Alcohol and how it affects personality?

[jdurg]

Okay, I'll admit right now that I'm pretty inebriated. I just got home from a social event where I had a few drinks to get me feeling REALLY happy, and was fortuneate enough to not have to drive tonight. While I was out tonight, I began talking with this one woman from work whom I've had a "attraction" to for quite some time. She was inrcredibly intoxicated tonight and offered me some things that I normally would kill for. Because of my, but mostly her, intoxication I turned down these offers. After getting home, I decided to have a few more drinks. My six Bass beers at the social event have now been topped off with about four ounce of Jack Daniels' Single Barrel Scotch Whiskey. At the moment, I feel REALLY buzzed and very happy with myself, while my basic coordination is shot and typing is a real chore. (I'm at my "happy drunk" phase).

 

My question is "Why does drinking change one's personality so much?" If I have a few drinks, I become really happy and wanting to get to know everyone. Yet if I have any more, I tend to become morose and angry with the world. Why is that? Is it a physical thing, or a psychological thing? Currently, I'm a bit upset that I turned down the sex that was offered to me, but since I was drunk and she was as well I didn't feel right going through with it. I guess it means I've matured as an individual, but a certain part of me really wishes I went through with it.

[ecoli]

I know this is only a "howstuffworks" page, but it's really thoughough.

 

http://science.howstuffworks.com/alcohol.htm

[starbug1]

Okay, I'll admit right now that I'm pretty inebriated

 

There's your problem. Maybe stop drinking and the answer will come to you, as you were sooo drunk to begin with. On the other hand, you could've tipped back a couple more beers and you would've nailed her one. At least this way in the morning, you wouldn't have to remember fighting the moral stigma of taking or leaving the sex. But boy were you happy.

[jdurg]

Hehe. After waking up this morning, I'm happy that I did the moral thing last night. It's nice to know that I can think with my brain and not with my hormones. Still, I am wondering why different concentrations of alcohol affect one's personality so much. A little bit and they are happy, a lot and they are either REALLY happy, REALLY pissed, or REALLY depressed. Chemically, I'd like to know why that's the case. (I am fully aware of the fact that it affects various parts of your brain, but I still haven't found a site that goes into detail about HOW it affects the different parts of your brain. I.E. why does it take a higher concentration of alcohol to affect the function of certain parts of your brain? Don't all parts receive the same blood flow?)

[aj47]

As far as I know, the reason why you have surges of confidence and often end up embarrasing yourlelf by going for the ugliest girl in the room, is becasue alcohol inhibits parts of your cerebral cortex which is responsible for rational thinking and judgment etc.

 

As for how it only effects certain parts of your brain i'm not completely sure but I would imagine it acts by acting as, inhibiting or stimulating the relase of neurotrasmitters which are specific for different neurons and parts of the brain.

[Nashyboyo]

The effect of alcohol (ligand) on the nervous system is proportional to blood alcohol concentration because the inhibitory affect on enzymes (macromolecules) involved in neural cell precursors is cumulative. Different target enzymes bind to alcohol with different binding constants, hence the cumulative effect.

 

This paper is a bit complex so maybe just skip to the conclusion.

 

http://www.jbc.org/cgi/reprint/250/8/3001

[sunspot]

In a less technical and more practical sense, one might notice how layers of one's unconscious mind are revealed as one gets more and more drunk. When sobber, the social mask covers these layers from others and even from oneself. As one goes deeper often an alter ego will appear. Maybe try to coast at your best layer.

[rakuenso]

i'm surprised you can still type...

 

neways

i think the effects of alcohol on personality varies from person to person... it usually reveals their inner self, how old are you?

[jdurg]

Late reply by myself, but I turn 26 in a handful of months.

[insane_alien]

According to my friends i'm almost the same when drunk. just more likely to get naked.