Drinking to Survive: lesser known reasons some people can't stop

The conversation about neurodiversity and addiction continues in a recent article in the Irish Independent - (and my work gets a mention.)

Mary’s article

A recent feature in the Irish Independent highlighted a growing awareness around the connection between neurodivergence - particularly autism and ADHD - and addiction. The article focuses on Catherine Reid, a Dublin-based photographer, who realised after her diagnosis of AuDHD (a crossover of Autism and ADHD) that her reliance on alcohol was a form of self-medication for sensory overload and social pressure.

Reid’s story is one that many people will recognise. Before her diagnosis, she describes drinking not for pleasure, but to manage overstimulation and social anxiety. After becoming sober and receiving a diagnosis, she gained the clarity to see that alcohol had been a way of coping with a world that felt too loud, too fast, and too unpredictable.

I was happy to be namechecked in the article as someone whose work on this topic might be helpful for others in the same (or a similar) boat. The article mentions my blog Beautiful Hangover, where I explored my own experience of getting sober after realising that alcohol had become a crutch for managing social anxiety and sensory overwhelm. Like Reid, I wasn’t drinking because I loved it, or not the way I had thought, I was drinking to feel comfortable, to quiet my hectic mind, and to cope with the exhausting work of navigating a world that made me feel extremely stressed and inadequate. I was drinking to cope, and over time, this became an extremely unhelpful coping mechanism.

Over time, as my social anxiety refused to resolve I kept looking for answers, and after much sadness and confusion, I was eventually diagnosed as Autistic and ADHD or Au-DHD as people seem to say more often now. For me, drinking had become a mask/persona that enabled me to seem/become more fun, chill and sociable than I really am.

But it’s more complicated than that, because drinking also helped me to unmask, and be more authentically myself, too. I’m untangling this knot in the book I’m writing on this subject.

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This growing recognition of the link between addiction and neurodivergence has been backed up by research. Professor Julia Sinclair, who is mentioned in the piece, is Professor of Addiction Psychiatry at the University of Southampton, and recently(ish) led a priority-setting partnership I was part of, which aimed to bring together the fields of addiction and Autism in order to make progress with understanding the connection between the two.

The research that came out of the partnership was published last summer in Comprehensive Psychiatry and the article reviews existing research and attempts to set the research agenda to make progress with the most pressing questions. Its abstract states that, “Autistic people are more likely to report problematic alcohol and other substance use when compared to the general population.” It points out that this risk is even more pronounced when a family history of addiction and ADHD are present (hi.)

Also in the article, Dr Margaret Bourke, GP co-ordinator at the HSE Addiction Services, points out that while around 3% of the population have ADHD, approximately 30% of people with addiction have it.

What’s encouraging is that this conversation is starting to shift. More health services, like the HSE’s Youth Drug and Alcohol Service (YoDA), are recognising the overlap between neurodivergence and addiction. YoDA has even achieved autism-friendly accreditation, adapting their services to better meet the needs of neurodivergent patients.

But there’s still a long way to go. Reid raises an important point about the need for early diagnosis and better support for neurodivergent young people. If more schools and healthcare systems could identify neurodivergent traits earlier, we might be able to offer healthier coping strategies before substance use becomes the default.

A wider understanding of human difference would help, too. Less pressure to conform to societal norms. More kindness as standard. Slowing the pace a little, rather than demanding We All Keep Up. Accepting that we each have strengths and weaknesses and that we are not all identically capable. Building community and holding power to account wherever possible.

I don’t know. I don’t have all (or any of) the answers. I’m just a woman who got sober then diagnosed then noticed that nearly everyone in addiction recovery (i.e. those who struggled to ‘toe the line’ or are ‘maladjusted’ or ‘fit in’) seems neurodivergent AF. And now I can’t let it go. Do you relate? Lol.

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As I’ve written about so much here, sobriety was a turning point, a mostly positive one - not just in terms of my relationship with alcohol, but in how I related to myself as a person who struggled to live the way I was told I was supposed to. Learning I was neurodivergent helped me in this kinder relating to myself.

Reid’s story is like mine, and like many that I hear in the rooms of AA, and in conversations with friends, and it’s a powerful reminder that these things are connected. When we understand the reasons behind addiction, beyond the disease model or a trauma-informed approach, but recognising undiagnosed neurodivergence as a part of the picture too. When we have a more comprehensive picture we can approach supporting people with more compassion and more effective solutions.

Read the full article by Mary McCarthy here. [I hope!] (And thanks to Mary for letting me share the pdf!)

Health Feature Mary

2.74MB ∙ PDF file

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Chelsey Flood is the author of award-winning novels Infinite Sky and Nightwanderers, and a senior lecturer in creative writing at UWE. She is currently working on a book for Jessica Kingsley Publishers about the connection between undiagnosed neurodiversity and addiction + her first domestic noir.