Subconscious distraction

You can't feel pain in two spots at the same time.  You can't really do two things at once.

Okay so there are exceptions but generally I have noticed that if I have a headache and a sore throat, I think of each separately.   I don't really notice the pain at exactly the same time.  It's like my brain can only be in one spot at a time.  I've experimented with this.   I have chronic neck pain and foot pain.  If I focus on the foot, I don't notice the neck and vice versa.

I can't work on accounting stuff and listen to my audio book but I can do laundry, exercise, clean the house and drive while listening to the book just fine.  Different parts of the brain must be at work.

I'm thinking that a craving is more my subconscious brain.  The part that allows me to drive while thinking of things or that enables me to clean while listening to an audio book or singing to tunes.

So if I'm sitting outside with the hubs, trying to drink AF stuff and chat about our day, the subconscious keeps hijacking my thoughts and focuses them on how I hate not drinking.  I've noticed that if I get up to cook dinner, or I do dishes while talking to hubs, the cravings don't surface or at least subside.

I think the key is to distracting my subconscious while at the same time engaging my conscious brain in something else.

If I sit down to pay bills in the evening, and not do anything else, my subconscious brain will kick in and "oh I want wine" will be playing in the background.  But if I put on music without lyrics but with a nice tune, Celtic, Spa or Classical music seems to do the trick, then craving brain gets distracted.

If I just sit and concentrate on an audio book in the late afternoon, all I want is a glass of wine in my hand.  But if I go polish cabinetry or sweep floors while continuing to listen, there is no room for craving brain to speak up.

So how to sit outside with hubs and not die of cravings or get bitchy because of it?  I think probably having a big pitcher of water and drinking/pouring may keep my subconscious busy while we talk.  I wonder if I should take up knitting or something.  Maybe color while drinking and chatting.

I notice that if I am listening but looking freely around, I will crave wine, but actually reading a book or magazine keeps me more distracted.

Interesting.  I'm going to ponder this further.

Day 26

HD