What is Alcohol Awareness Month?
Alcohol Awareness Month, sponsored by the National Council for Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD), is a national public health awareness campaign that takes place every April. Alcohol Awareness Month was established in 1987 in order to raise awareness and educate the general public about the affects and treatment options of one of our nation’s top public health problems: alcoholism. Alcohol awareness month allows communities to focus on spreading awareness and reducing the stigma associated with alcohol addiction. Observance of this awareness campaign also highlights the need for education on the dangers of unsafe alcohol consumptions.
Why is Alcohol Awareness Month important?
Alcohol is the most used substance by youth and adults in the United States. According to the National Institute of Health’s 2020 Monitoring the Future Survey, 55.3% of high school seniors used alcohol in the past year. Results of the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), demonstrated that 85.6 percent of people ages 18 or older reported that they drank alcohol at some point in their lifetime; 69.5 percent reported that they consumed alcohol in the past month. In 2019, 25.8 percent of people ages 18 or older reported that they engaged in binge drinking in the past month; 6.3 percent reported that they engaged in heavy alcohol use in the past month. Alcohol is the third leading cause of preventable death in the United States, and on average, a reported 95,000 Americans die from alcohol-related causes each year.
There is a stigma that still surrounds Alcohol Use Disorder(AUD) and substance abuse in general. For many, denial is a common trait among those struggling with AUD. They often underestimate the amount they consume, or how often they drink, and the negative impact it has had on their life choices. They also often overestimate their ability to control their habit or acknowledge they have AUD. Denial is also common among friends and family members who are uncomfortable acknowledging the gravity or reality of the situation because it is hard to believe that something so legally and socially acceptable and easily accessible can become a dangerous addiction.
How do you help someone with Alcohol Use Disorder?
Knowing how to help an alcoholic is the first step. When a person is struggling with alcohol addiction, they may hide how much they drink, lie to themselves or others about their consumption, or deny they have a problem. This can make it difficult for them to get help with alcohol or for loved ones to talk with them about seeking treatment.
Although AUD is a chronic disease, it is treatable and can be managed effectively. To better understand this complex disorder and how to help, it is important to discuss the stages of addiction development, the risk factors to be aware of, how to help an alcoholic in denial, how alcoholism is diagnosed, and what effective alcoholism treatment looks like.
Learn about AUD
Without fully understanding the alcohol use disorder, it can be hard to talk about alcoholism with your loved one who is struggling.
According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, and AUD is when one can no longer control their use of alcohol, compulsively abuse it despite its negative ramifications, and/or experience emotional distress when they are not drinking.
AUD is a chronic, relapsing disease that is diagnosed based on an individual meeting certain criteria outlined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).
Additionally, according to the DSM-5, alcoholism is believed to have a strong heritable component. Between 40-60% of the variance of risk is attributable to genetic factors.
However, there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to understanding alcoholism. It is a multifaceted and complex disease, so while someone may inherit a predisposition to it, genes do not fully determine a person’s outcome.
The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) also explains that because alcoholism is a disease, it is an involuntary disability. This means that although people choose to drink initially, it may be out of their control to quit once they become addicted.
As the disease progresses, negative emotional, physical, and social changes are experienced such as marital problems, changes in mood, alcohol withdrawal, health issues, and/or job loss.
Denial is also an integral part of the disease for many, making it harder for them to acknowledge their need for treatment.
Choose a Time to Talk
Committing to getting sober and seek treatment for alcoholism takes courage. Yet, oftentimes, those struggling with alcohol may not immediately be receptive to discussing treatment or admitting that they have a problem. Because of this, it may take a few conversations before they are willing to discuss treatment.
Before talking with them, it may be helpful to speak with a healthcare provider who specializes in addiction to obtain guidance. Once you’ve done that, choose a time to sit down with them when they are sober so they can better process what you are saying.
Be careful in your word choices and try and remain calm while sharing how their drinking has affected you. Remember, this is not an issue they can control anymore.
If they remain in denial and aren’t ready to seek treatment, it may be time to consider an intervention. An intervention is a process that typically involves a drug and alcohol counselor, physician, or intervention specialist along with family and friends.
In 1960, biostatistician and alcohol abuse researcher Elvin Morton Jellinek (E. M. Jellinek) gained widespread attention when he published The Disease Concept of Alcoholism, offering a new way to look at alcohol addiction.
Jellinek viewed alcoholism as a chronic relapsing condition that needed to be treated by health professionals and developed a theory on the progression of alcoholism through various stages.
His model, now widely accepted, detailed his theoretical stages of alcohol addiction, each characterized by different changes in mental, physical, and social functioning.
Although not every person struggling with alcohol abuse goes through these stages, they can be a helpful checklist to assess alcohol consumption and prevent forthcoming problems. Based on Jellinek’s theory, the four stages of alcohol addiction are:
- Pre-Alcoholic: The first involves general experimentation with alcohol and is when alcohol tolerance develops as the person begins drinking more regularly as a coping mechanism for anxiety, stress, or other emotions.
- Early Stage: Jellinek considers this the transitional stage where the development of a cyclical pattern of alcohol abuse starts. Drinking becomes more regular and individuals begin using social gatherings as an excuse to drink. They may also start consuming alcohol to cope with the negative consequences caused by drinking such as hangovers. At this stage, blackouts may also occur.
- Middle Stage: This is the most crucial stage in Jellinek’s theory, and when a person begins to drink frequently and consistently, maybe even starting off their morning with a drink. They may struggle with worsening relationships with friends and family or experience changes to their behavior that impacts them negatively. They often feel health impacts such as hangovers or feeling sick more often when not drinking.
- Late Stage: This final phase leads to a complete loss of control over alcohol consumption—the individual must At this point, the individual’s body begins to require the presence of alcohol to feel normal. When the individual does not consume alcohol regularly, they may experience withdrawal symptoms and intense cravings.
Is Detox Necessary?
Since the mid-1970s, research has pointed to a number of key principles that are necessary to form the basis of any effective alcoholism treatment program.
Treatment may involve medications to ease withdrawal symptoms, therapy through a rehabilitation program to understand the addiction and change behaviors, and long-term aftercare programming such as peer support groups to help maintain sobriety and avoid relapse.
It should also be noted that no single treatment is appropriate for everyone and plans must be reviewed and modified according to a patient’s changing needs.
Effective treatment will also focus on more than just a person’s alcohol abuse and will seek to address other possible mental disorders. Research indicates that remaining in treatment for at least 90 days allows for better outcomes.
Alcohol Withdrawal Timeline
Alcohol withdrawal side effects and symptoms can be broken down into three stages:
- Stage 1: Stress or anxiety, sleep deprivation, nausea/vomiting, and abdominal pain are characteristic of this stage, which begins 8 hours after the last drink.
- Stage 2: High blood pressure, increased body temperature, unusual heart rate, and confusion come with this stage, which begins 24-72 hours after the last drink.
- Stage 3: Hallucinations, fever, seizures, and agitation come with this stage, which tends to begin 2-4 days after the last drink.
We Want to Help
New Outlook Detox offers detoxification services for safe alcohol withdrawal management and guidance in seeking long-term treatment. Every individual who walks through our doors is family to us, and we are dedicated to help you or your loved one find their path to recovery. Our admissions team at New Outlook Detox is available at 256-888-1234. You may call 24/7 and someone will provide guidance and information. Please call today.
If you have questions about whether you or your loved one may have AUD, you can contact us by calling 256-697-0770 or filling out our online contact form.