This blog sheds light on problems that happen due to the
consumption of alcohol to self & family. It states that an alcoholic & his/her
family members both become a victim of alcohol. The blog discusses models of
alcoholism. The main themes written in this blog are about alcoholism, the
process of alcoholism, models of alcoholism, negative effects of alcohol on
body, consumption of alcohol in India. Some interventions like motivational
enhancement therapy, CBT, behavioural techniques & other techniques like
residential treatment, group therapy, relaxation techniques & family
therapy.
Alcohol: -
Before we understand alcoholism it’s important to know about
alcohol. The word alcohol comes from the Arabic word “Al Kohl” which means “an
essence” Alcohol is an important ingredient in all alcoholic beverages. Scientifically
it’s known as ethyl alcohol. It’s clear tasteless liquid formed by fermenting
sugars by yeast spores. It’s a drug & just like other drugs it has an
effect on a person’s body & mind & it’s potentially addictive.
The quantity of alcohol produced depends on the quantity of sugar in
the original mixture, the type of yeast used, the temperature maintained during
the fermentation process, etc. The final product is made by fermenting plant
products or fruits or cereals or grains with alcohol. It then becomes hard
liquor the hard liquor is then distilled. It has empty calories & hardly
any nutrition.
Having alcoholic beverages for their enjoyable effects has been a
custom for thousands of years. Alcohol continues to be a popular drug as it isn’t
considered a taboo amongst majority of the people. Alcohol is the most widely
used recreational drug in India & world because it’s easily available &
government generates good revenue from taxes & import duty. It’s also
promoted in many countries directly or indirectly.
Alcoholism: -
Alcoholism generally refers to drinking alcohol to such a level that
major aspects of a person’s life get seriously & repeatedly affected
negatively. An alcoholic may be unable to have a healthy relation with his
family members; friends, he/she may not be able to perform at his/her optimum
level at his/her job, college, education, etc. An alcoholic may not drink
alcohol each day. He/she may drink abusively during some problematic or crisis
like situation or during some parties or for fun & may lose self control.
It’s difficult to categorise alcoholism as some may drink alcohol everyday
but may have a normal life & some may not drink alcohol everyday but if
their life is adversely affected due to the consumption of alcohol then they can
be termed as people suffering from alcoholism. To understand the intensity of
alcoholism, how well a person can abstain from alcohol for an extended time, &
the effects of drinking on that person’s family, friends, work & health may
indicate the extent of alcoholism.
How alcoholism
progresses: -
Alcohol if taken in small quantity acts like a mild intoxicant or
mind stimulant. It relaxes a drinker’s mind & a person consuming it feels pleasant.
Worries if present fade. Alcohol enhances good mood & changes bad mood. It allows
a drinker to feel quite pleasant. If a person’s drinking progresses gradually
the body requires more alcohol to reach the same positive effect. This makes
the person increase his/her alcohol intake.
The progression
is divided into 4 phases: -
1. The social drinker: -
Social drinkers have few problems with alcohol consumption. A social
drinker can take alcohol & leave. He/she can control his/her alcohol
intake. They don’t get intoxicated. In parties & socialisation they aren’t
preoccupied with alcohol consumption thoughts, whereas factors like enjoying
the ambiance, meeting or socialising with friends, relishing food, making new
friends, etc may interest them more.
2. The early stage: -
In this stage a person starts experiencing problems with drinking.
He/she may remain preoccupied with drinking in parties rather than focussing on
other aspects of a party. He/she may only thing of filling his/her stomach with
alcohol & there may not be enough space for meals. At this stage a person
isn’t able to control his body after drinking, blackouts may happen. Problems
like absenteeism may happen, work performance may decrease, ability to concentrate
can also decrease, he/she may become angry or irritated soon. Ability to
tolerate certain issues or conflicts may also decrease. Family & friends
may start expressing concerns.
3. Middle stage: -
Life becomes highly unmanageable for those who enter this stage. A
person’s body craves for alcohol daily. Whenever the person has a problem or
feels low or depressed or angry, he/she may consume alcohol. He may feel a
celebration or party is incomplete without consuming alcohol thus may expect
alcohol to be served in every celebration or party. He may even start his day
with alcohol. He may suffer problems in his studies or job. His/her relationship with his family members &
friends may get affected. His health may begin to deteriorate.
4. Late Stage: -
At this stage life becomes completely unmanageable. Medical
complications may be numerous which includes diseases associated with alcohol like
cirrhosis or liver or hepatitis, acute pancreatitis (inflammation of the
pancreas), high blood pressure, bleeding of the esophageal lining, anaemia, memory
loss (Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome), brain damage, etc. Psychological problems
like insomnia, depression, hallucinations, schizophrenia, etc are also prevalent.
Models of
alcoholism: -
There are two models of alcoholism. 1 is the disease model &
other is habit model. According to disease model alcoholism is a disease. This
model is supported by AA community & treatment programmes. In their opinion
alcoholism is abnormal, mental & behavioural condition. They believe that a
person can’t control his/her dinking as his/her body craves for alcohol. Alcohol
impairs the senses & thus a person is unable to control himself/herself
from drinking. They also state that this disease is uncontrollable by an
alcoholic, an alcoholic keeps craving for alcohol & compulsion rules the
life of an alcoholic. Despite understanding the destruction alcohol does to
body people are unable to abstain from it. The body keeps demanding alcohol.
Without alcohol an alcoholic’s body isn’t able to function properly. Alcoholics
are unable to control their urge to have alcohol. Some minor forms of this
disease is solitary drinking, making excuses to drink, episodes of violence
under the influence of alcohol, unexplained mood swings, neglecting health,
etc. Thus alcoholism is called a disease which is progressive & fatal. As
per (Encyclopedia Britannica 210) also Alcoholism is a "physiological or
physiological dependence on alcohol characterized by the alcoholic’s inability
to control the start or termination of his drinking." This model also states
that once an alcoholic always an alcoholic. Even if an alcoholic stops drinking
alcohol he/she will be called as recovering alcoholic & never cured of the
disease. Unlike most of the diseases this disease isn’t contagious. The
American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of
Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) state that Alcohol Dependence &
Alcohol Abuse are mental disorders & about 8% of the adult population
suffers from Alcohol Dependence & five percent from Alcohol Abuse. It also
states that the risk for Alcohol Dependence is 3 to 4 times higher in close
relative of people with Alcohol dependence.
According to habit model alcoholism is a learned behaviour more than
a habit. It’s a person’s choice or any automatic or dysfunctional coping
strategy. The habit model views an alcoholic’s control over their drinking as
impaired rather totally lost.
Type of people
who are prone to consumption of alcohol: -
People who think that they are inferior to others, people with low
self esteem, people with issues related to mood swings, or who get angry or hyper
very soon, people who aren’t flexible, people with perfectionist attitude who
tend to demand perfection in themselves & in others, people who feel low
very soon & get depressed easily, very sensitive people, people born in a
family where most of the family members drink (genetic or heredity factors), etc
are more prone to get into alcohol addiction. Some people also have an idea
that alcohol elevates one to a higher social status hence they drink.
Alcoholism &
personality: -
Alcoholics are more prone to suffer from problems like anxiety,
anger, depression, stress, etc at some point of life than people who don’t
consume alcohol. When an alcoholic is depressed or stressed he/she would prefer
to drink alcohol but alcoholics don’t know that alcohol doesn’t lessen
depression or stress it just masks it for a short time by decreasing a person’s
consciousness & thought processing.
Larger doses of alcohol can make a person even more depressed or stressed.
At times alcoholism leads to withdrawal, low self-esteem, & an overall
unwillingness to be part of society. Alcoholics may blow minor problems out of
proportion while major problems are often faced with anger, resentment, & physical
violence because of this their relationship with their family members &
friends remains affected.
Heavy drinker’s memory also gets affected as alcohol interferes in a
person’s remembering or learning process. It happens because alcohol interferes
with the synthesis of proteins in the neurons of the brain. The proteins are
needed to encode new information. As alcohol destroys these proteins, encoding
new information, everyday decisions, & learning new things, remembering
phone numbers, important occasions like birthdays, anniversaries become
difficult for an alcoholic. Alcohol also affects the sensory organs of a person
hence his/her tolerance capacity decreases. Thus some alcoholics become unable
to tolerate bright lights & loud music & such environment disorients
them.
Alcohol also affects quality of sleep. Alcoholics experience sleeping
problems. Some alcoholics are unable to sleep without consuming alcohol. In
some extreme cases alcoholics develop patterns of sleepwalking. Alcohol reduces
the amount of REM sleep which is the time that an individual is most prone to
awaken. This causes the alcoholic to wake in the middle of the night &
doesn’t allow an individual to fall asleep once awaken.
Overall, there are a wide range of effects alcoholism has on a person’s
personality. They range from anger, anxiety, depression, sleep disturbance, learning,
recollecting, etc. Personality defines an individual’s character. These
personality problems that alcohol causes can hamper an alcoholic’s relationship
with his/her family members, friends. It also effects his/her profession,
self-esteem, etc. In extreme cases an alcoholic becomes a monster to his/her
family members, children, relatives, friends, etc. Thus an alcoholic’s self
esteem diminishes, friends may disappear, he/she may lose his/her job, etc.
Alcoholism &
youngsters: -
Young adolescents are also more prone to alcoholism as at an young age
they have limited knowledge about the severe consequences of alcohol & just
want to follow what they see in movies or because of peer pressure. Some
youngsters do feel high when they drink. Some drink as their friends drink, as
they feel awkward being a white sheep amongst all black sheep. Many also drink as
it makes them feel better & it even relaxes in low quantity. They believe
that in order to have a good time or something recreational they should drink. They
feel more alive & more outgoing. Gradually they feel incomplete without
drinking & body starts demanding more alcohol.
Youngsters are also prone to binge drinking. Binge drinking is
defined as 5 or more drinks in a row for men & 4 or more drinks in a row
for women during a two week period (Wechsler 1995). Binge drinking gets
accepted gradually by many youngsters as they aren’t aware about its severe
future consequences.
How alcohol
reaches brain: -
Our body has a blood brain barrier to prevent any harmful or toxic
substance from reaching the brain. But still alcohol reaches the brain. When alcohol
enters body within 20 minutes 20% of alcohol is absorbed in the blood stream.
The rest remains in stomach where it stimulates the secretion of gastric
juices. From the stomach the alcohol passes into the small intestine. Then it’s
absorbed through the intestinal wall into the bloodstream. From the
bloodstream, about 5% of alcohol leaves the body unchanged through urine,
sweat, or exhaled breath. Then the
alcohol travels via the bloodstream to the heart. As alcohol reaches heart,
heart rate changes. The heart then pumps alcohol to other parts of the body
including the brain.
Effects of
alcohol on body: -
Alcohol acts as a sedative & anaesthetic. It reduces nerve
transmission & impulses to the central nervous system thus alcohol is also a
central nervous system depressant. It depresses mental, motor & vital
functions such as pulse rate, respiration & blood pressure. It dulls the
senses especially vision & hearing. If the level of alcohol rises then a
person may get inability to concentrate, delirium, tremors. Large amount of
alcohol if taken in an empty stomach can irritate the gastric lining &
cause stomach to get inflamed.
Many health problems are associated by prolong intake of alcohol. Alcohol
can cause physical & mental illness both one you can acquire problems that
include stomach problems, digestive problems, headaches, kidney problems, liver
disease, problems with nervous system & trouble with immune system. Mental
illness can include depression, anger, irritability, lack of concentration, &
low self-esteem. Cirrhosis is probably the most widely recognized medical complication
of chronic alcoholism.
As alcohol affects the digestive system the digestive system
decreases its efficiency to absorb vitamins from food that an alcoholic eats.
Many studies show that there is a link between suicidal thoughts &
alcoholism. Depressed alcoholics are more prone to commit suicide.
Chronic alcohol consumption can damage the frontal lobes of the
brain, reduce the brain’s size & increase the size of the ventricles. Alcohol
gradually kills the brain cells because of this a person’s judgement &
perception becomes poor. The dying of brain cells can make a person suffer from
short term memory loss. If the damage isn’t controlled then an alcoholic can
suffer from more severe problems like “wet brain.” In wet brain condition the brain
hardly functions. It is like a pre-vegetative state. In this state an alcoholic
can no longer put coherent sentences together or even function his/her bowels
or bladder normally without the assistance of medicines.
Unfortunately consumption of alcohol is increasing. Society has
become too naive to understand its negative effects on body such as unstable
mental & physical health, alternation of judgement, changes in hormones,
problems in relationship, etc.
With men who start drinking at a young age their reproductive system
gets affected during their mid-life. Studies have shown that alcohol can
significantly decrease the amount of male hormone, testosterone. Not only does
the hormonal level go down but it also decreases its function & size. In
both men & women, alcohol increases the yearning for sex but decreases both
genders sexual performances. As the couple may not be satisfied with their
physical relationship they may again turn to alcohol to decrease their
frustration & this cycle continues.
With women who drink alcohol to relieve stress or tension are unable
to control their drinking during pregnancy as during pregnancy they are more stressed
& tensed. This can affect the child in their womb. One of the problems
pregnant women who drink may suffer from is FAS (fetal alcohol syndrome). Children born with FAS may have distinct
facial features. FAS infants also are markedly smaller than average. Their
brains may have less volume (i.e., microencephaly). They may have fewer numbers
of brain cells (i.e., neurons) or fewer neurons that are able to function
correctly, leading to long–term problems in learning & behaviour. In severe cases the unborn child may die in
his/her pregnant mother’s womb.
Alcoholism &
family: -
An alcoholic isn’t an only sufferer. Alcoholism also leads to many
serious problems for the people surrounding him/her. An alcoholic not only
ruins his/her life but also ruins the life of his/her family members. It’s important
to understand that both alcoholic & his/her family members become the
victims of alcohol. For a family to run smoothly each person in the family has
to perform his/her role in a predictable manner & according to the
expectations of others in the family. If an alcoholic is present in a family
& if he/she isn’t able to perform his/her role then someone else has to
perform his/her role & responsibility. Initially the other family members
may not have any problem but gradually the other family members will perform
their roles & alcoholic’s roles with less enthusiasm. The alcoholic may
become a burden to his/her family members. This affects the smooth running of
the family. It affects the family’s organisation & its repercussions are
felt not only to the family but also to the extended family members. This can
cause a family crisis also.
Alcoholic’s denial problem: -
Generally
alcoholics are unable to understand the problem happening due to them in the
family. As they don’t understand the problem happening due to them they are
unable to accept that alcoholism is the cause of the problem. This increases
arguments, conflicts, tension in family & there is no happiness &
peace.
After a point family members become concerned about their reputation
in the society, & hide the social visibility of the alcoholic. They also decrease
their socialisation with others in the society. Alcoholics also prefer to
isolate themselves from socialising with their extended family members &
even at times when an alcoholic socialise some arguments or issues happen. It
affects the understanding of alcoholic & family members. In worst cases
alcoholism can tear apart a family. A wife may sometimes threaten to leave her
alcoholic husband. She may do that after realising her husband’s inadequacy as
a husband, father, brother & as a person. It starts with communication
problems then family members start hating the alcoholic.
Children are the biggest losers in this situation as they don’t know
what to do. They are informed by other family members that their father is an
alcoholic & they are asked to not show him any affection & respect. Children
are unable to accept it initially as they have some affection to their father
but gradually they don’t show any affection, care & love to their father.
These children have a tough time during childhood & as they get to see
complications in their family when they grow up some of them are unable to have
good relationship with their spouse. In cases where both father & mother
drink & are unable to control their life then their child/children suffers
a lot. In cases of nuclear family child may have tremendous problems related to
self-esteem, identity as he/she may not get proper affection, care & love
from his/her parents as both drink. Because of this they may go through emotional,
physical & psychological pain due to parental abuse of alcohol.
Financial problems: -
An alcoholic may
spend his/her earnings on alcohol & may forget his responsibilities because
of this the entire family may suffer. In some families children may not be able
to pay their school or tuition fees in time, sometimes they may have shortage
of meals, etc. Due to heavy drinking if an alcoholic becomes ill then family
has to arrange money for his treatment. Thus an alcoholic spends money to
deteriorate his health by drinking alcohol & has to spend money again to
regain health that he/she deteriorated earlier. Financial problems happening in
family due to alcohol can cause further psychological problems like tremendous
tension, depression, etc. Thus alcoholism can ruin an entire family.
Society’s thoughts on alcoholics: -
Society blames alcoholics for their downfall & setbacks that
alcoholics experience in their life. Society thinks that alcoholic took this
decision of living a life of dependency on their own & nobody forced them.
Most of the people don’t know that alcoholism is a disease. Most of the society
people may not have sympathy for an alcoholic & they believe that
alcoholics are the pollutants that harm communities & if not controlled
could cause problems in the future. Some people may ask their children to stay
away from those children whose father or parents drink alcohol.
Places of help for alcoholics: -
Alcohol rehabilitation centres, general psychiatric services,
hospitals, psychiatric clinics, public-welfare departments, medical
detoxification agencies, & social agencies are some of the places an alcoholic
can get help (Plaut 1967).
Alcohol consumption in India: -
India is the second most populated country. Many people living in
urban India have no qualms in drinking. Alcohol is no longer considered a taboo
amongst urban people. This has attracted the attention of multinational liquor
brands. They want to do business in India as India is a populated country &
many people in urban India are very wealthy. Thus the market of liquor in India
is growing 6% to 8% per year. This is helping Government generate more revenue.
Although Indian Government’s revenue is growing but this growth also has
unknown drawbacks. Cost of absenteeism, health care & reduced income levels
related to heavy alcohol use are higher than the revenue Indian Government
generates. These costs were estimated to be 60% more than the revenue generated
in a study from Karnataka (NIMHANS 2000). The study also revealed that 20%
absenteeism & 40% accidents at work place are related to alcohol. Annual
loss due to alcohol was estimated to be Rs.70,000 to 80,000 million.
The other problem India is experiencing is shortage of agricultural
land. Indian population is growing but land isn’t growing. Thus there is a
shortage of land. The profit alcohol generates is higher than other cereals,
fruits grains & vegetables agricultural land is used to grow those fruits,
grains & cereals that are used to make alcohol. Because of this quantity of
eatable cereals, fruits & grains has decreased as those cereals, fruits &
grains are used to produce alcohol. The production of these items are less
& demand is more thus its price rises. Thus poor man suffers as he can’t
afford to buy cereals, fruits & grains. Without proper nutrition they are
prone to suffer from health problems. Thus Government for the sake of
generating revenue allows alcohol industry to grow that hardly has any nutritional
value & overlooks factors like nutrition & wellbeing of the poor.
Interventions: -
Most important intervention for alcoholism is detoxification. Hence
a person should be admitted to a detoxification centre for cleaning his body.
Further treatment requires counselling.
Some counselling interventions techniques are: -
Motivational enhancement therapy: -
In case of alcoholism, usually there are clients who aren’t
motivated to quit alcohol for their own good. Use of motivational enhancement
therapy can be helpful to enhance the intrinsic motivation in the client. In
this therapy, the patient sets his or her own goals regarding substance use, &
the therapist points out discrepancies between the user’s stated personal goals
& his/her current behaviour. The therapist then elicits the user’s desire
to meet the goals, overriding the rewarding effects of drug use. Therapists
using motivational enhancement therapy don’t dispense advice or seek to
increase any specific skills; rather, they focus on increasing the motivation
to change drug use, discussing both positive & negative aspects of drug
use, reasons to quit & how change might begin. Like all other therapeutic
interventions, this one also requires a great deal of positive client-therapist
relationship.
The application of the motivational enhancement therapy is to be
done based on the stages of the change model (developed by: Prochaska &
Diclemente) which says that people will progress through a series of five
stages in deciding & acting upon a plan to change a particular behaviour.
These stages include: (i) Pre-contemplation, (ii) Contemplation, (iii)
Preparation, (iv) Action, & (v) Maintenance, each characterised by the
balance between the benefits/losses of maintaining current behaviour versus the
benefits/losses of changing that behaviour.
Cognitive behavioural therapy: -
Alcoholism is a disorder in which both beliefs & physiology are
involved & hence application of cognitive therapy can be helpful to change
those distortions & then it can be applied in synch with behavioural
techniques to modify the physiological aspects.
In terms of CBT for alcoholism, there are chances of relief oriented
beliefs or permissive beliefs such as “I can use alcohol...I won’t get
addicted.” To change the belief system
of drug abusers, Beck et al. (1993) suggest six methods:
1. Assessing beliefs
2. Orienting the
patient to the cognitive therapy model
3. Examining &
testing addictive beliefs
4. Developing control
beliefs
5. Practicing
activation of these new beliefs
6. Assigning homework
Assessment of such beliefs comes from questions such as “How do you
explain?” & “What are you thinking about?” Use of Socratic questioning is
also helpful.
To further assess beliefs,
Beck & his colleagues developed substance-related questionnaires, such as
the Craving Beliefs Questionnaire, Beliefs about Substance Abuse, &
Automatic Thoughts about Substance Abuse.
After a thorough assessment of beliefs, the patient can then be
oriented to the specific cognitive model of addiction.
Use of Behavioural techniques: -
Behavioural theories explain a lot about alcoholism: -
1. Observational
learning of alcohol use: - It promotes expectations about experiences from
such use & promotes such use as a coping strategy.
2. Operant
conditioning, it includes the following: -
A. Positive
reinforcement: - It leads to positive expectations of depressant use &
to reward craving.
B. Negative
reinforcement: - It can lead to relief craving & to depressant use
becoming a chronic coping strategy; &
3. Classical
conditioning: - Whereby drug cues elicit cravings.
Hence application of some behavioural techniques can be useful.
1. Use of aversive
Conditioning: - In alcoholism use of aversive conditioning is used
extensively & there are drugs producing aversive effects called as
“Antabuse” e.g. “Disulfram”. It causes violent nausea & vomiting when it is
mixed with alcohol. When an alcoholic takes it & then drinks alcohol, the
resulting nausea & vomiting leads to negative conditioning towards drinking
alcohol.
2. Shaping: - In
shaping the therapist shapes an alcoholic’s behaviour, reinforcement,
extinction, generalization, & discrimination are involved. In shaping,
there is a gradual movement from the original behaviour to the desired
behaviour by reinforcing approximations of the desired behaviour.
3. Self-efficacy:
- As most of the alcoholics self-efficacy is low & hence the therapists can
work over it by using the four major aspects such as performance
accomplishments, vicarious experiences, verbal persuasion, & lowering
emotional arousal.
While applying behavioural techniques there is also a scope of
utilising the areas of interest of the client like he mentioned that he likes &
enjoys singing a lot.
Other techniques: -
Residential treatment: -
Some people who
seek treatment for substance abuse may need more intensive help, such as the
assistance that can be found in residential treatment, which provides a
round-the-clock therapeutic environment. Because it is so intensive,
residential treatment can help an individual more rapidly change how he or she
thinks, feels, & behaves.
Group therapy: -
CBT may be used in a
group format to help those with substance abuse. The group provides peer
pressure & support for abstinence.
Moreover, members may use role-playing to try out new skills, such
as saying “no” to friends who offer drugs. Other types of groups include social-skills
training groups, where members learn ways to communicate their feelings &
desires more effectively, & general support groups to decrease shame &
isolation as members change their substance abuse patterns.
Relaxation techniques: -
Since alcoholism
causes various withdrawal symptoms &/or craving in the client, use of
relaxation techniques such as breathing & stretching exercises might also
be very helpful. Also it requires impulse control & delay of gratification &
hence indigenous techniques like yoga & meditation can also be very
helpful.
Family therapy: -
To the extent that
family interactions lead to or help sustain substance abuse, changing family
patterns of interaction can modify these factors.
The goals of this type of therapy are tailored to the specific
problems & needs of each family, but such therapy typically addresses
issues related to communication, control & power.
Burroughs in his novel has mentioned that attending group meetings
in rehabilitation centres, listening to problems of others alcoholics helps.
The meetings helps in alcoholics develop a mutual trust for each other. They
get a positive feeling as other people listen to them & understand what
they all went through. They also get empathy from others. Many alcoholics think
that only an alcoholic can understand them & they feel nice when they get
to speak with other alcoholics hence rehabilitation centres can come up with
techniques that allows healthy interaction between alcoholics. Thus support
groups like alcoholic anonymous, smart recovery & rational recovery are
beneficial.
Programs that offer this kind of help thus needs to be advertised to
those that need the help & don't know where to turn for it. Other therapies
like Aversive conditioning, hypnotherapy, group psychodrama, lysergide, therapy
are beneficial.
Role of counsellors: -
A counsellor should understand that the impact of alcoholism not
only has on a person who consumes alcohol but also on his family members, extended
family members, future generations & society. Counsellors can start public
educational programmes where they can shed light on the negative effects of
alcohol, alcohol dependency, etc. Counsellors can help in making social
networks between recovering addicts with other recovering addicts.
Conclusion: -
Alcohol has been consumed in India since many decades but the
quantity of consumption & problems associated have increased in recent
years. The person who drinks isn’t the only person who suffers but also his
family members & poor people suffer due to rise in price of cereals, fruits
& grains.
Alcoholism is a serious dependency issue that society has to become
aware of in order to solve the problem.
Just like we care people who suffer from certain diseases people
suffering from alcoholism should also be cared as it is also a disease. Ignoring
or excluding the alcoholics only happens by family members & society as
they don’t know better ways to deal with them.
Even though drinking alcohol is a popular social activity the world
needs to realise the dangerous affects that alcohol has on their body, emotions
& mental health. Unstable mental conditions, alteration of judgment,
perception, hormonal changes & sexual performance problems, are some of the
problems due to the consumption of alcohol.
The society has to understand that there is no other way to look at alcoholism
as the number of negative effects is very high & there are hardly any
positive effects. If the consumption of alcohol continues to increase, the
human population’s health & happiness will continue to plummet.
References: -
1. American Psychiatric Association. (2000).
Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text rev.).
Washington, DC:
2. "Alcoholism.” (1974). Encyclopedia Britannica:
Macropedia. ed.
3. “Alcohol and Drug Abuse.” (1998). Pacific Bell
Smart Yellow Pages: ed. 20.
4. “Alcohol and Drug Consumption.” (1990).
Encyclopedia Britannica Macropaedia. ed. 219-244.
5. “Alcoholic Beverage, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA),
Alcoholism.” World Book Encyclopedia. 1997ed. 335-338.
6. Beck, A. (1993) Cognitive therapy: Past, present,
and future. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 61, 194-198.
7. “Drink” Merriam-Webster Dictionary and Thesaurus.
9. Benegal, V. Velayuudham, A, Jain S. (2000). Social
Cost of Alcoholism: a Karnataka perspective, NIMHANS Journal, 18 (1&2) 67
10. Burroughs, A. (2003). Dry. New York, NY.
14. Plaut, T. (1967). Alcohol Problems, Oxford
University Press.
16. Wechsler, H. (1995). "Binge Drinking on
American College Campuses: A New Look at an Old Problem." Harvard School
of Public Health.
