Why Are Women Drinking More?

Recently, some stats were released that sent shockwaves through the recovery community. In a span of roughly 10 years, female alcohol consumption has shot up dramatically. In fact, from the period of 2002 to 2012, the percentage of U.S. women who drink more than once a week went from 45 percent to 67 percent. Obviously this begs the question, “why are women drinking more?”  And that’s something that The Fix.com has aimed to answer.

In a piece published this month, the recovery news site broke down the “social” reasons more women are choosing to indulge in wine and spirits. This includes everything from work happy hours, to online dating, to TV and movie stereotypes. Sadly, it does seem as though there are more societal pressures than ever before.

Quoting writer Ginny Hogan, the site touched upon some unique circumstances surrounding females today.

“The reality is that women often drink for different reasons than men do, and it’s not a stretch to think that those reasons often stem from social pressures that women face but men don’t,” Hogan explained. “When we put social pressure on women to not ever appear stressed or anxious, I worry that we instead make alcohol a more appealing option.”

Hogan also cited the “work hard, play hard” mentality that encompasses corporate America. In order to blend in to the executive boys club, many female vice presidents find themselves at company events surrounded by beer and hard alcohol. Though they might not feel inclined to drink, “fitting in” with senior leaders may push them down that path.

Rising the corporate ladder also incurs quite a bit of anxiety. Similar to men, female business leaders may find themselves “needing” a glass of wine (or two) after work. This has often been mistakenly viewed as a way to relax or unwind, but too much alcohol can do quite the opposite.

Other callouts included the “strong” female characters portrayed in the media. Lead actresses on shows like The Good Wife, Scandal and Killing Eve all regularly consume booze, often with a signature drink like a whiskey sour or brandy tumbler.

Dating was the other big factor pointed to in the article. With more online meet ups occurring at bars and restaurants, it is not uncommon for alcohol to be ordered as part of an introductory evening out. Though these may not turn into binge nights, the more frequent they occur the more frequent the female will be consuming alcohol…which could lead to the start of a very bad habit.

Women’s Hormones May Play A Role In Addiction

For decades, there have always been questions about the physiological reasons for addiction. Is it hereditary? Does it have to do with chemicals in the brain? And now, more recently, are certain genders more susceptible to a dependency? Well according to some new science from Vanderbilt University, that last answer should be a resounding “yes.”

A report compiled by Vanderbilt researchers recently revealed that female hormones do play a role in women’s addictive behaviors. Not only that, the same study claims that they may be more prone to relapsing than men. As lead researcher and Assistant Professor of Pharmacology Erin Calipari explained, studying substance abuse by gender may be very beneficial to the recovery world.

“Women becoming addicted to drugs may be a fundamentally different process than men,” she told the website Science Daily. “It’s important to understand this, because it’s the first step in developing treatments that are actually effective.”

Some of the research that Calipari shared traced back to occurrences like a monthly menstrual cycle. What her team’s findings showed was that when fertility-related hormone levels are high, women make stronger associations to cues in their environment and are more prone to seek rewards. Pleasure seeking and “rewards,” as we all know, are often tied back to drinking and drug use.

The Vanderbilt research specifically tied into behavioral experiments involving male and female rats. For a period of several months, the specimens were allowed to dose themselves with cocaine by pushing down on a lever. A light would then switch on, building a visual association to the pleasure seeking. The team made a point to associate this with visual cues humans may encounter, such as alcohol advertisements or drug paraphernalia. When the female rats’ hormone levels were high, the visual cues became more stimulating and the lever pushing increased dramatically.

Calipari added that this data adds on to previous research that had shown women being more prone to addiction. As she put it, emotions like vulnerability also contributed to the behaviors.

“There’s epidemiological data that says women are more vulnerable, but it’s unclear what the factors are,” she concluded. “We know they transition to addiction faster and have more problems with craving and relapse. Now, with research like this, we’re beginning to isolate environmental and physiological causes.”

Whatever the reason, we hope women facing addiction understand that there are many biological factors at play within this very real problem. Hopefully, it can help remove some of the shame and guilt that often accompany a dependency. If there is a mom, daughter, sister or friend you are close to dealing with this issue, please reach out and let us help.

Alarming New Stats About Women And The Opioid Crisis

Tragically, this country’s opioid crisis holds no bounds and it is mercilessly ripping lives (and families) apart. Tens of thousands of Americans are succumbing to painkiller and heroin overdoses each year, with women playing an increasingly larger role. According to new statistics released by Forbes Magazine; U.S. females now account for 33 percent of all opioid-related fatalities, which is an alarming jump from where that stat sat earlier in the decade.

The total number of women who died from an opioid-related overdoses last year was 42,249. Back in 1999, when the crisis was in its infancy, the stat was a mere 8,050. And worse yet, the figures are expected to rise significantly again when 2018’s tallies are counted.

How bad is this situation? So bad, that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have officially recognized the threat that this crisis is having for American females. They, themselves, released a statement about it earlier in the year. “Prescription painkiller overdoses are an under-recognized and growing problem for women,” a rep from the organization said. “And the gap between women and men is closing quickly.”

The Centers went on to emphasize which segments of American women are now most at risk. Their research showed that U.S. females between the ages of 25 and 44 are the most susceptible to forming an opioid addiction. Interestingly though, they singled out women aged 45 to 54 as having the highest likelihood for a fatal overdose.

There is also the pregnancy component. In our opinion this deserves a very high level of attention, as mothers who use are putting multiple lives at risk. Recent opioid stats show that in 2012 alone, more than 20,000 infants were born with signs of addiction withdrawal.

Forbes writer Aparna Mathur did a great job of digging not only into the statistics, but also the reasons as to why female opioid abuse is rising so fast. One major point is that females may be more likely to be prescribed painkillers and for longer periods of time. Other theories have to do with caregiving and issues like postpartum depression and anxiety. This alone could place women at a greater risk of substance abuse.

Clearly we cannot stereotype or speculate about all of the reasons behind this shift, but the facts are the facts. 42,000 women lost to this crisis is reason alone to bring this topic to the forefront. While there certainly needs to be steps taken at a national level to combat opioid abuse, we at inneractions want to do our part too. That is why we proudly offer Sobriety Groups For Women on the first and third Tuesday of every month. Our door is always open and we highly encourage anyone who needs help to reach out. (818) 571-9841