A Young Male Drinks Abusively, Gets Inspired to Get Treatment for Alcohol Addiction and Depression, and Enhances His Life

May 31, 2010 at 3:35 am · Filed under Health & Fitness

Stanley started drinking excessively when he was in the seventh grade. From a positive way of looking at things, even though he drank abusively and excessively when he was an adolescent and a young adult, when he got beyond the age of twenty-five he almost always drank in moderation.

After he finished his education he eventually found employment at a local auto assembly plant where he applied himself and worked his way up from stock person, to office assistant, to purchasing assistant, to purchasing agent. Unlike his other work positions, as the purchasing manager he over and over again took potential vendors and existing vendors to lunch and to a variety of sporting events.

Though it was not written in concrete, meeting with potential vendors and existing vendors constantly involved situations in which alcohol was present. In truth, over the past year, Stanley had started to appreciably increase his work related and his social drinking. This has led to a dilemma. Namely, the more successful he became as a purchasing agent, the more he began to drink.

His Increasing Bouts of Depression Also Made Him Wonder if He Was Becoming Alcohol Dependent

In fact, it didn’t take long at all before Stanley’s irresponsible and careless drinking started to negatively affect his work efficiency, the money in his savings account, his health, his relationships, and his mental health. After many weeks of excessive drinking, Stanley, in point of fact, started to be anxious about his hazardous and careless drinking and questioned if his alcohol related problems were alcoholism signs. Moreover, his increasing bouts of depression also made him wonder whether he was becoming an alcohol dependent person. In short, Stanley clearly needed to learn more about the facts about alcohol abuse and alcohol dependency.

Stanley Needs Alcohol Detox and Alcohol Rehabilitation For His Alcohol Dependency and a Medical Assessment Regarding His Depression

So Stanley used his problem solving skills, called his healthcare professional, and made an appointment for a thorough physical examination. A week later after seeing his family doctor, Stanley unfortunately was told that he was addicted to alcohol. His family doctor told Stanley that he needed to get alcohol detox and alcohol rehab for his alcoholism and that he also needed to get a medical assessment regarding his depression. In short, Stanley needed treatment for his alcoholism and depression.

The Positive News is That After His Treatment For Alcohol Addiction and For Depression, He Felt Like a Different Person

His healthcare practitioner recommended to Stanley that he take a 45-day leave of absence from work and get enrolled in a quality in-patient alcohol treatment clinic where his depression could also be treated. This is specifically what Stanley did. The positive news is that after his treatment for depression and for alcohol addiction, he felt like a different individual. In fact, now that he was living an alcohol-free life he almost never got depressed and he now comprehended how to better manage his job, his health, his relationships, and his finances.

To no one’s wonder, the biggest “test” Stanley came across was at the office. To be more specific, he still took his existing vendors and potential vendors to various sporting events and to lunch, but after his alcohol treatment he managed to refrain from drinking while entertaining his clients.

Interestingly, Stanley also found out that none of his existing vendors or potential vendors thought any less of him because of his abstinence. Conversely, he found out that his existing vendors and potential vendors respected him for maintaining his convictions.

After Stanley went through alcohol treatment, however, he found out that he was a person who, for whatever reason, could not drink responsibly and in moderation. Indeed he learned the hard way that if he said “no” to drinking, all of the other significant parts of his life would be upgraded. Every so often, Stanley missed drinking, but the better work performance, health, finances, and the better relationships he experienced more than made up for his love of drinking.

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There’s Room For Hope If Those Who Engage In Hazardous And Abusive Drinking Can Become Persuaded To Get The Alcohol Detoxification And The Alcohol Therapy They Need

May 26, 2010 at 2:40 am · Filed under Uncategorized

The medical establishment defines various medical conditions and diseases as “silent killers.” Diseases like diabetes, osteoporosis, obstructive sleep apnea, high cholesterol, mesothelioma, high blood pressure, heart disease and several types of cancer like rectal cancer, colon cancer, lung cancer, and breast cancer are rather well known silent killers.

These medical problems are known as silent killers due to the fact that early on in the medical disorder there are regularly no symptoms to imply that a problem exists. Then as the medical ailment progresses, however, and as the medical issues begin to emerge, a medical emergency can result.

Hazardous Drinking Is a Silent Killer

I suggest that excessive and hazardous drinking is also a silent killer. Indeed, some people can drink for an extensive amount of time without going through any significant alcohol related difficulties in their lives. When irresponsible and abusive drinking is repeated for a considerable number of years, it can be noted, severe alcohol effects become more conspicuous and more knotty. Maybe the best illustration about which I am articulating happens in the transition from alcohol abuse to alcoholism.

Undoubtedly, more than a few alcohol related issues can be cloaked and easily hidden while a person engages in in excessive and irresponsible drinking. When the individual in reality becomes a chronic problem drinker or an alcohol dependent person, it can be emphasized, the unhealthy alcohol effects become quite noticeable and more critical. Unfortunately, this info about alcoholism and alcohol abuse doesn’t seem to be talked about as much as it should be.

Problem Areas That are Adversely Affected by Careless and Hazardous Drinking Over Time

What are a few of the problem areas that are negatively affected over time by repeated and continuous hazardous and heavy drinking? In the beginning, when people engage in abusive and excessive drinking, they are often unaware of what their alcohol abuse is doing to their mental health, to their health, to their finances, to their jobs, and to their relationships.

As the excessive and hazardous drinking continues, it may be noted, it usually leads to marital, communication, friendship, commitment, and relationship difficulties and often leads to divorce and affairs. In a similar way, many, if not most heavy drinkers in the long run suffer from alcohol related health problems such as sleep disturbances, hangovers, alcohol poisoning, and a loss of energy. Other alcohol induced medical problems include the following: vitamin deficiency, stomach ulcers, sexual problems, nerve damage, and liver disease.

Furthermore, many, if not most people who engage in alcohol abuse in the end go through alcohol related financial problems. Ironically, while numerous problem drinkers whine about their financial problems, they often make their financial circumstances even worse by spending more of their money to support their drinking habit.

In a similar way, abusive and heavy drinking regularly results in anger management, time management, and stress management difficulties. Not only this but, many, if not most people who engage in alcohol abuse, because of their heavy and irresponsible drinking, in the long run exhibit employment problems such as poor performance evaluations, showing up late for work, absenteeism, making mistakes on the job, and alcohol related accidents.

Additionally, excessive and irresponsible drinking eventually results in different mental health problems such as obsession, anxiety, denial, depression, and extreme mood swings. And finally, it should come as no shock that people who involve themselves in alcohol abuse can get a “drunk while driving arrest” virtually any night or day of the week due to their hazardous drinking and driving.

The Moral of the Story

The bottom line is this: people who involve themselves in irresponsible and excessive drinking need to learn how to drink in moderation and responsibly or get the alcohol detox and the alcohol rehab they require. This is significant for people who involve themselves in abusive drinking so that they can either drink responsibly and in moderation or begin to lead an alcohol free life and avoid the huge amount of alcohol related issues stated above. Plainly, obtaining professional alcohol abuse help will be important along these lines.

It is also relevant for individuals who engage in hazardous drinking to either learn how to drink responsibly and in moderation or quit drinking so that they can stay away from a life of alcoholism. In sum, people who involve themselves in excessive drinking need to abstain from irresponsible and abusive drinking so that they can stay away from the alcohol induced silent killers that are associated with abusive and hazardous drinking. Again, getting exceptional alcohol abuse rehab will clearly go a long way toward reaching this goal.

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The Alcohol Related Problems and Alcohol Related Deaths That Are Interlinked With Hazardous Drinking

April 3, 2010 at 4:52 pm · Filed under Health & Fitness

On an annual basis, how many alcoholics fail to get the professional alcohol treatment they require? How many people die each year from a condition that is 100% preventable, such as alcohol poisoning? How many individuals are the victims of alcohol related crime or violence each and every year? How many individuals get injured or lose their lives in alcohol related traffic accidents every year? How many people face serious consequences in their lives because they received a “drunk driving” conviction? How many junior high, high school, and college students lose their lives every year due to an alcohol overdose? How many children are born each year with fetal alcohol syndrome? How many people’s lives are cut short due to hazardous and irresponsible drinking? How many individuals lose their lives every year because of drinking problems?

Why Would Anyone Want to Drink in an Excessive and Abusive Manner?

So what’s the point in asking these questions? Basically to highlight the devastating and destructive nature of abusive and unhealthy drinking. Indeed, and based on the above questions, I wonder why anyone would choose to drink in a hazardous and abusive manner.

Stated more forcefully, with the host of health issues, employment difficulties, legal proceedings, financial problems, and relationship dilemmas that are linked to alcoholism and chronic alcohol abuse, why would any person with good reasoning skills want to drink in a hazardous and abusive manner? If truth be told when some of the above topics are put under the microscope more closely, abusive drinking becomes more illogical and makes even less sense.

Wouldn’t you think that alcoholics would be able to see some of the alcohol symptoms that they display? In a similar way doesn’t it seem reasonable to think that many more families would involve themselves in an alcohol intervention for the individual in the household who is an alcoholic or an alcohol abuser? What is more, wouldn’t you think that people who drink abusively would try to learn more about their drinking behavior by reading about various alcohol related statistics?

After reviewing the alcohol addiction and alcohol abuse research findings, the point is so important that it needs to be stated again: With all of the dangerous and disastrous outcomes that are directly or indirectly correlated with continuous and repetitive alcoholism and alcohol abuse, why would any individual want to engage in abusive drinking?

What Can be Done About the Widespread Nature of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism in the U.S.?

So what can be done about the pervasive nature of alcohol abuse and alcohol dependency in the United States?

1. Our students need more meaningful and more relevant preventative and educational methods and approaches so that more students at all grade levels, including those at college, are “reached.
2. In a similar manner, our students need to learn how to become problem solvers in life rather than resorting to the ”quick fix” and the “instant gratification” of a drug or alcohol abuse ”high” or “buzz”.
3. People who are alcohol abusers or alcohol addicts need to look look at themselves honestly and ask why they are not getting the professional alcohol rehab they need.
4. Society needs to get the message to more individuals about the damaging and destructive effects of careless and excessive drinking.

There’s Room For Hope if Those Who Engage in Hazardous and Excessive Drinking Can Become Motivated to Get the Alcohol Treatment They Require

There’s a lot of room for optimism and hope if people can start drinking responsibly and those who engage in continuous and repeated drinkingcan become motivated to get the alcohol treatment they need. Indeed, why put your loved ones through suffering, turmoil, and pain because of your excessive drinking when you have the power to control your life by drinking responsibly or even refraining from drinking if you can’t control your drinking behavior?

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Alcohol effects – The potential effects of alcohol misuse

February 6, 2010 at 3:24 am · Filed under Health & Fitness

alcohol abuse

Alcohol abuse affects us in many ways and our social skills; After one or two drinks you may become more at ease and more talkative as the alcohol reaches the brain and affects the way you think.
Drinking alcohol causes your heart rate to heighten and you may experience a warm glow. This is caused by alcohol making the tiny blood vessels in the skin enlarge, allowing blood to flow nearer to the surface and lowers blood pressure.

The Effects of Alcohol on Our Health

The dangers of drinking too much alcohol can be dire. Alcohol consumption effects include anxiety, impaired judgment leading to accidents and injuries, loss of consciousness, slowed breathing and heartbeat, suffocation through choking on your own vomit and potentially fatal alcohol poisoning. There are also many mental effects, inducing guilt, anger and even paranoia, for no real reason. Your words may slurr, often don’t recognise your surroundings and drinking too much alcohol can result in memory loss.

Drinking heavily also increases your calorie intake, which is why alcohol is a big factor in adult obesity. In a medium-sized (175ml) glass of wine there are 125 calories and in a bottle there are over 500 calories. Thats approximately 1 quarter of the national guidline daily amount!

Hangovers – Headaches could be the least of your worries

Drinking alcohol might cause you to have a hangover the next day, often being unpleasant to experience. You may get stomach ache, sickness, nausea and sometimes diarrhea, Alcohol consumption also has a dehydrating effect. Alcohol abuse can also make you feel sad, guilty

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Drinking more than the guidline daily units often you are putting your health in damger. Large amounts of alcohol consumed increases blood pressure.

Alcohol is frequently associated with mental health problems. A recent British survey found that people with anxiety and depression were twice as likely to be alcoholics.

High quantities of drinking may sometimes lead to ‘psychosis’, a bad mental illness where the person beleives others are out to get them. Heavy drinking can lead to seclusion and depression.

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A Ninth Grader Suffers From An Alcohol Overdose

September 14, 2009 at 4:39 am · Filed under Health & Fitness

Jeffrey was a ninth grader who typically seemed to be living on the edge. Jeffrey had a daring personality and typically wanted to do what his older brothers were doing. The essential problem with this was that all three of his brothers were at least 21 years old and were consequently within their legal rights to drive a car or truck and to drink alcohol.

Jeffrey, nevertheless, had a difficult time realizing the fact that as a fifteen-year-old adolescent he should not be drinking alcoholic beverages. In fact, in spite of this, Jeffrey usually drank with his guy friends after school, especially on the weekends.

One weekend, Jeffrey made up his mind to drive around with some of his older guy friends. One of his cronies was old enough to buy alcohol. After buying some wine coolers, wine, and beer, Jeffrey and all of his cronies went to a park and drank for approximately two or three hours.

A Young Man Becomes Unconscious

After drinking approximately ten alcoholic benerages, Jeffrey started to feel woozy and then threw up. When he passed out on the tennis court, one of his guy friends called 911 for help. It was fortunate that the call for emergency help was made because when his cronies went to the hospital to see Jeffrey, they discovered that Jeffrey had been manifesting alcohol poisoning symptoms. More precisely, Jeffrey had experienced a case of alcohol poisoning.

When Your Buddies Drink Too Much

Jeffrey had heard that drinking a great deal can result in an alcohol overdose but he never thought that this could ever happen to him. After all, some of his cronies frequently stated that they could drink two or three six packs of beer in one day without feeling any critical setbacks.

Armed with this information, Jeffrey was actually startled to discover that he had overdosed on alcohol because he “only” had more or less ten alcoholic beverages. When he explained this to the attending physicain at the hospital, on the other hand, the healthcare practitioner notified Jeffrey that drinking ten wine coolers over a two or three hour period of time could in reality be substantially more alcohol than can be processed by the body. The doctor further stated how excessive alcohol can cause the brain to shut down a person’s respiratory system and that when this happens, an individual can pass away.

The First Signal of Abusive Drinking

This was the first indication to Jeffrey that he was drinking in a hazardous fashion and that there are consequences for such actions. The healthcare professional told Jeffrey that he was a fortunate young man because he almost died from an alcohol overdose the night before.

The healthcare professional also talked to Jeffrey’s parents and suggested that they get alcohol treatment for Jeffrey. His parents were jubilant that Jeffrey was safe and sound and told the healthcare practitioner that they would look into getting Jeffrey alcohol treatment.

While conversing with his parents, Jeffrey told them that there must be a good reason why he did not die and that he felt grateful that he was still alive. He also informed his parents that the peculiar part about the entire drinking occurrence was that he had learned about alcohol poisoning the previous week at school.

When Paying Attention in Class Can Affect Your Life

At the time, what his health teacher, Mr. Franklin, was saying didn’t seem to make too much sense to Jeffrey. Since he almost died, then again, he felt that he should have listened more conscientiously in health class and applied what he had learned to his daily living.

Jeffrey informed his parents that he couldn’t wait to go to school and express regret to Mr. Franklin for not displaying more attention to a subject that was as noteworthy as learning about alcohol abuse and how to avoid alcohol poisoning.

His parents smiled at Jeffrey and said that they were delighted with the way he was taking responsibility for his harmful drinking activities. All he had to do now was to let this near fatal experience change his life in a useful way so that he would never again suffer from an alcohol overdose.

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Is Your Drinking Causing Problems in Your Life?

September 4, 2009 at 3:32 am · Filed under Health & Fitness

How do you recognize that you have a drinking problem? When is it clear that you are involving yourself in abusive drinking?

If you have unsuccessfully made an effort to quit drinking or if you have given your word to yourself that your drinking days are terminated and then you were made aware that you were drinking excessively just a few days later, chances are exceptionally good that you have drinking problems. The fundamental idea is that if you have attempted to stop drinking and cannot get this accomplished, then your drinking is controlling you, instead of the other way around.

Likewise, if it takes larger amounts of alcohol to get the same “high,” you probably need to become aware that you have a drinking problem.

You may be telling yourself that the rationale for your drinking is so that you can decrease your stress or get rid of the hurt that you feel. Similarly, you may be trying to steer clear of an injurious situation and may be looking for something more useful, more favorable, or less sorrowful.

As you continue your drinking, nonetheless, you will grasp the fact that drinking does not produce the same high and you will also understand that drinking doesn’t help remove whatever led to your sorrow in the first place.

As you continue to drink in a hazardous way, regrettably, you may become an alcoholic and, as a result, you may add another significant problem to manage rather than uncovering more efficient and wholesome ways of managing your alcohol induced predicament.

When an Alcohol Assessment is Required

If you have determined that you have a problem with your drinking, possibly the healthiest thing you can do for yourself is to call your doctor or healthcare professional and arrange for an appointment for a thorough physical and for an evaluation of your drinking circumstances.

If you truly think that you have a dangerous problem with your drinking, it may be a good idea to get prepared to hear that you need to get alcohol treatment.

At this point in your life, what are your alternatives? You can positively say no and refuse to see your health care practitioner and persist with your pattern of hazardous drinking.

It actually doesn’t take a nuclear physicist, conversely, to realize that long-term, abusive drinking, if left untreated, will degenerate over time and more likely than not lead to an early death. Therefore, your healthiest option is to confront your drinking circumstance and get the alcohol rehabilitation you require.

The Facade of the Functioning Alcoholic

It is somewhat paradoxical to note the fact that many alcoholics lead busy and active lives and have pets, vehicles, houses, jobs, families, and any number of material possessions similar to individuals who are not addicted to alcohol.

Many of these “functional” alcoholics may have never been cited for drunk driving and may have been lucky enough to avoid all alcohol generated legal issues. In spite of this good fortune, conversely, these alcohol dependent people need to drink in order to operate on a regular basis while keeping their facade as they associate with people outside their family.

Ask anyone who has seen them when they are engaging in one of their drinking binges or in a drunken stupor or ask a family member about the problem drinker’s alcohol dependency, then again, and they will be quick to assert the reality of the drinker’s situation and the whole story about the alcohol dependent individual’s drinking condition and about his or her alcohol generated predicaments.

Why Do Alcohol Addicted Individuals Fail to Deal With Their Drinking Difficulties?

As alcohol dependency and alcohol abuse research has highlighted, no matter how obvious the alcohol-related problems seem to those who interact with the alcohol addicted person, alcoholic individuals commonly deny that drinking is the origin of their alcohol-related problems. Not only this, but alcohol dependent individuals usually blame their alcohol induced difficulties on other individuals or upon other circumstances around them instead of seeing their part in the problem.

The origin of the issue is that alcoholism is a disease of the brain. Once the drinker has become dependent on alcohol, he or she typically resorts to denial, manipulation, and deceit as a way of coping with the fact that his or her drinking is out of control. And to make matters more difficult, the experience of alcohol withdrawal symptoms characteristically thwarts the alcohol addicted person’s rare attempts to suddenly abstain from drinking. As dreary as the alcohol addicted individual’s existence is, nonetheless, the good news is that professional help is commonly obtainable – if the alcohol dependent person reaches out and gets alcohol therapy.

Conclusion

Owning up to the fact that drinking is eliciting difficulties in your day by day functioning is conceivably the most trouble-free way to find out if you have a drinking problem. Stated more precisely, if your drinking is bringing about difficulties with your health, at work, in your relationships, with your finances, at school, or with the legal system, then you have a drinking problem that needs to be dealt with.

If you have a drinking problem, what is more, this means that you are getting involved with alcohol abuse.

While some problem drinkers may be able to detect their drinking difficulties and substantially diminish the quantity and incidence of their drinking, other individuals, to the contrary, need to address their drinking problems by getting quality alcohol rehab. Moreover, due to their tendency to deny the facts and bend the truth, alcohol dependent individuals unquestionably need professional alcoholism counseling for their irresponsible drinking.

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Alcohol Relapse and When Helping the Alcoholic Becomes Harmful

September 4, 2009 at 3:32 am · Filed under Health & Fitness

It is interesting to articulate something that family members who have been unfavorably affected by the alcoholism of another family member apparently do not realize. It appears that by protecting the alcoholic with untruths and dishonesty to those outside the family, these well-intentioned family members have basically created a condition that makes it easier for the alcohol dependent person to continue and go forward with his or her damaging, detrimental lifestyle.

Undeniably, rather than helping the alcoholic and themselves, these family members have in fact become enablers who have unintentionally helped deteriorate the alcohol addicted person’s drinking problem even more.

Relapses Can and Do Occur From Time to Time

Another key alcoholism issue concerns alcohol relapses. Relapses take place when an alcohol addicted individual has successfully gone through alcoholism rehabilitation and then resorts to drinking a number of weeks or months later. At first thought, this situation seems contradictory to logical thinking and sounds so far-fetched that it forces one to question why anyone who has gone through the dreadfulness of alcohol dependency can return to drinking a short while after effective alcohol treatment and in turn after achieving recovery. There are, for sure, many plausible reasons for this.

It should be highlighted, nonetheless that alcohol dependency research that has centered on the lasting outcomes of alcoholism has shown that long after the alcohol dependent individual has stopped his or her drinking, significant modifications in the way in which the alcohol addicted individual’s brain operates are still present. As a result, all a recovering alcohol dependent individual has to do to involve himself or herself in actions that correspond with the transformations that have taken place in the brain is to start drinking again.

The Necessity for An Essential Lifestyle Modification

There are additional reasons why quite a lot of recovering alcoholics return to drinking a few weeks or a few months after reaching sobriety. According to the alcoholism research literature, to make a successful recovery, the alcohol dependent individual needs new ways of responding and thinking in order to deal more successfully with taxing alcohol-related situations that will take place.

Circumstances such as returning to the same alcohol addictive environment or to the same geographic location; interacting once again with friends from the time when the alcohol dependent individual was drinking abusively; or familiar songs, smells, or activities—all of these conditions can elicit memories that can prompt psychological stress or push hot buttons that influence the recovering alcohol addicted individual to engage in excessive drinking once again. Unfortunately, all of these circumstances may not only work against ongoing sobriety for the alcohol dependent person but they can also lead to relapse and consequently counteract one’s sobriety.

Conclusion

In an attempt to “protect” the family alcohol dependent individual, family members can actually cause unplanned destruction by enabling the destructive drinking behavior of the alcohol dependent person.

The addiction research literature confirms the fact that most individuals who successfully complete alcohol treatment go through at least one relapse. Alcoholics and their family members need to know this so that they do not get down in the dumps or stressed out when a relapse manifests itself.

Happily, participation in support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous and follow-up counseling and education have resulted in more successful, long lasting alcohol abuse and alcohol dependency rehab results, have helped diminish alcohol relapses, and have helped recovering alcohol addicted individuals attain enduring sobriety.

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A Young Man Makes an Appointment to See His Family Doctor About His Alcoholism Symptoms and His Depression

September 1, 2009 at 4:18 am · Filed under Health & Fitness

Larry at long last made up his mind to go and see his family healthcare practitioner about his problem drinking.  At first, Larry thought he would be able to merely go online, look for some essential alcohol info, and come to a decision whether or not he was addicted to alcohol.  Not surprisingly, he located a number of websites that outlined some of the commonplace alcoholism symptoms.  That’s the good news.  The bad news, sadly, was that Larry displayed more than a few of these alcoholism symptoms.

Examples of Alcohol Dependency Symptoms

For instance, Larry was drinking increasingly more than usual and he was starting to have more impassioned bickering with the young lady he was dating.  In much the same way, for the first time in his life he was going through sleeping problems.  In a similar way, Larry over and over again felt depressed and on an increasing basis he had been demonstrating poor attention to detail while at work.

In the same way, he felt highly stressed and more nervous on a daily basis and for the past three or four months he demonstrated confused thinking while on the job. Since Larry exhibited all of these symptoms, he was understandably apprehensive about his hazardous drinking.

So Larry finally determined that he needed to place a phone call to his physician and ask for an appointment.  As a matter of fact, this was somewhat demanding for Larry because his physician was also his parents’ family physician.  The root of his uneasiness was this: at the risk of embarrassing his family, he had to go and expose his reckless and abusive drinking behavior to his family healthcare practitioner.

When Larry arrived at the healthcare professional’s office, he frankly told the family doctor about the apprehension he had about his irresponsible drinking behavior. When the family healthcare practitioner asked what was triggering this worry, Larry affirmed that he had gone on the world wide web and read about alcoholism and especially about alcoholism symptoms.  He then articulated all of the alcohol addiction symptoms that he undoubtedly thought he possessed.

A Comprehensive Physical Exam and Outpatient Alcohol Rehab

The doctor notified Larry that it was wise of him to tackle his drinking difficulties, he gave Larry a thoroughgoing physical exam, and recommended that he sign into an out-patient alcohol rehabilitation program that was managed by one of his doctor friends.

Additionally, when Larry mentioned that he had been feeling depressed to an increasing extent, the healthcare practitioner informed Larry that alcoholism and depression often happen in the same individual.  Consequently, the healthcare practitioner also suggested that Larry get counseling to concentrate on his depression.

The Merit of Facing Your Drinking Issues

The family physician made it a point to notify Larry that he might not inevitably be addicted to alcohol, but that he was certainly drinking in an excessive manner.  The physician then informed Larry that the reason he suggested alcohol rehabilitation in the first place was because he wanted him to sort out his drinking issues, make sure that he stopped them from escalating, and start to live in a more healthy manner, even if it meant that he had to absolutely refrain from drinking.

To be brief, by successfully treating his drinking problems, Larry would be able to get his drinking difficulties under control and quit the negative series of events that could potentially result in addiction to alcohol.

Plainly, Larry did not want to face the thought of getting admitted into an alcohol rehab center. Nor was he euphoric about going to a therapist about his gloom.  Irrespective of these anxieties, to the contrary, Larry as a matter of fact felt some emotional relief for the first time in many months because he eventually quit making excuses for himself and finally made up his mind that he needed to do something productive about his drinking behavior.

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When Heavy and Abusive Drinking Leads to Serious Health Problems

September 1, 2009 at 4:18 am · Filed under Health & Fitness

For several years alcohol dependency research has demonstrated the fact that there is strong relationship between alcohol addiction and critical health conditions.

For instance, in 2005, medical research showed that alcohol abuse and alcoholism cost the United States an estimated $220 billion on an annual basis. It can be emphasized that this considerable alcohol-related expenditure was substantially more than the cost linked with cancer ($196 billion) or with obesity ($133 billion). While it is appropriate to underline these facts, it is also noteworthy to highlight the fact that an interrelationship exists between all three of these health problems.

More exactly, chronic alcohol abuse and alcohol dependency are also highly correlated with obesity and with cancer.

Definitely, substance abuse examination has shown that alcohol dependency can augment the risk for various forms of cancer, particularly cancer of the kidneys, rectum, colon, voice box (larynx), esophagus, throat, and the liver. Heavy and recurring drinking can also result in immune system difficulties and injury to the fetus during pregnancy.

Abusive and Excessive Drinking Destabilizes the Individual’s Systems and Organs

Additionally, if alcohol addiction continues over a period of years, the person’s body organs will probably be affected in an unsafe manner. As an illustration, long-term, excessive drinking is particularly harmful to the liver due to the fact that the liver does most of the work of processing the alcohol that has been consumed. Excessive amounts of alcohol kills liver cells and destroys the ability of liver cells to redevelop. This medical circumstance leads to a progressive inflammatory malfunction of the liver that can in the end lead to cirrhosis of the liver, a serious and potentially terminal medical problem.

Abusive, long-term drinking not only can result in critical liver damage, but it can also result in damage to the heart and to the brain. Physical damage this dangerous may be irrepairable and may, in turn, result in serious llness or premature death.

The Importance of Alcohol Treatment

It is vital, then, to know how to identify the various alcohol dependency symptoms and signs so that the alcohol addicted person can be given the opportunity to get the quality alcohol rehabilitation he or she requires.

Alcoholism and Sophisticated Brain Research

Fortunately, scientific examination is continuously generating original and significant information. Recent alcoholism research offers a high-quality illustration. Stated differently, for approximately the past ten years, sophisticated brain-imaging scanning instruments have verified that continuous and recurring hazardous drinking modifies the functionality of the brain to a substantial extent, thereby resulting in brain disease that can last months, years, or conceivably as long as the person lives.

Stated differently, medical examination has shown that individuals who have been drinking in an irresponsible manner for an extensive length of time increase their risk for developing permanent and severe alterations in the brain.

This type of damage may be indirectly associated with the drinker’s poor overall health or directly related to severe liver disease or to the alcohol’s effects on the brain.

Malnutrition, Hazardous Drinking, and Mental Disorders

As a final illustration of assorted health problems that are to a great extent associated with alcoholism, take into consideration the fact that according to medical research, the abusive and repeated abuse of alcohol can lead to erosive gastritis, a health problem that decreases the absorption of minerals, nutrients, and vitamins.

This form of organ failure is associated with malnutrition and to a number of critical neurological and mental syndromes including memory loss, sleep disturbances, and psychosis such as Wernicke’s Encephalopathy and Korsakoff’s syndrome. This latter medical condition is a long lasting incapacitating condition that is exemplified by persistent memory and learning difficulties.

Conclusion

It is plain to see that repetitive, hazardous drinking is directly or indirectly linked to a variety of dangerous medical problems that can and do lead to dangerous ailments and premature death. Such information needs to be emphasized and presented to everyone in our society so that a massive amount of people will be able to refrain from irresponsible drinking while other people who have a drinking problem will get the quality rehab they need.

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When Drinking Becomes a Serious Problem

September 1, 2009 at 4:18 am · Filed under Health & Fitness

How do you know that you have a drinking problem? When is it evident that you are engaging in alcohol abuse?

If you have hopelessly struggled to quit drinking or if you have given your word to yourself that your drinking days are terminated and then you were made aware that you were drinking in a hazardous way just a few days later, chances are exceedingly good that you have drinking problems. The fundamental idea is that if you have made an effort to stop drinking and cannot accomplish this, then your drinking is controlling you, rather than the other way around.

Similarly, if it takes larger amounts of alcohol to get the same “high,” more likely than not you need to recognize the fact that you have a problem with your drinking.

You may be telling yourself that the reasoning for your drinking is so that you can lower your anxiety or get rid of the agony that you feel. Likewise, you may be trying to avoid a hurtful circumstance and may be looking for something more beneficial, more positive, or less regretful.

As you continue to drink, nevertheless, you will grasp the fact that drinking does not elicit the same high and you will also comprehend that drinking doesn’t help stamp out whatever elicited your pain in the first place.

As you continue to drink in an abusive manner, unfortunately, you may become addicted to alcohol and, as a consequence, you may add another essential difficulty to cope with rather than finding more successful and wholesome ways of coping with your alcohol produced predicament.

An Alcohol Assessment is Probably Warranted

If you have figured out that you have a problem with your drinking, perchance the most beneficial thing you can do for yourself is to call your physician or healthcare professional and arrange for an appointment for a thorough physical and for an evaluation of your drinking circumstances.

If you in fact feel that you have a critical drinking problem, it might be a good idea to get prepared to hear that you need to get alcohol reahbilitation.

At this point in time, what are your choices? You can without a doubt refuse to see your doctor and continue your pattern of out-of-control drinking.

It definitely doesn’t take a mastermind, then again, to understand that long-term, excessive drinking, if left untreated, will go downhill over time and quite probably result an early death. Accordingly, your most expedient alternative is to face your drinking problem and obtain the alcohol therapy you require.

The Deception of the Functioning Alcohol Addicted Person

It is somewhat paradoxical to note the fact that multitudes of alcoholics lead busy and active lives and have jobs, vehicles, pets, families, houses, and any number of material possessions similar to people who are not addicted to alcohol.

Many of these “functional” alcohol addicted people may have never been arrested for a DUI and may have been lucky enough to avoid all alcohol induced legal issues. Despite this fortunate circumstance, to the contrary, these alcohol addicted people need to drink in order to operate on a day by day basis while sustaining their facade as they interact with people outside their family.

Ask anyone who has seen them when they are out on a drunken binge or in a drunken stupor or ask a family member about the problem drinker’s alcohol addiction, nevertheless, and they will be quick to articulate the truth of the drinker’s situation and the facts about the alcohol dependent person’s drinking circumstances and about his or her alcohol generated problems.

Why Do Individuals Addicted to Alcohol Fail to Deal With Their Drinking Difficulties?

As alcoholism and alcohol abuse research has underscored, no matter how observable the alcohol-related difficulties seem to those who interact with the alcohol addicted person, alcohol addicted individuals commonly deny that drinking is the source of their alcohol generated predicaments. Not only this, but alcohol dependent people typically blame their alcohol induced predicaments on other individuals or upon other situations around them instead of seeing their part in the problem.

The source of the issue is that alcoholism is a disease of the brain. Once the problem drinker has become addicted to alcohol, he or she usually resorts to denial, manipulation, and dishonesty as a way of coping with the fact that his or her drinking is out of control. And to make matters more complex, the experience of alcohol withdrawal symptoms commonly circumvents the alcohol addicted person’s rare attempts to abruptly refrain from drinking. As dreary as the alcoholic’s existence is, nevertheless, the good news is that professional assistance is typically obtainable – if the alcohol dependent individual reaches out and seeks alcoholism counseling.

Conclusion

Acknowledging the fact that drinking is triggering problems in your day by day functioning is conceivably the most straightforward way to find out if you have a problem with your drinking. In other words, if your drinking is eliciting issues with your health, with your employment, in your relationships, with your finances, at school, or with the legal system, then you have a drinking problem that needs to be tackled.

If you have a drinking problem, additionally, this means that you are engaging in abusive drinking.

While some drinkers may be able to recognize their drinking problems and greatly decrease the quantity and rate of their drinking, others, to the contrary, need to deal with their drinking problems by getting quality alcoholism rehab. What is more, due to their propensity to deny the facts and alter the truth, alcohol addicted people undeniably need professional alcoholism treatment for their irresponsible drinking.

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