Alcohol addiction is a mental disorder that manifests itself through the addict’s constant attention to obtain the next dose of alcohol, as well as the constant need to consume alcohol-based drinks.
What Are The Symptoms? How Does The Doctor Set The Diagnosis?
Making a diagnosis by a doctor requires an analysis of the patient’s health and symptoms. A significant proportion of alcoholics treat their problem very superficially. A typical behavior for an alcoholic is to explain his drinking, rationalizing and justifying his behavior, e.g. by giving reasons such as stress, insomnia, the desire to relax, forget about problems, reduce tension, give himself courage. Very often, addicts shift the responsibility for drinking to other people, citing their example as more addicted, those who more often turn to soft drinks.
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There are many stereotypes about alcoholics in society. It is commonly believed that this is a homeless, unemployed, uneducated, neglected person, constantly drinking alcohol. For this reason, a large proportion of alcohol addicts displace their drinking problems by explaining the pattern of a typical alcoholic.
The truth is that addicts can hide their problems for a very long time by attending work, entering into social relationships, giving the appearance of proper functioning. Over time, alcohol takes over the behavior of a person who consumes excess alcohol, destroying other spheres of life. Alcohol begins to displace other needs, thus becoming a priority.
Problem with alcohol is considered an addiction when at least three of the following criteria are met:
- Feeling a strong need to take a given substance,
- Lack of control over one’s own behavior caused by constant compulsion,
- If you have had a withdrawal syndrome (withdrawal syndrome) with multiple physical symptoms,
- Taking the same or a similar substance to avoid psychosomatic symptoms resulting from abstinence,
- Increased tolerance to the effects of a given substance – in order to achieve alcohol intoxication, a person who consumes it excessively needs more and more of it,
- Abandoning current interests, pleasures, focusing on acquiring alcohol, taking harmful substances despite clear warning signals, e.g. harmful consequences.
Alcohol Depression
Depression is very common in alcoholics. It is assumed to be one of the most common disorders in this social group. It can make the addiction worse by wanting to get drunk to forget problems, and it can occur over time as a complication of alcoholism. Due to the typical problems of people suffering from alcoholism with sober assessment of the surrounding reality, as well as the perception of alcohol as a cure for sadness, regret, depression and other negative emotions, depression is a serious problem that is difficult to cure.
The combination of alcoholism and depression effectively prevents recovery from addiction. It is worth considering when does alcohol depression appear and what are the typical symptoms of this phenomenon, how can it be cured?
WHEN DOES ALCOHOL DEPRESSION APPEAR?
Alcohol depression may occur before the onset of addiction. It can be concluded that this type of depression is one of the causes of developing addiction.
People who go through various kinds of blues resort to alcohol as a solution to the existing situation. They forget about the hardships of everyday life. This form of self-therapy does not bring any real benefits, but only causes the person to delve into the growing addiction, while deepening their depression.
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Another situation that causes alcohol depression is the fact of realizing one’s own problem with alcohol, as well as the hardship and sacrifices that must be made in order to overcome the addiction. Alcohol devastates the life of a sick person, destroying their relationships with other people, destroying their professional position. A person who begins to notice and call his addiction an illness often has thoughts of suicide and acts of self-harm.
A third type of alcoholic depression is that of alcohol withdrawal. When depression begins shortly after giving up drinking, it is usually mild and can be healed.