The Total Guide On Alcohol Use Disorder, Its Causes, And Treatment

Alcoholism has been referred to with many names over the years, such as alcohol dependence or alcohol abuse. Today, the most common term for it is alcohol use disorder.

Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) is a pattern of unhealthy alcohol consumption or binge drinking that involves an impaired ability to control alcohol use.

If your drinking sequence involves problems with controlling how much you drink, constantly being distracted by alcohol, drinking more to get the same desired effect, and your drinking results in suffering or difficulty in functioning daily, you might have a problem.

But like any problem, there’s almost always a cure. Managing to control the addiction before it starts or gets worse is one way to do it, and that’s why early treatments for alcohol use disorder is essential.

Understanding how your alcohol abuse started, getting to its root cause, knowing what it can do to you, and figuring out how to find pepcid and alcohol treatment is all you need to get started, so we’re here to help.

How Does It Begin?

The first step to a better future is understanding how you got here in the present. Asking for help from a friend or hiring a therapist may help you realize the significant cause of the origin of your addiction which is a crucial part of overcoming it.

Usually, alcohol use starts in a prevalent and innocent way. In most countries, young adults and even teenagers start drinking in social situations, parties, and occasionally for fun.

Of course, most people who start drinking alcohol in that manner don’t develop alcohol addiction. Alcohol use mainly depends on the environment and the kind of people the person hangs around. According to a study, alcohol addiction in the children of addicts is about four times higher than average.

There are many stages in which alcoholism develops. The first and obvious stage is called the early stage, when the problem has barely started. Eventually, as addicts get near the end, they pass through a terrifying phase called the end stage of alcoholism.

At this stage, the user loses complete control of their lives and disregards any troubles that arise from alcohol use.

How Does It Effect You?

Though people ignore the consequences that alcohol abuse can cause, they can sometimes be on the same level as hardcore drugs or even worse.

An alcohol use disorder can be mild, medium, or severe, depending on its symptoms. Here are some signs to confirm that you suffer from alcohol dependence:

• Sudden problems with relationships.
• Uncontrollable urge to drink alcohol
• Unsuccessful attempts at cutting down alcohol consumption
• Wanting more and more alcohol to feel the same effect
• Distracted from school and work due to alcohol.

Alcohol abuse also includes stages of intoxication where the person experiences problems in their behavior and moods change. Under the influence of alcohol, people act in inappropriate ways, experience mood swings, poor judgment, and speech stammering. When someone with AUD tries to stop drinking, they may face withdrawal symptoms like these:

• Restlessness and lack of sleep
• Shaking or shivering
• Nausea
• Sweating
• Seizures
• Increased heart rate

How Do You Treat It?

Over the past century or so, observational studies have provided us with the support of medical models of treatment for alcohol dependence in addition to the modern aid of pharmaceutical and mental treatment options.

Now for a disorder such as this, there is no one single treatment that would work all. Primarily due to it stemming from environmental causes and personal history. But that only means that there are countless types of treatments you can follow, including medical, mental, and even religious options.

Help Yourself

If your alcohol use disorder isn’t as severe as possible, the first thing to consider is doing the treatment yourself. With some hard work and self-restraint, you might be able to cut down and manage your drinking before you lose control.

There are millions of self-help books and accessible information on the internet that you can use to help yourself. Finding a hobby or hanging out with friends to distract yourself from your drinking urges can have beautiful results.

Counseling and Therapy

If you’re past the point of having control of drinking alcohol, the next best option is professional help. Though you may seem reluctant at first due to the social stigma of getting therapy, that shouldn’t stop you.

Behavioral treatment or counseling has long proven to be helpful for all types of mental disorders. Qualified personnel can help you with sharing your problem and figuring out a plan to stop the addiction.

Medications

A few medications are officially approved by the US Food and Drugs Administration to help with alcohol abuse treatments and reduce the chances of a relapse. These include:

• Antabuse (disulfiram) – It causes a severe reaction when a person drinks alcohol.
• Acampostrate (ReVia) – It can help when a person craves alcohol.
• Naltrexone (Campral) – It is capable of reducing the urge to drink. It is taken either orally or with an injection.

Never Lose Hope

Lastly, no matter what, you should never lose the will to become better. Without hope and determination, you won’t be able to get past step one. There will always be setbacks and frustrations, but you can never lose hope.