Success before Stress: Are You In Control of Your Choices?

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By Dr. Vladimir Nacev

Dr. Vladimir Nacev is a retired Navy and board certified clinical psychologist specializing in child and adolescent psychology. He has served overseas and spent most of his time in clinics and hospitals providing clinical services to service members and their families. He is a subject matter expert on alcohol and substance abuse prevention at DCoE.

As a child growing up in three different cultures, I learned the value of being cosmopolitan—learning the difference between having an opinion and holding a judgment, between having a choice and making a decision. Years later when I became director of an inpatient alcohol rehabilitation clinic, I conveyed the message that while drinking alcohol is a choice, the amount of alcohol we consume may not always be under our control. For some, drinking alcohol is a high risk factor with serious consequences that may need to be avoided.

The clinical literature defines three types of drinking: binge drinking, heavy drinking and alcohol-related problems. Recent data on service members with multiple deployments suggest that those born after 1980 are almost seven times more likely to develop a new onset of binge drinking and five times more likely to develop a new onset of alcohol-related problems. Men who were exposed to combat were more likely to experience a new onset of binge drinking while women more likely to report a new onset of heavy drinking and less likely to report binge drinking or alcohol-related problems.

From my clinical work I learned that the dilemma in becoming sober was not the stopping of drinking, but overcoming denial and rationalizations. Denial is a primitive defense mechanism that hides reality from us, sometimes for good reasons. Rationalization is a process where we give ourselves permission to do something we were going to do anyway. These are like ankle-biters that we need to unload and be ever so vigilant against. The challenge is to learn how to be a responsible drinker. Drink not just with your mouth open but your eyes open too.

As a parent, professor and clinician I always try to convey that we have the freedom to do anything and everything we want, but we should also have the courage to face the consequences. The challenge in life is to go through it with lots of fun, happiness and growth while paying the least amount of consequence or punishment. Healthy living means creating a safe, nurturing environment with trust, compassion and humor. By doing this we’ll reduce our stress levels and risk factors that sometimes compel us to hurt ourselves.

These are exciting and challenging times for our warriors and the psychological health field. For those who are serving or have served and their families, my sincerest “thank you.” We could not have done it without you. Bravo Zulu!