How alcohol impacts your motivation
Alcohol is often associated with relaxing, unwinding, letting your hair down — a treat at the end of a hard day or long week. But what can seem like a rather innocuous self-care ritual — a glass of wine with dinner, a beer with mates — can actually skew towards too much relaxation and have a negative effect on how motivated you feel, if you’re not careful.
Let’s take a step back and look at the science and how alcohol interacts with your mood.
In the short term, drinking can create a temporary sense of relief or even confidence. Psychologists call this alcohol myopia — your attention narrows to the here and now, dulling longer-term worries. You might feel bolder, more relaxed, even briefly motivated.
But those benefits don’t last. Even at moderate levels, alcohol impairs memory, decision-making, and focus — the very tools motivation relies on. Over time, higher consumption is linked to reduced energy, absenteeism at work, and difficulty staying engaged with goals.
Alcohol can also chip away at emotional resilience. That quick ‘stress reliever’ often backfires, fueling anxiety or low mood the next day. For people already struggling with mental health challenges, the cycle can be especially tough, leaving motivation harder to find.
It’s not all doom and gloom, though. Small changes can go a long way — enjoying alcohol-free alternatives when you can, reducing the number of nights you have a glass of wine with dinner, or experimenting with healthier ways to decompress.
If you’ve been struggling with motivation, or you need an extra boost of energy at the moment, try reducing your alcohol intake and see if it makes a difference. You may just find that it gives you the boost you need