What Men Need to Know
Our way of being healthy is by making good choices, and to care for our family, community and culture.
Alcohol and other drugs can tangle and weaken our spirit and mind.
This can affect our emotional, social, spiritual and physical well being.
This can weaken our connection to family, community, culture and country.
When we use alcohol and other drugs in harmful ways our spirit becomes weaker and our thinking gets tangled. But if we stop or reduce our use, our spirit can grow strong and our thinking becomes clear again.
- Brain
- Brain damage, stroke, memory loss, blackouts, hallucinations, fits, confusion, dementia, mental health problems, depression, anxiety and mood swings
- Nervous System
- Tingling, numbness and loss of feeling
- Heart
- Irregular pulse, high blood pressure, becomes enlarged
- Liver
- Damaged and swollen, cirrhosis, hepatitis, cancer
- Reproduction
- Impotence and damaged sperm, risk of sexually transmitted infections and blood borne viruses from unsafe sex
- Colon & Rectum
- Cancer
- Throat
- Chronic coughing and cancer
- Lungs
- Reduced resistance to infection, coughs, colds, risk of pneumonia and tuberculosis
- Muscles
- Weak, loose muscle tissue
- Stomach
- Ulcers, inflammation, vomiting and diarrhoea
- Kidneys
- Reduced function and increased infections
- Pancreas
- Pancreatitis
- Intestines
- Ulcers
- If you are taking medications, or have physical or mental health conditions then you should check with your doctor to see whether it is safe for you to drink alcohol.
- Have no more than 4 standard drinks on any single occasion.
- Other health risks from drinking alcohol build up over your lifetime. This means the more you drink the greater the risk.
- You should not drink alcohol when you are alone, when planning to drive, operating machinery, or do things like hunting, fishing, boating, and going bush. Alcohol will affect your judgement and your behaviour, and you may put yourself and other people at risk.
- To reduce risks of alcohol-related disease or injury over your lifetime you should not drink more than 2 standard drinks on any day.
- When you are drunk or intoxicated you could say things you would not normally say or do things that you would not normally do.
- Too much alcohol can affect your mind and make you feel really down or blue.
- It can affect your judgement and you are more likely to do things like start fights, have unsafe sex, drive drunk and break the law,
- When you are drunk you are more likely to be involved in family and domestic violence, accidents and assault.
- When you are drunk you cannot look after yourself, your family, or your children properly, and you might neglect them or put them at risk.
Parent Social and Emotional Wellbeing
As a new parent, you may notice differences in your life once baby arrives.
Along with excitement and joy, you may be feeling tired, and overwhelmed.
Many parents go through a lot of different emotions, especially after the baby is born. It is a time of adjustment for you and your baby.
Family and friends can support you to give your baby a strong spirit and strong future.
It is useful to yarn with grandparents, mums, aunties, cousins and friends about ways to keep babies strong and healthy.
DADS
It's not just up to mums...
Dads are important too and can make healthy choices to reduce their alcohol, tobacco and other drug use to support their partners and families.
Dads can offer support by:
- If your partner is pregnant or breastfeeding, not drinking alcohol, using drugs or smoking tobacco is the safest choice for growing a strong baby and providing a safe and supportive environment.
- yarning with your partner about supporting their decision not to drink alcohol, use drugs or smoke tobacco.
- going with their partners to antenatal classes.
- offering their partners alcohol-free alternatives.
- eating healthy and exercising with their partner.
- helping to look after kids by taking kids hunting, fishing, or down to the park.
Have a yarn with your health worker if you are worried or would like to know more about the risks of alcohol, tobacco or other drug use during these times.
If you are thinking about reducing your alcohol use you might like some help or information.
If you are worried about somebody and how their alcohol use is affecting you and your family, perhaps you would like some help.
It may not be easy reducing your alcohol use but your friends, family and other people in your community can support you to make changes.
If you would like further information, please head to our services and support page: