Is Your Loved One Abusing Substances?

If you are feeling helpless about a loved one who is abusing substances, taking the following two steps may help you learn to cope.

The first step is to join a free support group in your community. Through Al-Anon (an organization for family members and friends of alcoholics) and Narc-Anon (an organization for family members and friends of drug addicts), you can learn to better cope with the problems that substance abuse brings to family members. The groups can also help you learn to better handle situations with less drama and emotional involvement. These groups are free and open to the public throughout the United States. 

The second step is to do an intervention. Interventions are formal meetings of people who are involved with the substance abuser. During an intervention, family and friends tell substance abusers how their addiction is affecting their lives in a negative way. The group then confronts the substance abusers about their problems. Finally, at the end of the meeting, someone drives the substance abuser to a rehabilitation center. If you want to stage an intervention, you should employ a professional interventionist. Call 888-266-6128 for help finding one in your area.

A Typical Day at a Drug Rehab Center

7:30  A.M. 8:30  A.M. 9:30  A.M.  10:30 A.M. 11:30 A.M. 1:00 P.M. 2:00 P.M. 4:30 P.M. 5:40 P.M. 7:00 P.M. 8:00 P.M.  10:30 P.M.

Wake up, dress, have breakfast Morning walk Classes on drug relapse Individual counseling session Lunch and free time Pilates, yoga or other exercise Field trip, such as shopping or museum Outdoor recreation, such as horseback riding Group therapy Dinner Support meetings, journaling Movies or social party Lights out

What Will Drug Rehab Be Like?

Your experience with drug rehabilitation depends on if rehab is inpatient or outpatient. Inpatient drug rehabilitation takes place in a residential setting where people stay overnight, usually for several months. At an outpatient facility, people go to a clinic every day as if it were a 9-to-5 job, going home at night to sleep.

When you arrive at a drug rehab facility, you will undergo both physical and psychological examinations. Medical professionals will look for any undiagnosed behavioral issues, such as depression or attention deficit disorder, which have to be addressed in addition to any substance abuse. You will then undergo chemical withdrawal from drugs under medical supervision. This can take a day or up to several weeks, depending on the drug and degree of addiction.

Drug rehab centers offer individual and group counseling, classes about drug abuse, training in how to avoid going back to old habits, and the means to set new goals and clarify values. Family involvement is very important to a successful recovery. 

While in drug rehab, you will learn to eat healthy meals and exercise every day so that you can attain peak physical fitness and redirect your energy. There are opportunities for recreation and field trips.

Once you return home, follow-up care becomes very important. You will continue with individual and family counseling, and marital counseling, if needed. You may also be encouraged to attend support groups in your area.

Alcoholism Is Substance Abuse Too

Physicians recognize a difference between alcohol abuse and alcohol dependency. Alcohol abuse is about continuing to drink even though it is causing problems in your life. Those problems might be getting into fights, driving while intoxicated, becoming loud and obnoxious when drinking, having trouble meeting obligations at work or with family members, and getting into legal problems because of drinking. However, if alcohol abusers decide to quit drinking, they will not experience physical withdrawal symptoms such as headaches and tremors.

Alcohol dependency or alcoholism, on the other hand, means you will experience physical symptoms when you stop drinking.Since these symptoms are unpleasant, most alcoholics continue to drink to avoid them. Other signs of alcohol dependency are wanting to stop but not being able to, drinking more than you want to, drinking even though your health is failing, and feeling that drinking is taking up too much time or getting in the way of things you would enjoy more.

Alcohol dependency is considered a "progressive disease." This means if you do not get treatment for it, your disease will progress through several stages and will keep getting worse until it may, ultimately, kill you.

Becoming Alcohol Dependent

No one knows why certain people become dependent upon alcohol. Reactions to alcohol are individual.Some people get sick to their stomachs from drinking.Others experience "love at first drink" and quickly develop a drinking problem.

Younger people can develop alcoholism more quickly than older adults. The majority of people can drink in moderation without any problem.

Scientists believe that there may be a genetic component to alcohol dependency because children of alcoholics are four times more likely to develop alcoholism.Some people may develop alcoholism because of underlying mental problems, such as depression or an inability to cope with everyday stress.

Dangers of Alcohol

Alcohol is more dangerous than many illegal and prescription drugs that are also commonly abused.Alcohol attacks every vital organ of the human body. Alcoholics can develop fatal liver diseases, and are more likely to get cancers of the liver, pancreas, mouth and esophagus.

People who are dependent on alcohol are at increased risk not only for automobile accidents, but for injuries in falls and criminal activities. Alcoholics tend to eat in unhealthy ways, and develop nutritional deficiencies and impairments to their immune systems.They tend to get sick more often. Alcoholics develop a tolerance for alcohol, so they keep increasing the amounts they consume, which in turn increases the damage to their bodies.

As the disease progresses, alcoholics often have problems maintaining relationships, and are more likely to divorce or live in isolation. They often lose their jobs and go through whatever money they have as nothing becomes more important than drinking.

Treatment for Alcoholism

The treatment for alcoholism is chemical withdrawal and abstinence.Most alcoholics need to enter rehabilitation centers so that they can learn how to live their lives without alcohol.

Chemical withdrawal from alcohol is not always pleasant, and should be done under medically supervised conditions.People going through withdrawal experience tremors, hallucinations and other difficult symptoms.Medical professionals can prescribe certain drugs to ease you through the withdrawal process. There are several promising new drugs not only to help alcoholics during their chemical withdrawal period but also to relieve their cravings once they are in remission.

Once you are completely free of any traces of alcohol, you usually need to remain in a rehabilitation center for continued treatment.Such treatment may include group and individual counseling, various therapeutic classes and recreation.Counselors can help you set new goals and clarify values to better ensure a long-term recovery.

Family involvement is extremely important in the treatment of alcoholism. If your spouse or partner is also an alcoholic, both of you usually need to enter treatment so the alcoholic doesn’t sabotage the other’s efforts.Family members also may need to release feelings of anger and disappointment over their shared past with the alcoholic, and allow you to make positive changes that will affect the family dynamics.Once you return home from a residential care center, you will remain in follow-up care with your counselors and family therapists.

Better Treatment Available

Treatment for alcoholism is getting better and better.We have a clearer idea of which techniques produce better long-term outcomes.We understand that relapses or falling off the wagon are a natural part of recovery and do not necessarily mean that the entire treatment failed.

We know some people have to attempt recovery more than once before they succeed.We also know that the longer you remain in residential treatment, the more likely you are to succeed, and the longer you remain sober, the more likely you are to have a lifetime of sobriety.

All kinds of people can and do recover from alcoholism. Alcoholics come from all walks of life, and can be any age. You or your loved one can succeed at defeating this terrible disease.

If you are ready to get the help you need, call 888-266-6128 today.