Cognitive health is the ability to think clearly, learn new things, and remember information, events, and what you’ve learned in the past. As problem drinkers, we aren’t that great at thinking things through, but it’s not because we’re losers, it’s because alcohol damages the brain and messes with our cognitive health. In episode 159 I talked about what you can expect physically when you stop drinking and I mentioned that the cognitive improvements are a bit slower to show up. The cognitive improvements deserve their own episode, so in this episode you will learn how alcohol damages our cognitive abilities, how this puts us at risk to relapse, how long it takes for our cognitive health to recover after you quit drinking, and what you can do to take care of your cognitive health.

What to listen to next:

E69: alcohol shrinks the brain, but what does that mean

E90: new study finds just one drink shrinks the brain

Attentional bias episodes 127 & 128

E75: how sleep recovers in sobriety

E17: alcohol and the heart

E122: how exercise can support your recovery

E119: chronic stress and the brain

Resources I offer:

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Sources are posted on my website

Disclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice.

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