"HOW DO I GET OUT OF THIS CYCLE OF DRINKING ALONE?"

Therapist A is a counsellor with a psychodynamic approach with experience of working with adults and young people.

I think adjusting to a different language and culture is a much harder task than most people expect it to be. It would seem from what you say that you have come to live in Paris on your own, probably to work or maybe to study and have left behind your old, familiar friends whom you feel at ease with. Even if you made the choice to move to France, it is a challenge that you have had to meet on you own and there will have been many difficulties you didn’t expect. It sounds as if your language skills when you first arrived were fairly rudimentary and that communication in French was hard which maybe left you with difficult feelings; feelings of inadequacy, helplessness, homesickness, loneliness and frustration. Socialising must have been hard work sometimes. I wonder whether there have been difficult times in the past at school, or even within your family, when you have experienced feelings of insecurity, of not being heard or understood.

Alcohol as a means of escape from hard reality is very hard to give up. It is the feeling of escape from anxiety that is addictive. It can take the place of making meaningful relationships with others –maybe that is a difficulty you experience. It would seem at present your tendency is to withdraw and feel miserable rather than socialise. Alcohol initially establishes a sense of wellbeing and harmony within the self, but as that wears off, the effect of the alcohol on the body can increase the symptoms of anxiety and feed the need to escape.

As to how to get out of the cycle there are various approaches but it sounds as if you don’t feel very strong and need someone to help you. As a psychodynamic counsellor I would suggest that maybe your difficulties have some roots in your past and, if you have the means, seek out an English speaking psychotherapist or psychodynamic counsellor to talk to and help and support you as you try to get to grips with your current problem. You have found the Counselling in France website and there is a choice of therapists whom you can contact and talk to face to face or on Skype or the telephone

Therapist B is a Relate-trained counsellor with experience of working with relationship issues and is an experienced couples counsellor

I'm sorry to hear about your drinking alone problem as you described it, & have picked out a phrase that might give a clue as to why you seem to be drinking a lot at home("I still feel anxious about being around people") with the subsequent results of feeling lonely/needing to contact your old friends etc.
I know it is hard to live in another country with all the differences of language & culture to deal with, but as you said you had started to adjust I wonder what has happened along the way to make you feel more inclined to stay at home & drink? It sounds as though you might have some self confidence issues, & although having a drink socially can help you to relax to start with, it doesn't seem to be having the desired effect now, so maybe it would help you to talk about your circumstances with a trained counsellor?
It might be useful to look back at how you managed social situations back in the U.K., & try to identify what has changed since coming to Paris? What do you need to feel more confident about I wonder, & is it linked to your job, or how you feel when you are in a crowd of people? Sometimes it can help to explore back a bit to see what your expectations were before coming to Paris, & to see if you have felt disappointed in any way?
Without more details it is difficult to speculate any further but I'm putting a couple of sites which might help you to tackle this unhappy situation,& I hope it will help you feel better if you can seek some professional help. Good luck & bon courage.

The DOH alcohol misuse page includes information on the National Alcohol Strategy, and policy and advice on sensible drinking and the prevention of alcohol ...
www.patient.co.uk/health/Alcohol-and-Sensible-Drinking.htm

PARIS THERAPY SERVICES is a listing of English-speaking psychotherapists: www.paristherapyservices.com

Kairos Counsellors: English-speaking counsellors with practices in Paris ...
http://paris.angloinfo.com/af/807/paris-and-ile-de-france-psychologists-and-psychotherapists-paris.html

www.angloinfo.fr - click into Paris for all that is on offer for English speakers in Paris.

Therapist C is a psychoanalytic psychotherapist with experience of working with relationship and many other issues.

I wonder what your nervousness is about? What do you fear might happen when you go out with your friends?  From what you write, it might be that you are missing your friends in the UK. Leaving one’s country always involves a loss and a certain amount of grieving before being able to appreciate and enjoy one’ new country. I wonder if you are experiencing some of these things and are feeing guilty because of these feelings. I also wonder if the unfamiliarity of being in a new country and a new culture evoked something for you that may be connected to the past.

Dependence on alcohol or any other object can often be a substitute for something missing in life or for something that has been lost. I would recommend that you see a counsellor or psychotherapist to address your drinking and your anxiety so that you can try and get to the root of these and eventually free yourself from them.