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Anxiety about going back to work might actually be 'alcohol withdrawal symptoms', claims expert

Dr Wright also said Dry January may be simply an excuse to binge drink for the rest of the year.

NEW YEAR’S REVELLERS who feel anxious about returning to work after binge-drinking during the festive season may actually be suffering from alcohol withdrawal symptoms, according to a liver expert.

Dr Mark Wright, a consultant in liver medicine at University Hospital Southampton (UHS), warned thousands of people will put feelings of nausea, shaking and general irritability down to “work dread” as the holiday season draws to a close.

But he said alcohol withdrawal symptoms and not fears about returning to work were likely to be to blame and urged people to avoid turning to drink in an attempt to quell their symptoms.

He said: “People up and down the country will now be feeling anxious about their impending return to work and may also be feeling sick, shaky and irritable.

“However, far from concerns about the end of the Christmas and New Year period and the reality of work, the cause of this for many will be alcohol withdrawal symptoms following sustained heavy drinking.

“For those who don’t realise this, drinking more to calm that feeling is very tempting – but it is also a great way to become addicted.”

Dr Wright said people should think about “scaling back” their alcohol intake after New Year’s Eve celebrations, increasing their water intake and taking some days off alcohol.

He explained: “Many people will have had a very intense festive period in which they will have consumed significantly more alcohol than usual which will undoubtedly affect their mental state.

“The danger is that people don’t realise how the body will react to alcohol withdrawal and confuse it with anxiety about returning to work, which could then fuel more drinking.

“It is essential to avoid that and people should also use the time to reflect and think about how to moderate their drinking habits over special occasions and holiday seasons.”

Dry January 

Dr Wright added that Dry January could be used by some as an excuse for drinking heavily the rest of the year.

He said: “While I appreciate the good intentions behind the Dry January campaign, it remains to me to be the perfect decoy for problem drinkers in that it, by default, appears to offer a solution for binge drinking and high intake throughout the rest of the year.

“Evidence shows us that alcohol abuse remains a growing problem and a significant burden on the NHS – though, at the very least, a dry January does give people an opportunity to examine their relationship with alcohol.

“My preference, as I have maintained consistently, is that people need to be aware of their consumption all year round, aiming to stick at about 14 units per week with three to four dry days.”

He added: “What we can say for certain is that if anyone attempts a dry January and only manages a few days, they may have more of a problem with booze than they think and should seek help and support immediately.”

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    Mute Paraic Marren
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    Aug 24th 2022, 4:05 PM

    Well done, PSNI!

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    Mute Richard Ahern
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    Aug 24th 2022, 5:00 PM

    These individuals do not represent the vast majority of normal, peace -loving people. Allowing such a raggle-raggle bunch to use the acronym IRA is a complete misnomer. They are NOT an army. They should be correctly referred to as the IRI (I = Individuals) or IRT (T for Thugs or Terrorists) & that would be much more to the point & would present a true picture of those they represent.

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    Mute GrumpyAulFella
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    Aug 24th 2022, 5:37 PM

    @Richard Ahern: the previous incarnation were the same. Any group killing innocent men, women, and children, involved in racketeering, kidnapping, the drug industry, armed robbery for “army funds” and organised crime in general, falls into that category.

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    Mute frank griffin
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    Aug 24th 2022, 6:10 PM

    @GrumpyAulFella: stupid comment

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    Mute GrumpyAulFella
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    Aug 24th 2022, 6:41 PM

    @frank griffin: it’s a factual comment. Are you telling me that the previous incarnation represented the vast majority of peace loving people and didn’t engage in the acts that I listed? I don’t think so.

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    Mute David Kelly
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    Aug 24th 2022, 7:33 PM

    @GrumpyAulFella: do some proper research

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    Mute James Beattie
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    Aug 24th 2022, 10:27 PM

    @GrumpyAulFella: extremely stupid comment. Little knowledge is a dangerous thing

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    Mute Mick Thornton
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    Aug 24th 2022, 9:23 PM

    But can’t arrest anybody in relation to what happened to Noah Donahue,strange!!

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    Mute Stephen Lambkin Moroney
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    Aug 24th 2022, 6:26 PM

    You mean this is still going on ?

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