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Alcoholism is a chronic disease that makes your body dependent on alcohol. You may be obsessed with alcohol and unable to control how much you drink or when you do not realise that your drinking is causing serious problems with your relationships, health, memory, thinking, sleep, sex, work and finances.
Although many people assume o therwise, alcoholism is a treatable disease.
Symptoms
* Drinking alone or in secret
* Being unable to limit the amount of alcohol you drink
* Not remembering conversations or commitments, sometimes referred to as “blacking out”
* Making a ritual of having drinks before, with or after dinner and becoming annoyed when this ritual is disturbed or questioned
* Losing interest in activities and hobbies that used to bring pleasure
* Feeling a need or compulsion to drink
* Irritability when your usual drinking time nears, especially if alcohol isn’t available
* Keeping alcohol in unlikely places at home, at work or in the car
* Gulping drinks, ordering doubles, becoming intoxicated intentionally to feel good or drinking to feel “normal”
* Having legal problems or problems with relationships, employment or finances
* Building a tolerance to alcohol level so that you need an increasing number of drinks to feel the effect of alcohol
* Experiencing physical withdrawal symptoms — such as nausea, sweating and shaking — if you don’t drink. |
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Risk factors
Consuming more than 15 drinks a week for men or 12 drinks a week for women increases the risk of developing dependence on alcohol.
Tests and diagnosis
Criteria for alcoholism to be diagnosed include a pattern of alcohol abuse leading to significant impairment or distress, as indicated by three or more of the following at any time during one 12-month period:
* Tolerance is indicated by an increase in the amount of alcohol you need to feel intoxicated. As alcoholism progresses, the amount leading to intoxication can also decrease as a result of damage to your liver or central nervous system.
* Withdrawal symptoms when you cut down or stop using alcohol. These signs and symptoms include tremors, insomnia, nausea and anxiety. You may drink more alcohol in order to avoid those symptoms.
* Drinking more alcohol or drinking over a longer period of time than you intended.
* Persistently having a desire to cut down on your alcohol intake or making unsuccessful attempts to do so.
* Spending a great deal of time obtaining, using, or recovering from alcohol use.
* Giving up important social, occupational or recreational activities.
* Continuing to use alcohol even though you know it’s causing physical and psychological problems.
Complications
1) Liver disease
2) Gastrointestinal problems
3) Cardiovascular problems
4) Diabetes complications
5) Bone loss
6) Sexual dysfunction and menstruation
7) Birth defects
8) Neurological complications
9) Increased risk of cancer
Non-medical complications
A greater susceptibility to accidental injuries from other causes
* Domestic abuse and divorce
* Poor performance at work or school
* A higher incidence of suicide and murder
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Determining your level of dependence
The first step in treatment is to determine whether you’re alcohol dependent. If you haven’t lost control over your use of alcohol, treatment may involve reducing your drinking.
If you aren’t dependent on alcohol but are experiencing the adverse effects of drinking, the goal of treatment is to reduce alcohol-related problems — often through counselling or a brief intervention, which usually involves alcohol-abuse specialists who can establish a specific treatment plan. Interventions may include goal setting, behaviour modification techniques, use of self-help manuals, and counselling and follow-up care at a treatment centre.
Prevention
For young people, the likelihood of addiction depends on the influence of parents, peers and other role models, susceptibility to advertising, how early in life they begin to use alcohol, the psychological need for alcohol, and genetic factors that may predispose them to addiction. You can help prevent teenage alcohol use. Start by setting a good example with your own alcohol use. Talk openly with your child and spend quality time together, but respect your child’s need for independence. Let your child know what behaviour you expect — and what the consequences will be if he or she doesn’t follow the rules. Make sure your child understands the legal and medical consequences of drinking.
Symptoms to watch out for:
* Less or no interest in activities and hobbies
* Bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and memory lapses
* Difficulties or changes in relationships with friends, often characterized by joining a new crowd
* Declining grades and problems in school
* Frequent mood changes and defensive behaviour |
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