By Gary Geyer

Ah, the good life.

Playing a little golf, sitting on the veranda, having a drink or two.
Sounds wonderful.

Unfortunately, that drink or two could turn out to be a problem.

Those changes in life that retirement brings, at first glance seem to be what we’ve worked our whole life to achieve. But not uncommon, they often accompany an empty feeling.

From 60 miles an hour to a sudden stop

When one spends his or her working life being and feeling productive, the contrast can have the effect of leaving a person feeling useless. Same holds true with the so-called “empty-nest” syndrome. The impression is created that nobody really cares what they say or think anymore. And that feeling can lead some retirees to turn to alcohol for relief.

Good news and bad news

The good news is that the numbers show that vast majority of older adults are not alcoholics. It is alcohol misuse that’s more prevalent, not alcoholism per say.

But that information may be a little misleading. The bad news is that for older adults even small amounts of alcohol can be a problem. The effects of alcohol are amplified as the body ages. To complicate matters, medications can increase the effects even more.

And to make matter worse, alcohol can lessen the medications effectiveness and make symptoms worse. (For example: For patients taking blood thinners alcohol can increase the risk of bleeding. Experts suggest that older adults, whether taking medications or not, limit their alcohol consumption to one drink a day– that’s either 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine or 1½ ounces of hard liquor).

The obvious and the not-so-obvious

There are many reasons some of our generation might turn to drink. As mentioned, just retiring might be the catalyst. Other factors could be divorce, depression, loss of some physical capabilities or the death of a spouse.

Some reasons are less obvious. Many retirees move to resort-type communities where cocktails with the many activities are the norm. Life suddenly seems like one long extended vacation, with lots of free time and social events. These sudden life changes can be somewhat overwhelming to those not psychologically prepared for it.

Problem? What Problem?

Many of those retirees who abuse alcohol may not even realize they have a problem. Not being in a work environment where colleagues or supervisors might notice changes, the abuse can go undetected. Often other family members don’t live nearby and are not around to be aware of the problem. It’s hard to seek help when you don’t know you need help.

And now a word from our sponsor

When was the last time (or ever) that you saw any educational or public service message about alcohol directed to the 50 plus age group? Like the rest of the advertising out there, most messages are directed to the youth market. We get the retirement communities and arthritis remedies but next to nothing about alcohol or recreational drug abuse.

Attention, doctors!

Often alcohol and drug abuse are overlooked by doctors. They might not associate trouble signs like memory loss, tremors and loss of balance—rather attributing them to aging.

Ending optimistically

It’s always good to end an article on a positive note.

Studies show that older alcoholics and mis-users respond to treatment and especially short- term counseling far better than younger ones.

The trick is to look out for yourself, be aware of what’s going on and if you know what’s good for you, don’t automatically reach for that drink.

To your health! <<