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We deal with alcoholism when a person feels compelled to drink. As a consequence, it leads to psychological and social disorders.
Drinking alcohol has cultural connotations – it often accompanies various occasions, such as celebrating success or simply as a form of relaxation after a hard day. Therefore, the line between alcoholism and non-alcohol addiction is difficult to grasp. However, the definition of addiction suggests that z alcoholism begins when we become addicted to alcohol in our mood.
What are the symptoms of alcoholism?
The onset of alcoholism is similar to that of regular, occasional drinking. People suffering from alcoholism reach for the proverbial glass when they want to forget about difficult situations, failures or need relaxation that they cannot provide themselves in any other way. Usually, they also look for an opportunity to drink themselves.
One of the symptoms is drinking alone, taking advantage of every situation to do so. It does not matter what time, the sick person can consume alcohol at any time and in principle anywhere. It is often accompanied by drinking to the point of unconsciousness.
The longer the person drinks and the more, the symptoms of the type develop: alcohol craving, withdrawal syndrome (disturbance of heart rhythm, increase in blood pressure, convulsions or body tremors), increased alcohol tolerance.
In the advanced stage of alcoholism, the patient’s need to drink increases significantly, but his body becomes less and less resistant, and alcohol poisons the body. Then there are mental disorders, the so-called alcohol psychoses, memory problems worsen. Such a person is removed from society and often becomes the cause of family breakdown.
Alcoholism, alcoholism – how to treat?
It can take years to recover from alcoholism. It is a difficult and arduous process. To be successful, the patient must show willingness to be treated and undergo it voluntarily. The patient’s consistency in recovery is also extremely important.
Treatment of alcoholism begins with stopping drinking, eliminating withdrawal symptoms. The patient should undergo therapy, which can be helped by addiction treatment centers, AA groups. Therefore, the treatment of alcoholism involves a combination of alcohol addiction and psychotherapy. Pharmacotherapy is also used as an auxiliary. In order for the sick person to regain control of their life, a fundamental step is to become aware of the problem. However, even stopping drinking completely does not solve the problem of alcoholism. Abstinence once taken should be maintained for life.
The physical and non-physical consequences of alcoholism
Alcoholism leads to cirrhosis of the liver, pancreatic disease, damage to the heart muscle and many other serious conditions. It ravages not only the human body, but also his psyche. The patient often suffers from depression, alcoholic epilepsy, is addicted to violence, lonely and unhappy. Addicted alcoholics have a huge problem with maintaining a normally functioning family life, as well as work and contacts in society.
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