BAP2023 Public Lecture - Alcohol: How much is too much? Plus Q and A

Navigating the grey area through social norms from health to harm

Speakers: Lucy Rocca (Soberistas) and Julia Sinclair (University of Southampton)

Over 80% of people in the UK drink alcohol, and for decades (if not centuries) consumption of this addictive substance has been embedded into the fabric of our National social and economic life. This poses challenges for the individual becoming aware when, or if, they may have crossed a line from it being a relatively harmless recreational activity to something that may be over-riding their life choices. How do people untangle whether alcohol use is the cause or the solution to their low mood or anxiety symptoms? The public perception of ‘an alcoholic’ and even the use of such terminology all act to stigmatise the people whose alcohol consumption has overtaken their control. Attribution of responsibility and blame; prevalence of negative stereotypes; lack of political leadership and intense lobbying by the drinks industry are all barriers to people accessing information ,and help, when they may most benefit from it.

Lucy Rocca is the founder of the social network website, Soberistas, an online space that offers peer support to people wanting to quit drinking. She is also the author of several books on women and alcohol dependence, and a sober coach, supporting individuals in establishing a happier, healthier life without alcohol.

She will describe her own experiences with alcohol and how, since beginning to drink at the age of thirteen, she endured a complicated and self-destructive relationship with alcohol until she quit aged 35. Lucy will also draw upon her years running the Soberistas website to outline the patterns and commonalities she has witnessed amongst thousands of people who drank in the same way as she once did – secretly, with huge amounts of shame, and a sense of being flawed in some way because of their inability to moderate their alcohol consumption.

Julia Sinclair is Professor of Addiction Psychiatry at the University of Southampton, clinical lead for the Alcohol Care Team at University Hospital Southampton, and National Specialist Advisor for Alcohol dependence to NHS England. She will discuss the latest trends in alcohol consumption at a population level and how these translate into current levels of alcohol related harms. She will present the changes in how a range of alcohol use disorders are classified and the challenges in developing a robust evidence base for helping people who present with alcohol related harms in non-specialist settings.