Almost exactly two years ago, Californians in towns and cities across the state hunkered down, unaware that a global pandemic would render them largely homebound for such a long period of time. Like so many other Americans, Californians were affected by anxiety – worry about the coronavirus itself, the economic repercussions and what the future may look like in a post-pandemic world. As is the case in more normal times, when people feel stressed or depressed, they reach for the bottle in what they perceive to be a short-term solution.
As the pandemic well and truly set in, two things happened: people began to consume more alcohol, and they spent more time on social media – their primary channel with the outside world. In 2020, state officials introduced a crowd-pleasing salve: a temporary legalization of to-go alcoholic drinks from bars and restaurants. As the months progressed, the term ‘Quarantini’ entered our mainstream lexicon, becoming a catch-all term for any cocktail made during lockdown, and soon social media was flooded with alcohol-related content. In one study, Californians’ favorite homemade cocktail during the pandemic was found to be a Paloma.
National rehab directory, Rehabs.com, commissioned a study in which the 100 largest towns and cities in The Golden State were ranked for their number of alcohol-related Instagram posts over the course of the pandemic. The researchers analyzed 5,000 Instagram posts starting from March 2020 – the unofficial start of lockdowns for most states – to identify how many were related to alcohol or being drunk. The results reveal which town/cities posted about it the most, which could possibly indicate a problematic relationship with alcohol.
Rehabs.com made some interesting discoveries: the first being that Fairfield, which has a population of 118,498, came in the number one spot with 432 alcohol-related Instagram posts (per 5,000 posts) during the pandemic. This represents 8.64% of all Instagram posts in that city during that period. This might not be all that surprising when you consider that Fairfield is in Solano County, which has among the highest amount of excessive drinkers in the state at 20%, according to County Health Rankings. This places it in the top 15th percentile of the whole country and is higher than the average excessive drinking rate in California of 18 percent.
Coming mid-table was Simi Valley with 216 alcohol/drunk-related posts representing 4.32% of all posts during that time.
In 54th place came San Marcos, in which there were 194 Instagram posts related to alcohol or being drunk. This represents 3.88% of all posts of its 97,216 residents.
And, positively saintly in last place, was the city of West Covina, which has a population of 106,589. It clocked up just 86 alcohol/drunk-related posts equalling a minimal figure of just 1.72 percent. This is surprising given West Covina is located in Los Angeles County which, according to the County Health Rankings, has an excessive drinking rate of 18 percent – just above the state average.
Infographic ranking Californias’ towns and cities by their alcohol-related social media posts (click on ‘embed’ to host on your own site)
While the term “alcoholism” is clinically ambiguous and out of use, Rehabs.com have included below some signs to be aware of that that are indicative of problematic relationship with alcohol:
Difficulty controlling one’s level of alcohol consumption.
Wanting to decrease or stop drinking alcohol but being unable to do so.
Developing a higher tolerance for alcohol and needing more over time to reach the desired effects.
Experiencing alcohol cravings when not drinking as well as withdrawal symptoms such as sweating, shaking and nausea.
Facing personal problems at home, work, or school due to alcohol use.
