How to detect alcohol addiction and act on it

Alcoholism is one of the most common addictions in the world and also one of the most deadly, with more than 3 million deaths caused worldwide per year, due to this alteration of the Health. It is also the most harmful form of addiction for third parties, since it produces a high mortality due to accidents related to driving vehicles.

Thus, it is very important to know how to detect the warning signs associated with alcohol addiction in time. In this article you will find a summary of these and of the therapeutic strategies used to help those who suffer from this disease.

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Warning signs linked to alcoholism

People with this kind of addiction usually have a number of common symptoms; detecting them makes it possible to intervene in this disease in time. These are the most important warning signs of those who have developed or are developing alcoholism; Of course, some of them are not, by themselves, sufficient criteria to conclude that you are suffering from a disorder, and on the other hand, the definitive diagnosis can only be made by health professionals duly qualified.

1. They always drink in social contexts

One of the first warning signs that indicate the possibility of a possible case of alcoholism is the fact that drink whenever they are in social and festive contexts: celebrations, meetings, meals or social activities of all kinds.

Alcoholic people who are not being treated usually have a glass in their hand in these types of events since they take advantage of the minimal excuse given by the context to consume alcohol. Similarly, they tend to be upset or upset when they don't have access to alcoholic beverages in these kinds of festive contexts.

2. Physical and psychological symptoms appear

When the person stops drinking for several hours in a row they experience the so-called withdrawal syndrome, in which a series of very specific physical and psychological symptoms associated with general discomfort and anxiety are manifested, which unequivocally indicate the presence of addiction.

Some of these symptoms are tremors in the hands, excessive sweating, insomnia, nausea and also irritability, bad mood and nervousness.

3. They start consumption very early

Another of the most common warning signs is the consumption of alcohol from very early hours either at home or elsewhere, and it even occurs systematically in the early hours of the morning, in the most extreme cases.

This early consumption calms your craving to drink and is a characteristic feature of an addiction case.

4. They drink faster than usual

In order to consume the most amount of alcohol, people with alcohol addiction tend to drink faster than the rest of the people they come across.

And it is that, for a person with alcoholism, the drink is not only an accompaniment or accompaniment of the social situation, but it is the main activity at that time.

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5. They drink secretly

Again it is another of the typical signs of alcoholism. Many of the people with this disease use to drink alcoholic beverages alone to hide their problems and prevent their addiction from being discovered by others. In this way, they also avoid having to explain their problem to anyone..

Sometimes, bottles of alcoholic beverages are hidden so as not to arouse suspicion among family members, which has to do with the following red flag.

6. Special interest in drink reservations

This interest in knowing if there are enough reserves It occurs both in the home itself and in any other house in which they are going to stay for several hours at a time.

In addition to that, it is common for them to check, for example, the hotel minibars as soon as they arrive in the room, or to check in advance if there is a minibar service in the hotel.

7. They lose interest in activities other than drinking alcohol

When a person suffers from an alcohol addiction, both their activities and interests or hobbies cease to be important in their life, since they become are less of a priority and may be associated with the “risk” of having to spend more time than they should without drinking, especially if it involves activities carried out in group.

A good way to identify a possible case of alcoholism is check if the person continues to carry out their activities, if they continue to maintain their interests or hobbies as normal either bypassing them or not following the fixed schedule structure.

8. They relativize the consumption of alcoholic beverages

People with alcoholism tend to underestimate and dismiss their addiction, among other things so as not to have to face the idea of ​​stopping using that substance as soon as possible.

For it use self-deception methods such as "subtracting" units of alcohol consumed, for example excusing yourself for having done a lot of exercise that day or considering lower alcoholic beverages such as beer, as non-alcoholic.

9. They lose contact with friends who don't drink

Since their life revolves around drinking and alcohol consumption, people who suffer from alcoholism tend to cut off friends and acquaintances who don't drink or drink less.

In the same way, they tend to frequent more and more those friends who do drink or who engage in addictive behaviors similar to their own.

Treatments associated with alcoholism

In a case in which it is suspected that there may be addiction to alcohol, you have to act as soon as possible seeking professional help; No other solution offers sufficient guarantees to invest time and effort in it, giving addiction the opportunity to consolidate in the meantime. These are the forms of therapeutic intervention associated with alcoholism.

1. Medical assistance in detoxification

In the first phase, it is necessary to help the person to eliminate most of the alcohol accumulated in their body (the rest will be eliminated over several weeks) and to manage the withdrawal syndrome. In this way, the person is prevented from using again in order to stop feeling bad quickly, which would imply lengthening the problem. In addition, it is prevented from resorting to the uncontrolled consumption of other substances with addictive potential to alleviate discomfort

2. Residential program

The residential program can be short, medium or long duration, and consists of staying in a well-equipped residential module in which the person can focus their day-to-day activities and leisure time away from the world of drugs. All this with medical supervision and psychological therapy.

3. Outpatient treatment

Outpatient treatment consists of review and therapy sessions to check that the person is managing to adapt to his new way of life away from the addictive substance, and to solve his doubts and give you relapse prevention tools.

Looking for addiction treatment services?

If you are interested in starting an addiction treatment process, get in touch with us. On Llaurant la Llum We offer the forms of therapeutic intervention associated with all phases of detoxification and rehabilitation, and we have a complete team of health professionals, both in the medical branch and in the psychotherapeutic.

Bibliographic references:

• American Psychiatric Association (APA). (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing.
• Dunn, N.; Cook, C.C. (1999). Psychiatric aspects of alcohol misuse. Hospital Medicine, 60 (3): pp. 169 - 172.