November 13, 2009
When Drinking Becomes a Problem That Requires Attention
How do you identify the fact that you have a drinking problem? When is it clear that you are involving yourself in hazardous drinking?
If you have unsuccessfully attempted to quit drinking or if you have given your word to yourself that your drinking days are gone and then you were made aware that you were drinking in an abusive manner just a few days later, the odds are exceedingly good that you have drinking problems. The fundamental idea is that if you have made an effort to quit drinking and cannot get this accomplished, then your drinking is controlling you, rather than the other way around.
Likewise, if it takes greater amounts of alcohol to get the same “high,” more likely than not you need to become aware that you have a problem with your drinking.
You may be telling yourself that the justification for your drinking is so that you can reduce your nervousness or get rid of the sorrow or depression that you feel. Similarly, you may be trying to stay away from a harmful circumstance and may be looking for something more useful, more favorable, or less sorrowful.
As you maintain your drinking, on the other hand, you will realize that drinking does not elicit the same high and you will also understand that drinking doesn’t help eradicate whatever led to your discomfort in the first place. You may also become aware that the more frequently you drink, the more depressed you feel.
As you continue to drink in a hazardous way, regrettably, you may become an alcoholic and, as a result, you may add another essential difficulty to manage rather than finding out about more successful and healthy ways of dealing with your alcohol-related predicament.
When an Alcohol Assessment is Necessary
If you have decided that you have a problem with your drinking, perhaps the most expedient thing you can do for yourself is to call your physician or healthcare professional and schedule an appointment for a physical and for an assessment of your drinking activities.
If you actually believe that you have a critical drinking problem, it might be a good idea to get prepared to find out that you need to get alcohol rehab.
At this juncture, what are your choices? You can surely refuse to see your general practitioner and continue your pattern of out-of-control drinking.
It certainly doesn’t take a genius, conversely, to understand that repeated, hazardous drinking, if left untreated, will get worse over time and quite possibly lead to an early death. Thus, your best alternative is to address your drinking circumstance and obtain the alcohol treatment you require.
The Facade of the Functioning Alcoholic
It is somewhat odd to note the fact that several alcoholics lead busy and active lives and have families, jobs, houses, vehicles, pets, and any number of material possessions similar to non-alcoholics.
Many of these “functional” alcohol addicted people may have never been apprehended for a DUI and may have been fortunate enough to avoid all alcohol-related legal predicaments. Despite this fortunate circumstance, nevertheless, these alcohol dependent people need to drink in order to deal with life on a daily basis while continuing their facade as they associate with the outside world.
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 addiction, conversely, and they will be quick to articulate the truth of the drinker’s situation and the particulars about the alcoholic’s drinking circumstances and about his or her alcohol-related issues.
Why Do Alcohol Addicted People Fail to See Their Drinking Problems?
As alcoholism research and statistics on alcohol abuse have underlined, no matter how observable the alcohol-related predicaments seem to those who interact with the alcohol dependent person, alcohol dependent people normally deny that drinking is the cause of their alcohol-related difficulties. Not only this, but alcohol addicted people regularly blame their alcohol induced predicaments on other individuals or upon other circumstances around them instead of seeing their part in the issue.
The source of the issue is that alcoholism is a disease of the brain. Once the person has become an alcoholic, he or she often resorts to denial, manipulation, and lying as a way of dealing 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 counteracts the alcohol addicted person’s rare attempts to abruptly stop drinking. As cheerless as the alcohol addicted individual’s existence is, then again, the good news is that professional assistance is extensively obtainable – if the alcoholic reaches out and gets alcoholism therapy.
Conclusion
Coming to grips with the fact that drinking is producing difficulties in your day to day functioning is conceivably the simplest way to determine if you have a problem with your drinking. Stated another way, if your drinking is leading to 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 addressed.
If you have a drinking problem, furthermore, this means that you are involving yourself in irresponsible drinking.
While some drinkers may be able to detect their “alcohol signs,” pinpoint their problems, and substantially reduce the amount and rate of their drinking, other drinkers, conversely, need to address their drinking difficulties by getting professional alcoholism rehab. What’s more, due to their penchant to deny the facts and warp the truth, alcohol dependent individuals undeniably require quality alcoholism counseling for their abusive drinking.
And finally, if you feel more depressed the more you drink, it is likely that you will need to get therapy for your problem drinking and for your depression.
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