Alcoholism

What Is Alcoholism?

Alcoholism is a brain disorder that can range in severity from mild to moderate to severe.

It is characterized by the inability to stop drinking and experiencing adverse consequences in your personal and professional life due to alcohol use. It can also cause or worsen physical and mental health disorders.

What Are The Symptoms Of Alcoholism?

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5), is a professional reference manual to assist licensed professionals in identifying alcoholism.

Eleven specific symptoms exist, but you don’t have to meet all to have a drinking problem. If you meet two to three symptoms, your symptoms are mild. Having four to five symptoms is a moderate problem, and having more than six symptoms is severe. The eleven symptoms include the following:

• You drink more than you intend or for longer periods.
• You have tried to cut back or quit but couldn’t.
• You spend most of your time drinking, seeking alcohol, or recovering from drinking.
• You have intense urges and obsessive thoughts about drinking.
• Your drinking interferes with your work, home, or school performance.
• You continue to drink even though it causes relationship problems.
• You have given up activities you once enjoyed to spend more time drinking.
• Your drinking has put you at risk of harm.
• Your tolerance builds, and you need to drink more alcohol to achieve the same effects.
• You experience withdrawal symptoms when you go without alcohol.

Some drinking behaviors may not meet the criteria for alcohol addiction but are warning signs or patterns that increase your chances of developing an alcohol use disorder, like heavy and binge drinking.

Binge drinking refers to a man who consumes five or more drinks in two hours or a woman who consumes four or more drinks. Heavy alcohol use for men is consuming five or more drinks in a day or 15 drinks a week. For women, heavy alcohol use is drinking four or more drinks in a day or eight drinks a week.

How Much Alcohol Is Too Much?

The U.S. Dietary Guidelines report it is best to avoid alcohol to ensure you do not experience complications. However, if you choose to drink, safe recommendations include drinking no more than one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men. A standard drink is equivalent to the following:

• 12 ounces of 5% beer
• 8 ounces of 7% malt liquor
• 5 ounces of 12% wine
• 5 ounces of 40% distilled spirits, gin, rum, whiskey

Additionally, alcohol should be entirely avoided under the following conditions:

• If you are taking interactive medications
• If you plan to drive a vehicle or operate machinery
• If you are under the legal age of 21
• If you have a physical or mental health condition that can be exacerbated by alcohol
• If you are pregnant

Having one or two standard drinks may not sound like a lot, but it is enough to alter brain functioning and impair judgment. Drinking more than the standards for a long time puts you at a higher risk of developing alcoholism.

What Causes Alcoholism?

Alcohol is a substance that changes how the brain communicates with the rest of the body. Specifically, it changes neurotransmitters in the brain like dopamine and serotonin. Long-term alcohol misuse causes the brain to become dependent on it, creating harsh withdrawal symptoms for those who try to quit. Many people continue drinking to avoid these withdrawal symptoms, finding themselves in a cycle that is extremely challenging to break.

Continuing to drink alcohol is not the only reason people develop alcoholism. Biological, physical, psychological, and environmental factors can also contribute to the disease.

What Are The Risk Factors For Alcoholism?

Risk factors refer to the variables that make it more likely you will develop alcoholism, such as adverse events, personal characteristics, relationships, and living conditions. The more risk factors you have, the higher your risk for alcoholism. Common risk factors include the following:

Genetics

Being born with an addiction gene accounts for at least 50% of the reason you may develop alcoholism. If close relatives have alcoholism or other addictions, you likely have the same genetics, which includes how you respond to alcohol and how your body metabolizes alcohol. However, that does not guarantee you will develop alcoholism.

Age When You First Consume Alcohol

The earlier you begin drinking alcohol, the more likely it is you may develop alcoholism. Drinking before or during adolescence leads to other risky behaviors and mental health disorders. Alcohol changes how the brain functions. Since the brain is still in development during the teen years, alcohol may alter it in a way that is not reversible.

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, young adults and college students have the highest rates of alcohol addiction. Brain development continues until your mid-twenties. Therefore, binge and heavy drinking habits will impact it.

Mental Health Disorders

Coping with a mental health disorder may be the reason you start drinking alcohol. While this may work temporarily, eventually, your mental health symptoms will likely worsen, or you may develop new symptoms. Anxiety and depression are common mental illnesses that co-occur with alcoholism.

Environment

Everyone encounters external stress daily. Some people experience higher levels of stress that make it more likely they turn to alcohol to help them cope. If you have experienced trauma, especially in your childhood, you are at risk for developing an alcohol use disorder. Trauma may include sexual, physical, or emotional abuse. It may also involve surviving war combat, natural disasters, or the death of a loved one.

Additional environmental factors include the type of parenting you have growing up and how your parents feel about alcohol misuse. If your parents misuse alcohol and encourage you to do so also, your risks increase. If your partner or spouse is a heavy drinker, you may find it difficult not to drink.

Other risk factors are living in a chaotic home environment, lacking positive support, or experiencing peer pressure.

What Are The Complications Of Alcoholism?

A complication is a problem that arises due to having alcoholism, which can affect you, someone you love, or a stranger. Alcohol misuse can drive a wedge in relationships for the following reasons:

• It decreases intimacy
• It leads to mistrust
• It causes financial problems
• It causes others to feel neglected
• It puts added stress on others

Alcohol affects the parts of the brain responsible for decision-making, motor skills, and judgment. When intoxicated, these areas are suppressed, making it easy for you to experience an accident or injury. If you drive a vehicle while intoxicated, you may harm yourself or someone else. Trips, falls, stumbles, arguments, and engaging in risky behaviors often occur when consuming alcohol and can lead to adverse consequences.

Additional complications of alcoholism include the following:

Complications can occur the first time you misuse alcohol or after having an alcohol use disorder for years. You may find yourself in dangerous situations with people who take advantage of others’ alcohol misuse, including sexual assaults, car crashes, or physical attacks.

Long-Term Effects Of Alcoholism

Continuing to drink alcohol over long periods and in large amounts can lead to more extensive physical and mental health problems. Alcoholism can prevent you from fulfilling your duties at home, work, school, and socially. As a result, you may experience financial, relationship, and academic failures. Long-term effects also include:

Mental Health Problems

Alcohol interferes with the brain chemicals associated with mental health, changing how they are released and functioning. Mental health issues influenced by alcohol include:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Drug misuse
• Bipolar disorder
• Eating disorders
• Gambling
• Post-traumatic stress

Physical Health Problems

Alcohol damages every part of the body and can lead to various health conditions, some of which may not be reversible after you stop drinking. Common complications occur in the following areas:

Someone who is pregnant and continues to drink can injure their unborn baby, possibly causing fetal alcohol syndrome. If you are taking medications, they can interact negatively with alcohol, leading to potentially fatal consequences.

What Are The Warning Signs Of Alcoholism?

Most people with an alcohol problem will exhibit noticeable changes in their appearance, behaviors, friendships, and performance at work, school, or home. Warning signs to watch for include:

• Hanging out with a new group of friends who also misuse alcohol
• Having trouble sleeping
• Caring less about personal hygiene
• Having an increase in anxiety, depression, or both
• Lying about how much they are drinking
• Asking for money to help pay their bills or purchase more alcohol
• Becoming aggressive or defensive when you refuse to help them or question their drinking
• Isolating themselves from others to spend time drinking
• Forgetting things they did when drinking heavily or blackouts
• Receiving legal consequences while drinking

Warning signs vary for each person with alcoholism. However, don’t wait to find out why if you think they are not acting like themselves and may be misusing alcohol. Help is available.

How Is Alcoholism Diagnosed?

Diagnosing alcoholism involves a process that begins with a comprehensive evaluation by a licensed mental health or substance abuse professional, such as a psychiatrist, therapist, social worker, or counselor. They will review your symptoms and compare them to the criteria in the DSM-5. Being open and honest during the evaluation is crucial for the most accurate diagnosis.

Additional tools professionals may use include the following:

• Screening to Brief Intervention (S2BI)
• Brief Screener for Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs (BSTAD)
• Tobacco, Alcohol, Prescription Medication, and Other Substance Use (TAPS)
• Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT)

Screening and assessment tools give professionals information on your family history of alcohol use, risk factors, protective factors, support system, and medical conditions so they can create a treatment plan for recovery success. They also provide information on any challenges you may face when entering or maintaining recovery and how to overcome them.

Treatments For Alcoholism

People seeking alcoholism treatment have varying needs, some more intensive than others. The treatment you choose must match your withdrawal, therapeutic, and support needs. There are primary treatment options for alcoholism, ranging from high intensity to least restrictive:

• Inpatient detoxification occurs in a hospital setting with 24/7 medical supervision.
• Inpatient rehab occurs in a hospital setting, with 24/7 medical supervision and individual and group therapies.
• Residential rehab is a residential setting you share with others in recovery. You do not have access to 24/7 medical staff but can access doctors and therapists during the day.
• Partial-hospitalization programs meet five days a week for about five hours daily for individual and group therapies and education.
• Intensive outpatient programs meet for three hours at least three days a week for therapies, education, and support.
• Individual outpatient is weekly one-on-one counseling with a therapist.

Therapy

Each type of treatment offers individual and group therapies to teach you the necessary recovery skills.

Most professionals use behavioral therapies, such as the following:

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) 

CBT is a technique that focuses on changing negative thinking patterns that influence unhealthy feelings and behaviors. It is a form of talk therapy that is beneficial for most mental health and substance use disorders. CBT helps you identify the problem and work towards a solution.

Dialectical-behavioral therapy (DBT) 

DBT is a type of CBT that is beneficial for people who experience intense emotions, like someone with bipolar disorder. It teaches mindfulness, acceptance, distress tolerance, regulating emotions, and interpersonal effectiveness.

Motivational Interviewing (MI) 

MI is a therapy that helps people who need to make healthy changes, like quitting drinking alcohol, but who may not be ready to stop. They are often ambivalent and need encouragement. The principles of MI include the ability to make decisions, acceptance, exploring motivations and reasons for change, and committing to change.

Acceptance And Commitment Therapy (ACT) 

Everyone experiences difficult times, and with ACT, a therapist can help you accept your circumstances by embracing your emotions, pain, and other reactions rather than trying to suppress them or feel guilt or shame. Doing so can make it easier to commit to change.

Contingency Management Therapy (CMT) 

CMT uses a reward system like positive reinforcement to motivate you in recovery. You receive a reward for each milestone in recovery, like one month alcohol-free or 90 days in treatment. Working towards a goal or reward boosts motivation to stay on track.

Family Therapy (FT) 

Your family and friends are affected by alcohol addiction. They must participate in therapy to learn how to support their recovery. Some family members need to learn boundaries and how to stop enabling. Others may need help with quitting alcohol, too. FT teaches everyone how to work as a team to fight addiction.

12-Step Facilitation (TSF) 

Alcoholics Anonymous is a 12-step facilitation group that is beneficial to your recovery. Lead by peers, you get to meet others in recovery, share stories, and gain much-needed support. TSF programs for families, like Al-Anon, are also available.

Treatment plans often include alternative therapies to help patients heal their whole selves and maintain recovery. These therapies include acupuncture, music and art therapy, equine therapy, and fitness.

Dual diagnosis programs treat mental health and alcoholism. If they aren’t treated simultaneously, one condition could become a trigger for relapse of the other one.

Alcohol Help is not affiliated with any insurance.

Treatment Medications

Medication is available for people who experience moderate to severe withdrawal symptoms. The benefits also include helping you gain clarity to better focus on learning what it takes to achieve long-term recovery. Your thoughts are not interrupted by cravings or physical discomfort. Medications for alcoholism include the following:

• Disulfiram is a medicine that causes unpleasant symptoms when you drink, like nausea and vomiting.
• Acamprosate is a medicine that reduces cravings and helps restore a natural balance of neurotransmitters in the brain.
• Naltrexone is a medicine that blocks the effects of rewards produced in the brain when you drink alcohol.

Medications can be taken short- or long-term. You and your doctor or therapist will determine their role in your recovery.

How Can I Prevent Alcoholism?

The best form of prevention is to avoid drinking alcoholic beverages altogether. However, there are more minor changes you can make to prevent alcoholism, like drinking according to the U.S. standard drink guidelines. According to the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 98 out of 100 people who drink within these guidelines do not develop alcoholism.

If you like the taste of alcohol, avoid the buzz by replacing it with non-alcoholic versions. Avoid triggers that may cause you to turn to alcohol to cope with uncomfortable feelings. Examples of triggers may include going to bars, alcohol-focused parties, people who are heavy drinkers, and anything that reminds you of a past trauma. Finally, learn positive coping skills that will equip you to deal with triggers.

Is There A Cure For Alcoholism?

A cure for alcohol addiction does not exist because it is a chronic brain disease with the potential for relapse, similar to many other physical and mental health conditions. The closest thing to a cure is to stop using alcohol and allow the brain and body to heal.

Unfortunately, it is not often that simple. Through decades of studying alcoholism, a continuum of care developed that is effective in helping people stay sober.

Taking advantage of treatment options, from intensive inpatient to outpatient programs, is a proven way to maintain recovery. You must make recovery a priority and change areas of your life to support living alcohol-free. Work with licensed professionals who can create a specific treatment plan based on your recovery needs.

How Do I Take Care Of Myself If I Have An Alcohol Use Disorder?

Taking care of yourself when you have alcoholism must be a priority due to the physical and mental health dangers that can happen because of drinking. Make an appointment with a physician to determine alcohol’s effects on your body. Meet with friends who are fun to be around when not drinking. Meet with a counselor to discuss treatment options. Self-care is a way to love yourself by meeting the needs of your mind and body. Examples of self-care include:

• Eating healthy and exercising
• Practicing mindfulness
• Learning a new hobby
• Taking a break from social media
• Engaging in meditation
• Making sleep a priority
• Implementing stress-management techniques

It can also mean moving from an unhealthy environment to a safe one. You may need to distance yourself from negative influences and enter treatment.

Where Do I Find Alcoholism Treatment?

If you struggle with alcoholism and are ready to take the first step towards sobriety, contact a treatment provider today risk-free. They can help answer your rehab-related questions and explore your rehab options.

By seeking help, you can get closer to the healthy life you deserve. Don’t hesitate to call today.