing that a few times, it can start to feel more normal.
And we start making new memories without alcohol as well. We can have a good meal and remember it properly, enjoy a social night without regret or get through a difficult day without making the next one harder.
And when we stop following the same drinking loop, it can start losing some of its pull.
The memory could still come back from time to time. But it doesn’t tell us what we really want now. It just means our brain has remembered an old connection.
The next article looks at social conditioning around alcohol.
— Brent