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For more than a few years alcohol addiction exploration has demonstrated the fact that there is strong linkage between alcoholism and dangerous health conditions and mental health issues such as depression.

As an illustration, in 2005, medical research and alcohol abuse and alcoholism statistics revealed that alcohol abuse and alcohol addiction cost the United States an estimated $220 billion annually. It can be emphasized that this substantial alcohol-related cash outlay was significantly more than the cost linked with cancer ($196 billion) or with obesity ($133 billion). While it is relevant to emphasize these facts, it is also important to point out that an interrelationship exists between all three of these health problems.

More correctly, chronic alcohol abuse and alcohol dependency are also highly associated with obesity and with cancer.

Definitely, substance abuse investigation has revealed that alcohol dependency can augment the risk for different kinds of cancer, particularly cancer of the colon, voice box (larynx), liver, rectum, throat, kidneys, and the esophagus. Heavy and recurring drinking can also lead to immune system problems and damage to the fetus during pregnancy.

Excessive and Heavy Drinking Weakens the Problem Drinker’s Systems and Organs

Furthermore, if alcoholism continues over a period of years, the person’s body organs will more likely than not be affected in an unhealthy manner. For instance, long-term, hazardous drinking is especially dangerous to the liver due to the fact that the liver does most of the work of processing the alcohol that has been ingested. Unwarranted amounts of alcohol kills liver cells and destroys the ability of liver cells to regenerate. This medical condition results in a progressive inflammatory disease of the liver that can ultimately lead to cirrhosis of the liver, a dangerous and possibly terminal medical problem. Excessive, long-term drinking not only can result in dangerous liver damage, but it can also lead to damage to the heart and to the brain. Physical damage this serious may be unalterable and may, in turn, lead to severe illness or an untimely death.

The Importance of Alcohol Therapy

It is essential, therefore, to know how to recognize the various alcoholism symptoms and the “alcohol signs” so that the alcoholic can be given the opportunity to seek the quality alcohol counseling he or she needs.

Alcohol Dependency and Sophisticated Brain Exploration

Fortunately, scientific exploration is relentlessly uncovering original and important information. Recent alcoholism research offers a first-rate example. More exactly, for roughly the past ten years, complex brain-imaging scanning devices have verified that repetitive and recurring excessive drinking alters the configuration of the brain to a great extent, thereby resulting in brain disease that can last months, years, or perchance as long as the person lives.

More explicitly, medical research has demonstrated that individuals who have been drinking excessively for an extensive length of time increase their risk for developing long-term and severe changes in the brain.

This type of damage may be indirectly associated with the drinker’s poor overall health or directly related to the alcohol’s effects on the brain or to severe liver disease.

Mental Disorders, Malnutrition, and Excessive Drinking

As a final illustration of assorted health problems that are substantially related to alcohol addiction, take into consideration the fact that in accordance with medical research, the abusive and repeated abuse of alcohol can lead to erosive gastritis, a condition that diminishes the absorption of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals.

This type of organ malfunctioning is linked to malnutrition and to a number of critical neurological and mental problems including sleep disturbances, memory loss, and psychosis such as Wernicke’s Encephalopathy and Korsakoff’s syndrome. This latter medical condition is a long lasting debilitating condition that is epitomized by incessant learning and memory complications.

Abusive Drinking Also Leads to Relationship and Friendship Difficulties and Conflicts

In addition to critical medical problems, irresponsible drinking also leads to relationship and friendship issues. As an illustration, people who involve themselves in excessive drinking typically experience sexuality problems, marital problems, divorce, and affairs.

Conclusion: The Significance of Education

It is obvious that repetitive, abusive drinking is directly or indirectly correlated with numerous serious medical problems that can and do lead to dangerous illness and premature death. Such information needs to be stressed and presented to everyone in our society, especially to all students, so that most individuals will be able to refrain from irresponsible drinking while other people who have a drinking problem will get the professional rehab they require.

Let us look at this with a common sense perspective. Yes, alcohol treatment is important, but alcohol therapy is something that is typically done AFTER the fact. Education, then again, is something that is done BEFORE the problem manifests itself. Stated a different way, whereas alcohol rehab is “reactive,” education is “proactive.” It is affirmed that both approaches are required when discussing alcoholism and alcohol abuse.

Around eight months ago I had lunch with a forty-nine-year-old man named Alexander who suffers from extreme depression, has marital issues, and who is drug and alcohol dependent. As articulated by Alexander, it is his drug and alcohol dependency and his acute depression that had the most to do with his recurring divorce difficulties.

I recollect hearing that a history of mental health concerns, drug abuse, and abusive and unhealthy drinking routinely take place in the same family. Not only this, but I remember hearing that in such situations, an individual needs to get counseling for both medical problems and that chemical dependency and mental health difficulties often occur in the same person.

As stated by Alexander, he is so overwhelmed by his divorce problems and by both of his medical conditions that he in effect has little or no driving force to accomplish much of anything. What is especially unfortunate about this is that earlier in his life, Alexander managed to complete one semester of graduate school in French history.

Alexander’s condition makes me question if he is an illustration of a person who can look in the mirror and perceive his drug abuse and alcohol drinking problems and do something healthy about these issues or if he is someone who has to hit the bottom of the barrel before he gets drug and alcohol addiction counseling that results in long lasting sobriety.

The Need For a Counseling Protocol He Can Believe In and a Physician He Can Trust

If it would be helpful I would assume that I could suggest quite a lot of blogs and websites that could possibly help him learn more about drug abuse symptoms, the stages of alcoholism, chemical dependency information, and relationship issues. From my perspective, nevertheless, Alexander needs to find a treatment program he can believe in and follow through over the long term and find a therapist he can trust.

I could be mistaken but it seems to me that Alexander more likely than not needs to look honestly at his life regarding his drug addiction signs and alcoholic symptoms and understand the fact that he cannot use drugs or drink at all if he wants to get sober, remain sober, and start on the path to lasting sobriety.

It may be asked how counseling would help his alcohol and drug addiction. For starters, there are quite a few recently created doctor-prescribed meds that can help Alexander through the alcohol and drug detoxification process, through his withdrawal symptoms, and help him avoid a drug or an alcohol relapse.

Second, Alexander would learn to concede the fact that there is absolutely nothing useful about chemical dependency and abusive and excessive drinking and that involving himself in one or both circumstances is the map to a premature death, shattered relationships, deteriorating health, legal problems, financial difficulties, and poor work and school performance.

Third, treatment for his depression and for his marital problems might help him cope with these psychological difficulties more successfully and help create less of a need for him to engage in addictive behavior.

The Relevance of Recovery Groups Like Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous

There are probably several family members, other individuals, and friends who would offer to help Alexander with his drug abuse and his abusive drinking. He more likely than not would experience greater understanding from a support group such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous, however, instead of getting guidance from people who do not drink or who have never abused drugs.

When Individuals Do Things They Love and About Which They Are Fervent

There’s a philosophical viewpoint that contends that individuals who accomplish things they love and something about which they are fervent reach a wonderful place in life. Stated more exactly, when people do what they love, they rarely if ever go through boredom or an uneventful life. If they get involved in something that is enjoyable, what is more, they become more complete and experience more gratification and joy in life, in their friendships, and in their relationships.

When this is thought about even for a few moments it becomes clear that this affirmative mindset is poles apart from a life that is rooted in chemical dependency because such a lifestyle removes the happiness and delight that life has to offer.

Due to the fact that Alexander doesn’t have the grit to carry out much of anything in his life, it is evident that he desperately needs a little hope for a healthier lifestyle. And the sad thing is that hope is almost everywhere around Alexander if he could only get to the place in life to get the therapy he requires for his acute depression and chemical dependency and stay with his treatment protocol.

Better Relationships, Constructive Change, Self Respect, and a Wonderful Life Are Possibilities

Alexander is simply too young to be beaten in life. He doesn’t realize this at this time in his life but if he can learn how to stay away from alcohol and drugs through alcohol and drug rehab and get the counseling he requires for his extreme depression, he can turn his life around and start living with self-respect, passion, and direction.

Enhanced relationships, constructive change, self respect, and a wonderful life are certainly a reality for Alexander if only he could get motivated to seek the professional rehab he needs, follow through with his therapy protocol, live his life in a healthy and drug and alcohol-free way, and learn how to acquire a more positive attitude about life.

Barry used to boast to his drinking pals how he could maintain a demanding and fulltime job and get smashed almost every night. Regrettably, after engaging in this unhealthy lifestyle for just about three-and-a-half years, he began to observe various alcohol related difficulties.

Barry Begins to Manifest a Variety of Alcohol Related Issues

As an illustration, he had a real difficult time getting up for work because he felt so tired when he got up. Not only this, but virtually every morning Barry suffered from a dreadful hangover. Without a doubt, the combination of his hangovers and his lack of energy did not make it easy for him to get up and feel inspired to go to work. To add fuel to the fire, he just received his third driving under the influence citation in the past four months.

To complicate things further, at his place of employment his last two work evaluations were not up to his usual high standards. And lastly, his four-and-a-half-year relationship with his girlfriend had worsened due to his depression, angry outbursts, financial difficulties, and his lack of patience.

Though Barry was only twenty-eight years old, he simply began looking like he was in his mid thirties. Sadly, this is what abusive and irresponsible drinking can do to a person. And in all candor he grasped the fact that he was going through the negative effects of alcohol abuse or alcohol addiction and that he was too young to fritter away his life to unhealthy and irresponsible drinking. So initially he tried to drink responsibly and in moderation. Sadly, he soon grasped the fact that he lost his self control after consuming his first drink. Stated another way, after his first drink he invariably proceeded to get smashed. Due to the fact that this was an event that was repeated every time he went out to drink, this obviously concerned him a great deal. In truth, he started to wonder if he was manifesting some of the signs of alcoholism and alcohol abuse.

Barry Makes up His Mind To Schedule an Appointment to See His Family Doctor

After going over his excessive alcohol ingestion and his excessive and irresponsible drinking with his girlfriend, he finally made up his mind to schedule an appointment to see his doctor. When Barry saw his family doctor, he frankly declared that he has been abusing alcohol, that he may be manifesting alcoholic signs, and that he wants to stop drinking. He then mentioned that drinking responsibly and in moderation doesn’t work well for him and, as a consequence, he wants to learn how he can live without drinking alcohol.

Barry also told his healthcare professional about his depression and how this mental health issue was adversely affecting his relationship with his lady friend. His healthcare professional referred Barry to Doctor Gordon, a drug and alcohol addiction psychiatrist, who motivated Barry to enroll in a drug and alcohol treatment facility as an in-patient for alcohol detox and alcohol rehab. Fortunately, Barry would also be able to get medical attention for his depression at this treatment center.

Abstaining From Drinking Was the Best Decision Barry Had Ever Made

After five months of rigorous rehab, Barry left the in-patient rehab center and continued his recovery via going to local Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and via outpatient therapy. Encouraged to change his life in a more productive manner, Barry bought some vitamins at a health store and a cookbook. He then joined a fitness center and began working out three or four times per week. Within four months Barry was a new individual. He was eating nutritious meals, he wasn’t depressed anymore, he now looked younger than he was, he was in shape, and most significant of all, he remained sober for several months. He also became more patient, he didn’t resort to angry outbursts, and he became a more caring individual in his relationship with his girlfriend. In short, quitting drinking was the best decision Barry had ever made.