Help is Available for Drinking Problems

12/05/2011

When someone with a drinking problem needs to quit, there are a lot of help available resources to aid in finding which of the alcoholism treatment methods is best suited to helping them.

Did you know that most alcoholics enter rehabilitation centers due to some form of crisis? External pressure families is actually an effective way to get people with drinking problems into rehab and enhance the treatment outcome. If you wait for the patient to begin wondering what help is available for alcoholics before you initiate treatment they may never sober up!

In order to make an informed decision on the best way forward, contact our alcohol abuse counsellors who can assess the drinking problem and coordinate treatment suited to your needs. 

Probably the greatest addiction treatment myth is that the first step for an alcoholic to recover is admitting that they have a drinking problem.

You must understand firstly that alcoholism is a brain disease and that the problem drinker’s brain has changed and will never return to a non-alcoholic state. The alcoholics brain is pickled and once pickled you cannot return to a cucumber!

Because alcoholism is a disease of the brain it effects the problem drinkers perception, and they have to think about their drinker in a way that makes further drinking possible! The rationalise, justify and minimise the consequences of their drinking and cannot see clearly – so forcing your problem drinker into rehab by bringing about a crisis or intervention to get them into treatment is entirely acceptable!

It is not easy to admit to people outside the family that help is needed, but the sooner help for the problem drinker is sought the better the chances of a successful recovery from alcoholism.

Most people caught up in alcohol abuse are reluctant to talk about their drinking problems because of the popular misconceptions in society about alcoholics. Society generally sees alcoholism as a moral flaw, rather than a disease, so asking for help seems to be an admission of a shameful secret and weakness. Alcoholism is no more a sign of weakness than any other illness, such as diabetes or allergies.

When consulting with one of our alcohol abuse treatment counsellors, they will ask questions to find out whether there is how severe the drinking problem is and to what extent it’s impacted on the alcoholics level of functioning. It is imperative to shed as much light as possible on the problem so that the way forward can be planned effectively. 

If our addiction treatment consultants feel that there is a dependency on alcohol, he will likely recommend a consultation with a specialist at one of our alcoholism rehabilitation centres. He may also suggest a physical examination to determine if the alcohol consumption has resulted in any health issues. Feel free to ask questions about possible treatment, referral choices, or anything else that could be a concern. 

Treatment Options

Depending on the assessment of the treatment consultant, the rehab may consist of several stages. Chemical dependency on alcohol will possibly include detoxification, prescribed medication as part of treatment to prevent withdrawals interfering with the patients ability to engage in the program of individual counselling, group therapy, lectures and family counselling.

Alcohol addiction counseling helps to identify the circumstances and emotions that "trigger" the craving to drink. It also helps to discover other ways of reacting to those urges. Alternatives to drinking alcohol as a solution to life’s problems are explored and ways to avoid the “triggers” are explored.

Treatment for drinking problems is usually available in a hospital, residential treatment center or an outpatient facility.

The involvement of family may be important, so numerous treatment programs for problem drinkers have marital counseling and family therapy available. 

Most alcoholic treatment programs include attendance at Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, which are described as a "worldwide fellowship of men and women who help each other to stay sober." However, people are unique and not everybody responds to AA's approach, so other recovery approaches are also utilized.

Alcoholics Anonymous is best used in conjunction with other types of treatment, like CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) MET (motivational enhancement therapy) and counselling from trained recovering problem drinkers and drug addicts.

Due to the expense of in-patient treatment, help for problem drinkers can sometimes come in the form of out-patient rehabilitation. Please contact one of our alcohol abuse counsellors today for advice on what treatment will best suit your individual needs.

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