I wonder to what extent this is new and to what extent this is just being exposed now by changing social norms. I get the sense that rampant alcohol abuse was m

I wonder to what extent this is new and to what extent this is just being exposed now by changing social norms. I get the sense that rampant alcohol abuse was much more prevalent a few decades ago than it is now. If everyone was constantly self-medicating with alcohol, that might mask all manner of anxieties, social and otherwise.