Table Of Contents
Top Signs of Alcohol Abuse
Symptoms Of Alcohol Abuse That Are Common
Recognizing Alcoholism Addiction
Alcoholism Dangers
Adolescents Alcoholism
Alcoholism Treatment
Statistics on Alcohol Use Disorder
Make it Your Time Now
Top Signs of Alcohol Abuse
People may not know the severity of the alcohol abuse the person is suffering from for various reasons. Some signs are more recognizable than others. For example, not all people drink in social settings, therefore it may not be easy to identify that there is a problem, to begin with. There are some people who choose to drink privately. They choose to isolate themselves from other people when they drink, a lot of the time purposely so in the attempt to conceal their drinking habit from others. In doing so this can make it challenging for relatives to know about their drinking addiction in order to intervene and assist their loved ones with the help they need.
What can easily be overlooked is mild alcohol abuse. However, mild alcohol abuse can become dangerous over a period of time. There are typically early warning signs which should never be ignored. Seeking treatment even for mild alcohol abuse, in the beginning, will help you get back to what you enjoy in life the most. Plus it will help prevent your alcohol abuse from spiraling out of control into a bigger issue.
Symptoms Of Alcohol Abuse That Are Common
Alcohol abuse is diagnosed as AUD, which is also known as alcohol use disorder. If left without treatment it can be very harmful to a person’s life. It can also affect the people’s lives around them in a negative way as well. Things can spiral out of control very fast.
Understanding and seeing the warning signs of alcohol abuse will make a huge difference in helping them get the right treatment for them to begin recovery.
There is no specific formulation or formula even to determine if a person is an alcoholic or not. Though symptoms often do co-occur. Symptoms may overlap and intertwine with one another, which may intensify other problems in the future.
Alcohol abuse common symptoms most reported are:
- Experiencing temporary blackouts or short-term memory loss
- Making excuses for drinking such as to relax, deal with stress or feel normal
- Exhibiting signs of irritability and extreme mood swings
- Becoming isolated and distant from friends and family members
- Feeling hungover when not drinking
- Choosing drinking over other responsibilities and obligations
- Changing appearance and group of acquaintances you hang out with
- Drinking alone or in secrecy
Even if you feel your alcohol addiction is minor compared to others or in general, alcohol abuse should never be ignored. It is a disease that can easily spiral out of control and it often co-occurs with other mental health issues as well. Many people do tend to self-medicate with alcohol. If you are struggling with alcoholism, or if you have a loved one who is struggling, we are here to help! Please call a treatment provider today to find an alcohol treatment center nearest to you.
Recognizing Alcoholism Addiction
To help in determining if someone has an alcoholism addiction there is one too called CAGE. There are also several screening tools as well that help in determining CAGE, however, there is a questionnaire that helps measure how bad alcoholism is. If “yes” is answered to two or more CAGE questions, you are advised to seek professional medical care and assistance.
Here are CAGE’s four screening questions:
- Have you ever felt that you should stop drinking so much?
- Have you ever felt bad/guilty about your drinking?
- Have people annoyed you when they were criticizing your drinking?
- Have you ever had a drink first thing in the morning, so you could steady your nerves or get past a hangover?
The (DSM) which is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders may be used by a medical professional who might ask you questions from that manual to help diagnose you properly for alcohol abuse. Questions answered should be based within the past year.
Those questions may include:
- Have you kept drinking even though it made you depressed or anxious or added to another health problem?
- Have you ever gotten into situations when drinking that raised your chances of harming yourself or others (ex. drinking and driving)?
- Have you lost interest in other activities/hobbies since you started drinking?
- Have there been situations in which you ended up drinking a lot more than you intended?
- Have you felt an urge/craving to consume alcohol?
- Have you been in trouble with the law due to alcohol-related problems?
- Have you experienced symptoms associated with an alcohol withdrawal?
Taking a brief questionnaire like CAGE will help you determine whether or not you have an issue with alcohol. Regardless of how frequently you drink, if there are any negative consequences in your life, even if it’s in just one area, it’s a cause for concern. It’s also an indication that help is needed from a trained professional.
Alcoholism Dangers
Your personal and professional life can quickly become affected due to alcohol abuse. It can lead down a path of a vast amount of issues. Drinking for many years can easily place you in a position of developing many serious complications health-wise, amongst potentially life-threatening consequences.
Many people do not receive treatment for their alcoholism due to denial. Many try to rationalize their drinking in many ways. People like to also blame others for their circumstances of drinking, versus accepting that their problems stem from the actual alcohol itself. Alcohol can make a person become defensive especially if someone even brings up their excessive drinking consumption and patterns. Refusing to recognize alcohol’s negative consequences you’re ultimately blocking yourself from a happy, healthy, sober life.
You can stop making excuses today for your alcoholism and start receiving the help you know you deserve. There are alcoholism support options you can learn about and also other resources to begin your recovery journey today!
Adolescents Alcoholism
Alcohol abuse amongst teens has grown in the last several decades. Teen brains have not developed fully and because of that adolescent drinking behaviors differ vastly in comparison to adults overall.
Many teens turn to alcohol for various internal and external reasons. It can be reasonings such as external peer pressure, or a genetic predisposition that is internal. Physical and environmental factors, including behavioral, also take part in the risk of adolescent alcohol abuse. There are many reasons as to why they begin drinking alcohol. Some motivating factors that encourage teens to start drinking are:
- Experimenting– Many teens see images and lifestyles on social media that promote drinking, which makes drinking look acceptable and attractive. It gives the illusion to many teens that if they drink they will become popular and gain more friends. Sadly. With experimenting with alcohol it doesn’t usually stop after one event of drinking. It usually continues and becomes out of control.
- Fitting In– In their teenage years many lack self-confidence and therefore they have the deep desire to just fit in with their peers. They are willing to do what it takes just to be accepted and to just fit in, including drinking alcohol. Drinking also by default helps reduce their anxiety and reduce any social preoccupation of self-consciousness. Therefore, it gives them the confidence they need in front of their peers. There is a part of the brain called the frontal lobe, and it is involved in executive functioning and planning. This part of the brain is not fully developed in teenagers, alcohol affects that. Kids, in general, are more impulsive, and rather less patient, and alcohol also has an effect on that as well.
- Escaping Reality– Teens experience stressful situations just like adults do. Some teenagers instead of taking part in a hobby or sports resort to trying alcohol. The alcohol helps them decompress from the stressors they face either at school or at home. These stressors can be with family and friends or even with their academics. Drinking overall can provide them a false sense of happiness, therefore they repeatedly drink. They do this in order to experience a sense of happiness and avoid the unpleasant realities they don’t want to face.
Alcoholism Treatment
Specialized treatment facilities are where overcoming alcoholism should be completed. It should be managed and treated under the supervision and care of trained medical staff and professionals. Those who choose to try to overcome alcohol on their own may be causing themselves more harm than good. The detox phase in itself can be very uncomfortable and sometimes the withdrawal symptoms are better managed with medication, under a doctor’s supervision.
Being a part of a recovery program with a trained specialist will set you up for the most positive chance for long-term success in your sobriety. Setting sobriety goals are important to help motivate you and stay on track. Treatment providers help guide you through every step of recovery from alcohol abuse and help you customize your goals. When alcohol rehab is over, they will make the arrangements to get you in contact with alcohol abuse counselors and even support groups. There are support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous that have been very beneficial for helping people’s long-term recovery, including Al-Anon. All these additional resources will help guarantee that you maintain your long-term sobriety once you leave alcohol rehab. It will help you to meet other individuals as well who have overcome alcohol abuse.
Statistics on Alcohol Use Disorder
The amount of adults seeking treatment from an alcohol facility has been constant in recent years, which has been about 1.2%.
Roughly 16.3 million adults in the United States, in 2014, had AUD (alcohol use disorder). Of those with the disorder, only 8.9% actually received treatment.
An estimated 855,000 adolescents in the United states are abusing alcohol and those rates are climbing. Those ages are 12 to 17 years old. They were diagnosed with AUD (alcohol use disorder) in 2012.
Make it Your Time Now
If you are ready to take control back of your life, make it your time now! You can live a healthy, happy, sober life! There is help available to you or your loved one who is struggling with alcohol abuse.
Don’t hesitate in talking to a treatment specialist provider today. There is more information to find out. These are decisions you are able to make in order to better your future. Contact us today!
