Hey Folks, Here's another podcast transcript. FYI, I've been posting them because some of you expressed to me how you rather read the transcripts than to listen to the podcast. I hope you enjoy.

In this episode, among other related things, I speak about drinking, smoking pot, and other addictions. Why do we indulge and what purpose does it serve in our lives? Please feel free to leave a comment below, and or add to the conversation. Thanks for reading!

Greetings Everyone, Welcome to the podcast “Close to the Bone.” I’m Carl Vreeland.

This is episode #52, it’s titled, “Why Do We Drink?”

Indeed, that is the question, “Why do we drink?” But before I go on, keep in mind that this question applies to all addictions, whether it be alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, sugar, etc. Of course, this is supposing you have a problem, or at least think you may have a problem. Or for that matter, you may know someone who is struggling with addiction, wherein this episode might be insightful. Perhaps it can deepen your understanding of addiction whereas you might be helpful in some way, or at the very least more understanding. And of course, if appropriate, you can always share this episode with them.

So, why do we drink? On occasion, I used to ask the people I knew fairly well this seemingly simple question. I always thought it was a straightforward question, but it seemed that everyone thought. . . well, they thought it to be an awkward question with an obvious answer. “Well, it helps me relax at the end of a long day. It’s a de-stressor.” But I would try to dig deeper. I would ask, “Well, I imagine on occasion you wind-up have one too many, resulting in a hangover the following morning?” They would say yes, but not show much concern. On reflection, this lack of concern, made sense; drinking, partying, the bar scene, hangovers. . . well. . . it’s normal behavior in Western culture. Indeed, we live in a drinking culture. Moreover, marijuana is now legal in many parts of the Western world, and like alcohol, it is becoming normalized as well.

As with anything, it’s hard to dig deeper. So why do it, why dig deeper? Why try to figure out why we drink? I mean, especially if everything is fine. What’s the big deal? So, I drink too much on occasion. So, I get behind the wheel now and again after a few drinks. So, I’m late to work from time to time because I had a little too much the night before. I mean, why should I deprive myself from having a little fun sometimes? Well, I’m  proposing that this “normal” behavior is perhaps not normal. I mean, believe or not, I’ve heard people say, “So, I got a couple of DUI’s, most people get one or two.” Indeed, this is even seen as normal behavior, or so it seems for some. Risky behavior? Yes, for certain. But let’s go further.. . .

It's difficult to get brutally honest with ourselves, especially when it comes to what is accepted, normalized behavior It’s not unlike cheating on our taxes and secrets we’ll go to the grave with. Certainly, we all lie a little in order to get through life with less incidence, and many of us drink a bit more than we should, and smoke pot too often, but we chalk it up to the exception; we are human, we slip up now and again. Still, I go back to the question, “Why do we drink? I mean, really, why?” Another question we could ask ourselves is, “What would it feel like not to drink?” What if we were to sit with the stress instead of drinking? What would happen if when we got stressed, we paused, and felt the energy of stress? Perhaps we’d notice something, emotions, unease, anxiety, existential angst, fear, hurt, anger. Maybe we’d realize that we’ve been avoiding something. Could we be carrying a resentment? Are we living with trauma? Is life not going our way and we don’t want to acknowledge it? Is it starting to look as