Is Decision Fatigue Making It Harder to Cut Back on Alcohol?
Welcome to The Alcohol Reset, the podcast that helps you reset your habits, health, and relationship with alcohol without judgment or extremes. If you're looking to cut back, take a break, or just understand how drinking can affect your body and mind, you're in the right place. Each episode brings you science backed insights on neuroscience, nutrition, and habit change to help you feel better, sleep deeper, and take control on your terms. This podcast is brought to you by Cloud Nine, makers of Daily Restore, a once a day supplement to support your body from alcohol's effects, and rise and unwind AMPM, a twenty four hour combo to curb cravings, balance mood, and improve sleep when taking a break. Go to try cloud9.com and use the code podcast to save 15% on your next order.
Speaker 1:I'm Mike Hardenbrook, best selling author, neuroscience enthusiast, and habit change expert. I've helped thousands through my book and podcast to rethink their drinking, and now I'm here to help you do the same. Let's get started. You ever have those days where you're, like, crushing it? You know?
Speaker 1:Feeling good, sticking to your goals like you're the king or queen of willpower. And suddenly, that one drink, it's like this massive uphill battle. If that sounds familiar, well, stick around. Because today, we're diving deep into something that might just change the game for you. Decision fatigue.
Speaker 1:It's this sneaky little thing that can really mess with our best laid plans, especially when it comes to resetting our relationship with alcohol. And we're going way beyond just willpower here. We're gonna unpack the actual science of what's happening in your brain. So you can finally understand why resisting that drink after a long day can feel like, well, trying to move a mountain. To get to the bottom of this, we're gonna tap into some fascinating research on decision fatigue, specifically as it relates to alcohol.
Speaker 1:No more just trying harder. Let's get some real knowledge and understanding on our side. Alright. First things first. Imagine your brain.
Speaker 1:It's like this incredibly powerful engine. Right? And its main fuel, the stuff that runs on, is glucose. That's the type of sugar. Now here's the thing.
Speaker 1:All day long, you're making choices. Big ones, little ones, it doesn't matter. Every single decision you make, it takes a little sip of that brain fuel, that glucose. So it's like your mental gas tank is slowly emptying as the day goes on. And as that fuel gauge gets lower and lower, well, your brain's ability to make smart solid decisions, it starts to sputter a bit.
Speaker 1:That's decision fatigue and action, folks. Think about it. You know that feeling at the end of a long day where your brain is just fried? It's partly because you're low on mental fuel, making it way harder to resist those urges. It's why for a lot of people, late afternoon, early evening, those witching hours as they're sometimes called, that's when sticking the good intentions becomes the toughest.
Speaker 1:Whether it's skipping that extra drink or going for that healthy snack, you're running on fumes, mentally speaking. Now here's where things get extra interesting when we throw alcohol into the mix. Because alcohol, it doesn't just sit there passively. It actually messes with this whole brain energy situation we've been talking about. Research actually shows that alcohol can make things even worse for your brain's glucose metabolism.
Speaker 1:So think about it. You're already mentally drained from a day full of decisions. Glucose levels are dipping. Then you introduce alcohol, and it throws another wrench in the works. It messes with how your brain uses what little fuel is left.
Speaker 1:So that mental exhaustion you're feeling, it intensifies. And maybe most importantly for us here, your resistance to another drink, it weakens. So it's like this unfortunate double whammy. You're already tired from making choices, so your defenses are down, and then alcohol comes in and throws off your brain's energy even more, making it that much harder to say no to another drink. And, you know, it's not even just about the number of decisions.
Speaker 1:It's also about the sheer volume of options we're constantly bombarded within our modern world. Even little everyday choices contribute to that mental drain. It's called the paradox of choice. You think having lots of options is a good thing. Right?
Speaker 1:But studies show that too many choices can actually exhaust us mentally. And the kicker is we end up less satisfied with the choices we do make. Think about just going to the grocery store, trying to pick out a drink. Even if you're looking for something nonalcoholic, the sheer number of options can be overwhelming. So by the time you're actually facing the decision of whether to have a drink in the evening, your brain's already tired from all those other choices throughout the day.
Speaker 1:That kind of exhaustion, it can make you more likely just go for the easiest option, the familiar drink. You know? And, of course, we can't forget about cravings. They play a big role here too. Our brains are actually wired to generate cravings, and for many of us, those cravings include alcohol.
Speaker 1:And here's the thing. Even moderate drinking can trigger those neurological cravings. Now imagine you started your day super determined not to drink. Maybe you had a bit too much the night before. You wake up feeling strong, resolute, but then the day unfolds.
Speaker 1:Work, family, traffic, life in general throws all these decisions at you, and that mental load just keeps building. By the time evening rolls around, you're mentally depleted. And that craving for alcohol that you were so determined to fight off earlier, well, it's facing a much weaker opponent now because of that decision fatigue. That initial willpower you had, it's been chipped away at by all the mental effort you've exerted throughout the day, so you're much more likely to give in to that craving. And here's another crucial piece of the puzzle.
Speaker 1:Decision fatigue doesn't just affect our logical thinking. It also amps up our emotional responses. And this is especially important when it comes to alcohol, because when you're mentally fatigued, you're way more susceptible to the emotional pull of a drink, that promise of relaxation after a stressful day, that feeling of social connection you might associate with alcohol. Those emotional factors, they become so much more powerful when your mental defenses are down. So you're not just making a rational choice anymore.
Speaker 1:You're often seeking emotional relief. And in that moment of exhaustion, alcohol can seem like the quickest, easiest way to get it. To really grasp the sheer volume of mental activity we deal with every day, let's look at some numbers. Studies show that we process something like 1,250 thoughts per minute on average. And when it comes to decisions, estimates vary.
Speaker 1:But some suggest we make around 35,000 decisions every single day. Let that sink in for a second. Thirty five thousand decisions. No wonder we feel mentally drained by the end of the day. Right?
Speaker 1:I know I've definitely experienced this with food choices. I'll start my day with the best intentions, you know, healthy breakfast, good lunch, all planned out, but then dinner rolls around. And after a day of work, family, all the things life throws at you, my willpower around food just crumbles. I find myself reaching for those easier, less healthy options. Even though I was committed to eating well earlier in the day, it's that end of day exhaustion, that decision fatigue that makes it so much harder to stay on track.
Speaker 1:And I'm meaning a lot of you can relate to this pattern in your own lives too. You start the day with these strong intentions, but as the hours tick by and your mental energy gets lower, those intentions get harder and harder to hold on to. To. So when we zoom in on our choices around alcohol, it really is like a double whammy. First, we've got that ever present decision fatigue wearing us down, weakening our ability to make good choices in general, including choices about drinking.
Speaker 1:And second, neuroscience tells us that alcohol itself can create cravings in the brain. And those cravings, they tend to peak within a certain time frame after your last drink. So if you're trying to cut back or take a break from alcohol, you're not just fighting against that general mental fatigue from the day, you're also often battling those direct neurological urges for alcohol. It's a tough combo to beat. And that's why simply relying on willpower as a long term strategy for managing your drinking often doesn't work, even for people who consider themselves moderate drinkers.
Speaker 1:What we really need are some solid strategies, a framework to help us navigate those moments when our mental resources are at their lowest. It's not about just gritting our teeth and pushing through. It's about having tools and understanding to make things easier on ourselves. So the big takeaway here is this, decision fatigue. It's a real thing.
Speaker 1:It's powerful, and it can seriously sabotage our ability to resist alcohol, especially after a day filled with all sorts of choices, big and small. We've dug into the science behind it, how our brain relies on glucose as fuel and how that fuel gets depleted throughout the day. We talked about how alcohol itself can mess with this process, making it even harder for our brains to use the fuel we have left. We explore that paradox of choice, how too many options can actually exhaust us. And we talk about the power of cravings and how they can be intensified by decision fatigue, and how decision fatigue doesn't just affect our logic, but also ramps up our emotional responses, making us more vulnerable to those tempting drinks.
Speaker 1:All these pieces fit together to help explain why that evening drink can feel so hard to resist, even when we're truly committed to cutting back. So as you continue on your journey to reset your relationship with alcohol, remember this. If you struggle with willpower, it's not because you're weak or lacking commitment. It's often because of these basic biological and psychological factors that we've been talking about. Understanding that can make a huge difference.
Speaker 1:So here's something to think about. Now that you know about decision fatigue, are there small practical changes you could make in your daily life to actually reduce the number of decisions you have to make, especially during those tricky witching hours when you're most vulnerable? Maybe you could try automating some of your routines or making important decisions earlier in the day when your mental energy is higher. How can you use this knowledge about how your brain works to shift your approach to your alcohol reset journey? So it's not just about willpower, but about setting yourself up for success by making things a little easier on your brain.
Speaker 1:That's what it's all about, folks. Until next time. Take care. That's a wrap for today's episode. If you got something out of this, do me a quick favor.
Speaker 1:Leave a rating and review on whatever podcast platform you're listening on. It helps keep the show going and would mean the world to me. Got ideas, comments, or questions? Shoot me an email at mike@trycloud9.com. I'd love to hear from you.
Speaker 1:And if you're looking for extra support, check out Cloud Nine, makers of Daily Restore, a once a day supplement combo to curb cravings, balance mood, and improve sleep when taking a break. Go to trycloud9.com and use the code podcast to save 15% on your next order. Thanks for listening, and I'll catch you next time.