Alcohol Treatment - What is Alcoholism and Why is Alcohol Treatment Needed?

Alcohol treatment is a supportive setting that provides alcoholics with the tools necessary for living an alcohol-free life following the treatment program. In most cases of alcoholism or alcohol abuse, a problem is evident when some major aspect of life becomes unmanageable due to alcohol abuse and dependence. Examples of the aspects of life that commonly become unmanageable are family. relationships, career, health, finances. and legal status, among others. While many alcoholics can recognize the nature of their problems with alcohol abuse by the time one of these aspects becomes unmanageable, many more do not and often, people lose literally everything before help is sought. Beyond the debilitating consequences of alcoholism, most alcoholics cannot stop on their own. Alcoholism not only results in negative life-changing consequences, but also is extremely addictive physically as well as psychologically. Addiction is a disease that mainly effects the brain and causes it to become convinced of the need for alcohol or any other drug of abuse. From there, the brain becomes infected with the disease, and with the brain being the center of all human behavior, the addict is deemed powerless to stop the addictive behaviors. As horrible as that concept is, alcoholism is more insidious in the fact that it creates a horrible physical dependence as well. For many alcoholics who try to stop drinking on their own, the withdrawal symptoms are severe, violent, and sometimes fatal.  For this reason, alcohol detox,, short for detoxification, is a necessary step in the rehabilitation process. Alcohol detox is medically monitored by qualified staff in a medically equipped environment. Often alcohol detox can result in seizures, sweating, severe headaches, blackouts, delirium tremors (DT's), and sometimes death. These are all results of the physical dependence alcohol abuse and alcoholism cause, making it almost impossible to stop alcohol consumption without the assistance of medical care. Detox is the first and most important step in alcohol treatment.

Alcohol Treatment

Alcohol treatment can provide hope to alcoholics and their families through intensive counseling and therapy supplying building blocks to understand the disease of alcoholism and it's general and individual effects. In alcohol treatment, alcoholics learn the tools necessary to continue life without alcohol and other substances. While there are many kinds of alcohol treatment available offering a variety of methodologies and philosophies, there is one goal. Every alcohol treatment program strives to give alcoholics the support and tools needed for maintained sobriety after treatment has been completed. In alcohol treatment, focus is placed on the individual to explore the nature of alcoholism and how it has effected their own lives. Alcoholics take a look in the proverbial mirror at themselves and go through a sense of self exploration to discover their own triggers to drinking and what event or series of events in their lives pushed them down the road to alcoholism and alcohol abuse.

These days a variety of philosophies and methods to treating alcoholism have become available to be responsive to all kinds of lifestyles and beliefs. A blanket approach to addiction has become somewhat obsolete, as different people have different needs. Alcohol and drug treatment is available to be focused on gender specific treatment, gay/lesbian treatment, holistic, religious based, dual diagnosis, and everything in between. It is important to check into specific philosophies and beliefs adopted by each treatment program before making a final decision.

What Kinds of Alcohol Treatment are Available?

Depending on the severity and length of alcoholism, different kinds of alcohol treatment may be appropriate. For mild alcoholism cases, outpatient treatment may be the best option. In general, this kind of treatment is for alcoholism caught in early developmental stages or alcohol abuse that needs to be stopped before it turns into a severe case of alcoholism. In outpatient alcohol treatment, patients attend therapy and counseling on a part-time basis, attending these sessions for a few hours, several times a week. They will also attend outside support group meetings like Alcoholics Anonymous several times a week. There is no determined period of time for outpatient treatment. Depending on the situation, outpatient alcohol treatment can last from a couple of weeks to several months. Sometimes, detox will be necessary for outpatient treatment, but usually the condition is mild enough for the patient to stop drinking without experiencing adverse withdrawal symptoms.

In more severe cases of alcoholism, inpatient or residential treatment may be indicated. Generally, these kinds of alcoholism cases require detox prior to treatment admission. Residential alcohol treatment takes place in a multi-family home setting among other addicts and counselors. Therapy, counseling and meetings are attended on a full time basis for residents. This kind of alcohol treatment is recommended for more severe alcoholism cases because the alcoholic is better served to be removed from all things, places, and people who had been around and involved in the abuse of alcohol. Being away from those things on a full time basis allows the alcoholic to focus more on the disease and their recovery. Many residential alcohol treatment programs also include family and loved ones in the recovery process. Generally taking place on the weekends, family and loved ones can come to visit with the residents and participate in group counseling with personal visitation.

While alcoholism is a dangerous and deadly disease claiming thousands of lives every year, there is effective treatment available. In the search for treatment, it is vital to ask the important questions about the quality and qualifications of treatment staff, the philosophies of the treatment methodologies, and the specific kind of treatment necessary to achieve recovery and sobriety. Although detox is the first and most important step in recovery it is important to understand that statistics overwhelmingly conclude that detox alone is not enough and must be followed by treatment. Detox plays a key role in achieving sobriety, but the goal of alcohol treatment is to gain the tools to stay sober.

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