"WHAT is alcohol doing for me? What is it giving me?"
Those are the questions UON School of Psychology senior lecturer and clinical psychologist Dr Sally Hunt is encouraging Hunter residents to ask themselves as they emerge from party season.
Dr Hunt and three honours students have surveyed 600 women across Australia about their alcohol consumption.
They originally wanted to collect data about the role alcohol played in parenting, but expanded their questions to if alcohol use had changed during COVID-19.
Dr Hunt said already-published data indicated use had increased during the initial lockdown and that while consumption had decreased for younger people who usually drink socially in public venues, it increased for "middle aged or mothering-aged women".
"In our data we asked people what they felt COVID had done in terms of their own drinking and again and again we heard it was about stress management, it was a tool that was available and acceptable and that people could use while they were stuck at home," she said.
"For many people it became almost like a marker of the day: the workday is over, now I'll have a glass of wine and that signifies the nice part of my day is starting."
Dr Hunt said the group was still analysing the data to see whether this consumption had returned to lower levels, or become the new normal level.
"It always comes back to what is the alcohol doing for you, so what is it that it's giving you," she said.
"I think people are justified in wanting to relax and needing to relax.
"What viewing it that way does, is it opens the door for us to say 'Well okay, at the moment alcohol is the thing that's helping you gain that sense of calm and relaxation, what else gives you that same feeling, what else could you do so that alcohol does not become a crutch?' "
She said excessive consumption could lead to health problems.
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