Narcologists believe that about a third of Russians are addicted to alcohol to one degree or another. A significant part of this category is made up of people suffering from latent alcoholism. They are not registered in the narcological dispensary, they behave adequately in the company, and even the closest family members may not know about their addiction. A “silent” alcoholic does not seek help from doctors, but this does not mean that he does not have health problems. Therefore, it is important for families to be able to recognize quiet alcoholics at an early stage.
What is “silent” alcoholism
People suffering from “silent” alcoholism are already addicted to alcohol, but they find the strength to hide their addiction. They continue to work productively, run a household and outwardly do not stand out from the environment. Often, even from the outside, their passion for alcohol looks innocent – a bottle of beer after work, a glass of wine at night or a balm in coffee. However, all this happens daily and repeatedly, and sooner or later leads to sad consequences.
Often such people do not recognize their addiction, and believe that they are in complete control of their lives. Many of them continue to make successful careers and achieve a good financial position – among the “quiet” alcoholics there are many businessmen, doctors and teachers. Even if the family notices something is wrong, the addict explains the use of alcohol by the need to relieve stress after a hard day’s work.
One of the signs of the disease is increased tolerance to alcohol. Ethanol belongs to the category of depressants and acts on the brain and nervous system. Over time, it requires more alcohol, although addiction usually begins with weak drinks – beer, weak cocktails or coffee with the addition of cognac. Then the person feels that he is no longer able to achieve the former effect, so he begins to drink alcohol more often and in large quantities. Often, such people tend to “refuel” even before a party or a visit to a restaurant, so as not to stand out from the crowd.
Russian experts see the cause of “silent” alcoholism in genetics. Often in such people, parents abused alcohol, which affected heredity. There is a version that the problem may be in the features of the brain, which produces few “hormones of joy”: serotonin and dopamine, so an external stimulant is required to relieve stress and relax.
Western doctors are more categorical and consider human social behavior to be the root of evil. The drinking environment provokes the emergence of addiction, so the irresistible craving to sit in a bar with friends is already an occasion to think about your relationship with alcohol. The desire to hide the amount of alcohol that a person consumes daily also refers to one of the manifestations of “silent” alcoholism.
How to recognize addiction
Sometimes even a wife finds it difficult to recognize that her husband is a “quiet” alcoholic. The spouse gets into the habit of drinking a little after work, and this is eventually perceived as the norm. This approach is dangerous primarily for the health of the addict. Daily 50 ml of ethanol after a year destroys the liver and cardiovascular system, leading to chronic diseases.
Typical actions that “silent” alcoholics perform:
- keep alcohol in secret places;
- try to hide or quickly throw away empty bottles;
- seek to find a reason to drink, and this can be both stressful and a joyful event;
- lying about the amount of alcohol consumed;
- carry a bottle of alcohol with them.
Women are especially careful to hide their addiction. As a rule, they drink in secret and carefully hide both full and empty bottles. “Quiet” alcoholics can drink alcohol little by little, but throughout the day, so their condition is not evident. The belief that they can quit whenever they want is not true. With the refusal of alcohol, the vast majority of such people experience withdrawal symptoms, so they quickly return to addiction.
Treatment
“Silent” alcoholism requires treatment by a narcologist, as the consequences of long-term use of alcohol are early aging, fatty liver embolism, heart attacks and strokes. Often such people die from a sudden heart attack. Health disorders can be corrected only with timely seeking help and complete rejection of alcoholic beverages.
Attention! Self-medication can be dangerous, consult your doctor.