Health Information Center

I Thought I would share my thinking on how alcoholism gets started.

Some of us are born with a genetic make up that predisposes us to it. Anyone can have it. Some groups that are more susceptible than others are Scandanavians and American Indians. My kids are both. Just because the genes are there does not mean you will be an alcoholic, other things go into it.

Home Life is a big one. The attitudes, behaviors, perceptions, value systems at home while growing up can lead to need for escapism.

How we choose to escape makes a difference. Escaping in non-harmful ways is best especially if we later turn back to whatever the problem was we were getting relief from and figure out how we are going to healthfully and effectively deal with it. We will feel rewarded and self confident in ourselves . Unhealthy escapism will always include escaping but not coping later on. Not developing strategies to deal with any given situation or thing, this leads up back to escapism in a vicious cycle never growing from the experience.

Continue reading ‘Why Alcoholism?’ »

If you’re worried that you or someone close to you is an alcoholic, the fact this is on your mind indicates that it is something worth looking into. There are signs you can look out for that you or someone you know is addicted to alcohol.

Once someone accepts that they have an alcohol problem, they are one step closer to dealing with it. Remember that just one of the following behaviours or symptoms or a one-off event does not necessarily indicate that someone is an alcoholic, but could indicate that there is a problem.

One of the major symptoms of alcoholism is drinking alone and lying about it or covering your tracks so that nobody else finds out. Hiding alcohol is also a classic symptom – if you or someone you know is hiding alcohol at home or at work, it is very possible that alcohol abuse could be happening. Continue reading ‘What Are the Symptoms of Alcoholism?’ »

re you an alcoholic?

Not such a simple question. That one word “ALCOHOLIC” is absolutely loaded with tragedy. It screams failure, loser, wife-beater.

Drunk, lush, bum, wino, stewbelly, swillpot, tosspot, inebriate, barfly, and drunkard are all bedfellows of the alcoholic.

It is probably the worst kind of addiction that you could ever have…you are accepted legally in almost every town in the civilized world. The druggie has to hide, the smoker has to go outside, and the gambler…he can just hide the amount he loses.

But you can do your thing in full view of the public. Down to the pub…get drunk, get plastered. Stagger, reel, and pass out.

When is it time to stop? When is it time to admit what you are doing?

Do you need to admit anything? How do you KNOW?

I’ll tell you. Stop drinking for a month. If you can do that without any problems, you just passed the test. Are you an alcoholic?

Continue reading ‘Here Are Some Simple to Answer Questions to Discover If You Need Alcohol Detox’ »

Alcohol is often the only thing that offers an individual some respite from a hectic, stressful life that has few pleasures in store. Though associated with relaxation, fun and celebration, the “high” that it provides, makes anyone have more and more quantities of it each time he or she wishes to escape from tension or depression. The “high” becomes elusive, as the body needs more and more alcohol to reach that level. The consequence is what we often hear as alcoholism. The alcoholic is prone to hide his problem, but it manifests itself in his mood swings, his craving, improper behavior, violent reactions and his attitude contrasts under the effect of alcohol and when sober.

All these convince family members that some form of intervention has to be initiated. They might take on the tough task upon themselves to convince the individual first that he has a drinking problem and that he needs help to get out of it. This is generally the toughest problem faced in alcohol intervention. The alcoholic’s acceptance of his addiction and the need to use external assistance to shake it off can be a daunting task for anyone. Even after that, he might try to get back to his drinking because the body used to a certain level of alcohol, cries for some more. Only the strongest of individuals can resist the temptation and bear the withdrawal symptoms. He has to also muster enough strength to refuse invitations of his drinking buddies, who would do everything to get him back.

Continue reading ‘Problems Faced in Alcohol Intervention’ »

For the past several months, the daily economic news has been grim. We hear about more job losses, foreclosures, home sales down, food prices soar, the stock market goes up and down. These are extraordinarily difficult times for everyone, and in some way everyone is affected by the situation. The never-ending stress taps into your energy and saps your strength; it tests your faith and leaves you confused. Families without the added stressors of alcohol or drugs will pull together; they will make some sacrifices as they grumble and complain, but in the end these families will more than likely survive the current economy.

What about the alcoholic? More importantly, what about the children living with an alcoholic? Research has confirmed that alcoholics lack coping skills. When faced with problems, the alcoholic will turn to the bottle. Most of us have seen the destructive dysfunction that results from alcohol or drug abuse. What happens when the alcoholic faces a job loss or pay cut, or loses the important health insurance? These situations exceed the “normal” stress of life and will most likely find the alcoholic turning to the bottle more often and in larger quantities.

Continue reading ‘Alcohol Abuse And A Bad Economy’ »

Drug and alcohol detox is the process of stopping drinking and the subsequent withdrawal effects. It is these withdrawal effects from alcohol that make Alcoholic detox a difficult and sometimes traumatic experience for the alcoholic. Alcohol rehabilitation is another important step which takes place after the alcohol detox is finished. In both of these cases the alcohol detox therapist will play a major role. The effectiveness of some of these alcohol detox therapists will be much better than some of the others. A better understanding for the patient and his problems is one of the areas where good therapist’s thrive. Support and empathy are other elements of good therapy. Another sign of a good therapist is to be able to keep the patient focused on his or her goals, this is essential in the long-term treatment. Also in being able to use outside agencies to benefit the patient.

We are stuck in a bit of a rut at the moment with the supply of good therapists being very short. This has a lot to do with lack of money supply. Bad Alcoholic detox therapy, and bad therapists, are identified by not listening to and blaming the patient they can also be accused of being controlling and intrusive. They can also be accused of being distant psychologically and they have a tendency to avoid issues that they find unpleasant, often being only interested in themselves.

Continue reading ‘Detox From Alcohol and the Therapist’ »

Alcohol detoxification or detox is really a painful experience when an alcoholic attempt to quit it before they undergo different process to managed the symptoms and be on the recovery period. This is difficult for the patients because they merely rely on alcohols, when the times come they are ready for the rehabilitation they can have a choice either they go in a rehabilitation center or in a hospital. If their cases are more severe then it will greatly depend on the symptoms and it will have more supervision than those who have lighter cases.

The period of detoxification will be burdensome for patients because they cannot go on without the influence of alcohol for a long time. With that patients experience withdrawal symptoms which can cause complications and it can also be the cause of someone’s death. That’s why alcohol detoxification should be undergo with enough supervision.

Continue reading ‘Disturbing Alcohol Detox Symptoms’ »

Are you an alcoholic? When do you know you have become addicted?

Drinking alcohol excessively for a long period of time has a lot of risks to your health. The amount of alcohol you drink at a sitting and the extent of overall times you do this will determine the amount of damage done to your body.

If you are not a heavy drinker and only drink 1-2 drinks a sitting a couple of times a week, you would not be considered an alcoholic If your drinking becomes more and more each time and more often, and you continue this habit over a long period of time, you will eventually become addicted to alcohol. You increase your body tolerance each time you have a drink.

1. Your family life begins to crumble.
2. You become depressed.
3. Your anxiety will increasingly become worse.
4. You will be unable to sleep as well as you did before.
5. You start to lose your self esteem.
6. Your friends avoid you.
7. You have problems at work.

Continue reading ‘What Are Short Term and Long Term Effects of Alcohol Abuse’ »

According to a research study conducted by the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (NCADI), children of alcoholic parents are four times likely to be an alcoholic than any other children. It simply means that children of alcoholic parents are at higher risk of becoming alcoholic than children whose parents are not alcoholic. But, it does not prove that the problem of alcoholism is hereditary. If proper care and precaution is taken, it can usually skip from generation to generation. But, it is difficult to deny that alcoholism has genetic factors.

Following three major factors are responsible for causing drug addiction in a person:

Personal Habits:

Children of alcoholic parents see a lot of alcohol at home. They gradually get used to have alcohol everywhere. Chances are high of their picking and tasting drinks.

Surrounding Environment:

The environment is very much responsible for causing drug addiction problems in a person. Children, who see alcohol, at home everywhere usually witness unhappiness, bereft of love and care from family and feel insecurity often. So, an unhappy childhood contributes a lot in the development of alcohol problems at the adult age.

Continue reading ‘Drug Addiction – Is it Hereditary?’ »

Having a desire to stop drinking alcohol is actually the first and right step to quitting. In other words, there is no one in the whole world that can stop you from doing what you love doing. So, winning the battle against booze starts from within you. However, I need to let you know that your desire must be very strong and you must have a strong will as well. This is because a mere wish to quit drinking will not help you. You will always find yourself going back to your old way of life. And there is nothing anyone out there can do about that. Once you have a burning desire to stop drinking alcoholic drinks, the following tips will help quit.

One primary sign of a burning desire that wants to quit drinking is staying away from all kinds of alcoholic drinks. Also, it is useless telling everybody that you want to quit and you still have bottles of alcohol around you. This is a mere wish that will take you no where. You need to get rid of the bottles and stay away from your alcoholic friends. The latter is very important. Without telling them to go, you will still find yourself drinking.

Continue reading ‘Stop Drinking Alcohol – Do You Want To?’ »