Editorial: Pandemic has fueled some unhealthy habits

For every one of the last 589 days, we’ve had an excuse to drink. When the pandemic turned our world upside down on March 16, 2020, alcohol and other coping mechanisms felt more acceptable as we floundered in the waves of stress spurred in the pandemic.

First there was the lockdown, when boredom, anxiety and confinement caused many to turn to substances, not to mention that endless stream of “Zoom happy hours” with friends. Then there was the agonizing pain of watching loved ones contract COVID-19, hoping they would be OK, while quietly knowing the reality is that not everyone survives this virus. Then there was the grind, as month after month of disruption wore on, making us all feel a little punch-drunk. Mixed with economic strife and constant work uncertainties, it’s easy to see why we were all grasping for coping mechanisms — anything to take the edge off.

A RAND Corporation study showed that during the week of March 20, 2020, when the weight of the pandemic truly began to set in, alcohol sales nationally increased 54%, while online alcohol sales jumped 262%. It seems many of us felt like grabbing a drink that week, as we collectively pondered the bleak future ahead. But here in the 19th month under pandemic protocols, coping can be a slippery slope toward codependence.

Women seem more susceptible to overdoing it, if the numbers are to be believed. Harvard Health Publishing reports that during the pandemic women increased their heavy drinking days (defined as four or more drinks in one evening) by 41% compared to before the pandemic. It continues, “compared to men, women reported higher rates of pandemic-related changes in productivity, sleep, mood, health-related worries, and frustrations with not being able to do enjoyable activities. Women with children under age 18 had higher rates of clinically significant anxiety, compared to men with children under age 18 and to women with no minor children. Women are more likely to shoulder the burden of household tasks, caregiving and child-rearing than men. Stay-at-home orders to stop transmission of COVID-19 led to decreased childcare support and the additional burden of remote schooling.”

Those spikes in consumption go beyond alcohol. As we reported on Friday, Sonoma Valley’s opioid-related deaths are up 100% in the pandemic. There were 10 deaths in 2020 versus an average of 4.6 the prior three years, a statistically significant — and alarming — increase. These numbers show our neighbors are hurting. The whys of how people find themselves in the throes of addiction are too plentiful to explore in one editorial, but pain is often the root cause. As with many of life’s bigger problems, solutions can be found in the healing pools of community, connection and caring.

Community can be found in the Valley’s robust Alcoholics Anonymous / Narcotic’s Anonymous programs, which each host meetings in the Valley, not to mention a host of programs offered on Zoom. Sonoma County’s AA website shows meetings in Sonoma three times a day, with NA meetings set on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturday. We all need someone who understands, and many people have met friends for life through these programs.

Social distancing taught us the importance of connection. Even those seemingly random and fleeting relationships, like the one you share with your mail carrier or barista. There were plenty of people to miss during our periods of near isolation. Between heath risks and health guidelines, maintaining a “healthy” social life felt increasingly difficult this past 19 months. But science shows good friendships and close ties with family fuel our sense of well-being, making the stress of life abundantly more bearable. In trying moments, it’s always worth taking the time to reach out and say, “How’s it going?”

Caring is the easiest and most difficult solution. Easy in that it doesn’t take much effort to say, “I care.” Difficult in that it does, in fact, take a lot of effort to care. Whether taking care of one’s self, one’s family or one’s community, the time and dedication is immense. That has never stopped us — really, could any of us stand to live in a world that doesn’t care? Luckily, care is something Sonoma tosses around like Rip Taylor with a bucket of confetti at a concert. Especially for those who are hurting.

We just have to ask.