If you are recovering from an injury, you may be wondering whether drinking alcohol could delay your recovery time. Well, the short answer is yes, it can. So, it’s best to avoid alcohol use until you have recovered. In states like Arizona, where telehealth and outpatient care have become more accessible, programs such as an Online IOP in Arizona illustrate how mental-health support can run alongside physical rehabilitation—addressing both body and mind during recovery.

But why can drinking alcohol delay your recovery from an injury? Let’s find out.

Alcohol Can Increase Blood Coagulation and Swelling

Whether you have a minor or major injury, if you drink alcohol during recovery, it can delay both the coagulation of your blood and the healing of inflamed or swollen tissue. And the more you drink, the more your blood coagulation and swelling will continue to be problematic. In turn, you would have to wait longer to make a full recovery. On the other hand, if you drink little or, better yet, abstain from alcohol completely after an injury, you can speed up the recovery process.

Drinking Alcohol Can Create a Build-up of Lactic Acid

Drinking alcohol can cause a build-up of lactic acid, which isn’t good. When you have a build-up of lactic acid in your muscles, it can cause fatigue and cramps. That can delay the recovery process. By abstaining from alcohol during recovery, you can ensure lactic acid doesn’t build up too much.

Alcohol Use Has a Diuretic Effect

When you drink alcohol, it has a diuretic effect. That means you will urinate more frequently. In turn, that means your body will lose more liquids and that will result in dehydration. It’s well known that drinking alcohol causes dehydration, but it is even more important that you don’t become dehydrated when recovering from an injury as it’s sure to slow down the recovery process. Dehydration can cause your muscles to lose strength and you could experience cramps. Dehydration can cause fatigue as well. Again, feeling fatigued will slow down your recovery time.

Drinking Alcohol Can Prevent Muscle Recovery

Many clinical studies have shown that consuming alcohol reduces the level of human growth hormones, which your body secretes. In fact, the consumption of alcohol reduces the level of HGH secretion by a staggering 70 percent. That is bad news for your muscle growth.

Alcohol delays muscle recovery, whether from a muscle injury or any other injury. This leads to
prolonged weakness and a longer recovery time. If reducing alcohol intake is challenging,
support from the intensive outpatient program arizona can be very beneficial for both your
mental and physical healing.

What to Do if Your Drinking Has Become Problematic

If you find it difficult to abstain from alcohol after your injury, despite knowing that the above factors will slow your recovery, it’s time to take a good look at yourself. You might not realize it, but if you’re feeling dependent on alcohol, you could be on the brink of or have an alcohol use disorder. If you are displaying signs of alcohol addiction, you should seek professional help.

You can get advice from your doctor about the treatment options that are available. You could visit a rehabilitation facility to engage in different types of individual and group therapies. Or you could access therapy sessions in other settings. Two of the most common therapies used are cognitive behavioral therapy and motivational interviewing. But there are a variety of other therapies and treatment options available.

A medical professional can advise you on the best course of action to take, and you should also seek support from your loved ones.

Summing Up

You now know it’s not best to drink alcohol after an injury, as it can slow down the recovery process. To recap, alcohol use can delay your recovery from an injury because: