Alcohol Abuse Info, Alcohol Related Financial Difficulties and the Need for Alcohol Rehab
Alcohol abuse is defined as the use of alcoholic beverages to excess, either on an infrequent personal basis such as binge drinking or as a regular practice. Alcohol abusers may not be addicted to alcohol, but their drinking leads to negative consequences such as poor job or school performance, relationship issues, getting involved in the legal system due to drunk driving, and continued drinking in spite of obvious alcohol-related difficulties in the individual’s life.
Alcohol abuse means having unhealthy or damaging drinking behaviors such as drinking too much at one time or drinking every day. Alcohol abuse can lead to legal problems such as getting arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol, it can cause you to miss work or to perform poorly at school, or it can negatively affect your relationships. When an individual abuses alcohol, he or she continues to drink although he or she comprehends that his or her drinking behavior is causing troublesome circumstances.
Alcohol abuse actually has an easy, rational explanation, namely for people to drink in moderation or not at all. Many drinkers, nonetheless, avoid the rational and commonsense path to health and happiness and instead pursue a self-destructive path that causes problems in virtually every aspect of their lives.
Abusive alcohol consumption is the third leading cause of preventable death in the United States and leads directly or indirectly to a number of societal and health difficulties.
Excessive drinking can take the form of heavy drinking (drinking more than one drink per day on average for women and drinking more than two drinks per day on average for men) binge drinking (drinking more than four drinks during a single occurrence for women or more than five drinks during a single occurrence for men), or underage drinking (which is illegal and often times involves binge drinking).
Many people drink a small or moderate amount of alcohol in order to relax and enhance their social activities. Drinking alcohol in this way is not harmful for most adults. When people experience alcohol-related difficulties in any aspect of their lives, including employment, their finances, school, relationships, or their health, nevertheless, these people have a drinking problem.
These problems can range from mild to severe and depend on how rapidly the body metabolizes alcohol, how much and how quickly the alcohol was consumed, the individual’s weight, if the individual drank on an empty stomach, and how long the individual has been drinking.
When consumed in excess, alcohol is toxic to the human body and is viewed as a drug. It is estimated that between 12 and 14 million adults in the United States are alcohol dependent or abuse alcohol.
Alcohol and drug abuse statistics not only show that almost 100,000 Americans die each year as a result of alcohol abuse but they also show that alcohol is a factor in more than half of the country’s traffic accidents, suicides, and homicides. Furthermore, alcohol abuse plays a critical role in many social and domestic predicaments such as workplace absenteeism, spousal abuse, criminal behavior, and child abuse.
While drinking in moderation is typically safe for most people, for some people such as pregnant women or children, for instance, almost any amount of alcohol use may be legally deemed “alcohol abuse,” depending on the local laws. For all individuals however, one thing is clearly identifiable: abusive and continuous drinking can cause physical and mental anguish and in some instances, death.
It needs to be highlighted that alcohol abuse differs from alcohol dependence in that it does not necessarily include physical dependence, an extremely strong compulsion or craving for alcohol, or a loss of control. Moreover alcohol abuse is less likely than alcohol dependence to include tolerance (the need for increasing amounts of alcohol to get “high” or to get a “buzz”). Both conditions, nevertheless, can lead to mayhem concerning all aspects of an individual’s life.
Many high school and college students abuse prescription and non-prescription drugs and have an affinity to engage in binge drinking. As a matter of fact, according to alcohol abuse statistics, alcohol abuse is the major problem among college students.
More to the point, student drinking is the number one health problem on campuses nationwide. Excessive drinking, moreover, is also closely associated with students’ grades. That is, in many instances, the more students drink, the lower their grades.
Excessive drinking can cause serious complications that require immediate medical care. Treatment for alcohol abuse often involves rehydration, counseling, and detoxification. In severe cases, alcohol abuse requires inpatient treatment in a rehabilitation hospital or in an alcohol rehab clinic. Alcohol abuse treatment may include behavior therapy, counseling, doctor-prescribed medications, support, and education. And after the inpatient part of treatment is finished, outpatient rehab is commonly set in motion.