| Alcohol Awareness Week is running this year from 16-22 November 2020 on the theme of Alcohol and mental health. It’s a week of awareness-raising, campaigning for change, and more. It’s been a challenging year and many of us are feeling a little more stressed and anxious than usual. This can cause our drinking to creep up.
Alcohol is a part of many of our lives. We use it for celebration, for comfort, to socialise, to wind down, to cope. We treat it differently to other drugs; it’s legal, socially acceptable, even encouraged.
Yet in the UK one person every hour dies as a result of alcohol. Alcohol harm – mental health problems, liver disease, one of seven forms of cancer, economic difficulties, and so much more – can affect any one of us, from any walk of life.
The harm doesn’t end with the individual; each of us who drinks too much is part of a family and a community who feel the effects too, whether through frequent use of emergency services, drink driving, violence or neglect.
Alcohol Change UK are using their Alcohol Awareness website will be talking about the issues and sharing information and advice on the best ways to look after yourselves and those you love during this difficult time.
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