Alcoholism, Alcohol Addiction – How To Help An Alcoholic?

Addiction to alcohol is one of the most difficult topics in psychotherapy. This addiction affects not only the patient himself, but also his relatives to a great extent. That is why it is often them – family and friends who look for ways to help him effectively. However, many of them end up in psychotherapy sooner or later. Individual or group meetings are an invaluable element in helping you recover and live without addiction.

It starts innocent, with a glass of wine drunk more and more often with dinner, the hiss of a can of beer opened at the end of each day. Of course, at this stage, it is still difficult to talk about what alcoholism is. However, the first signals that arouse alertness can be picked up. They are said to be the warning phase. Over time, they become more and more visible and the patient moves to a critical and, finally, a protected phase.

Addiction to alcohol is debilitating. It makes the patient think about nothing else than reaching for another glass or dipping his mouth in a mug of beer. Not only his thoughts, but also his actions revolve around the drinks. He often has to lie, cheat, and figure out where to get the money for alcohol, where to buy it, how to consume it, so as not to arouse suspicions. However, today we know that alcoholism takes many forms and can very well happen to someone who is well off, wealthy, and apparently free from the problems that alcohol would suppress.

Where Does Alcoholism Come From?

Some are more likely to develop alcohol dependence and others less likely to develop this type of behavior. The most common reason for reaching for the bottle is:

willingness to impress peers,
duplicating patterns taken from the family home,
long-term stress and the desire to escape from it,
weak will and submission to pressure from others,
early adolescence disorders and brain dysfunctions,
endorphin deficiencies.

Alcohol is often an escape, so the most vulnerable to addiction are people who are in the process of difficult experiences – the disease of a loved one, divorce, bankruptcy. They explain their condition by the desire to ease the pain, the need to relax and detach for a moment from the difficult reality that surrounds them. Drinking is also favored by being in the company of people with similar preferences, the willingness to enter a group, please and find friends. This is only apparent, of course, and friendships end as alcohol cash runs out and problems with the law begin.

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Symptoms of Alcoholism

Alcoholism is a disease that develops gradually and quite insidiously. First of all, because the patient does not notice the problem for a long time, ignores it, and explains his attraction to the glass with the desire to have fun, break, relax, calm down, and much more. Many people successfully hide their problems from their immediate surroundings, which is why it is sometimes difficult for family and friends to catch the moment. However, there are symptoms of alcoholism – mental and physical – that cannot be missed. These include:

frequent drinking – not only during parties or on weekends, but also for no reason, even during the day,
drinking alone,
Consuming regular portions of alcohol that contain more than 100 grams of ethyl alcohol
drinking not only in the evening, but also at noon and even in the morning,
reaching for alcohol to alleviate the unpleasant ailments associated with hangovers,
driving while intoxicated,
“Broken movie”, that is, forgetting or unaware of what happened after drinking alcohol,
sleep problems – insomnia,
seizures
apathy, loss of interest in family, work, hobbies,
faster heart beat, increased sweating,
concealing evidence of drinking, e.g. cans or bottles,
looking for opportunities to “look into the glass”.