There are two types of ways to enjoy alcohol, the first way is through social drinking. This is the kind of drink that one has with meals or at social functions. During the meal, wines are paired with the dishes for maximum flavoring effect. After dinner, there is a dessert wine served with the sweets. Drinking a glass of wine or a can or two of beer during a social event is acceptable and does not impair the physical ability and senses of a person. However, the other way of enjoying alcohol, the overboard, drink till one passes out kind of enjoyment is something that should very well be considered an addiction. Although medical studies suggest that regulated consumption of alcohol has its medical benefits, drinking to the point of addiction does nothing but harm a person physically, mentally, and socially. Once a person loses control of his alcohol intake and refuses to acknowledge it, he can be considered an alcoholic and in need of intervention or help. Teenagers are not exempted from alchololism, but, unlike the adult counterparts, they do not know how and where to seek help when they want to get over the addiction. This paper hopes to discuss what alcoholism is, how a person becomes an alcoholic, and finally, what resources are available for teenagers and adults alike who recognize they have a problem and want to be free of it.
Alcoholism is such a generic and vague definition of the problem. Historicaly, it is used to define the condition by with a person reacts to the more than natural intake of alcoholic beverages. The MedicineNet.com website defines alcoholism as a” physical dependence on alcohol to the extent that stopping alcohol use will bring on withdrawal symptoms. In popular and therapeutic parlance, the term may also be used to refer to ingrained drinking habits that cause health or social problems. “(MedicineNet.com, 1999).
However, people should not confuse alcoholism with the consistency by which a person partakes of alcoholic beverages. Simply put, a society cannot define every person who gulps down a can or two of beer or has a shot or two of Tequila as an alcoholic. The truth is that there are many medical factors to consider when trying to diagnose a person as an alcoholic. Alcohol tends to attack the brain, liver, and other organs of the body thus causing various health complications for the alcoholic. They tend to become delusional and distruful of others because the alcohol impairs their sense of logic. But, those signs may also be clues to other illnesses so it is important that we learn to differentiate between an alcoholic and the next person.
First of all, one has to realize and understand that most alcoholics are in denial of their condition and will never admit to having a problem with booze. That is why one should be mindful and on the look out for signs and symptoms of alcoholism once alcoholism is suspected. According to the Mayo Clinic, the American Psychiatric Association has developed a list of symptoms that can accurately determine if a person is alcoholic. Listed under the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, some of the symptoms to look out for can be charted as follows:
Although alcohol dependent people display the same symptoms as alcohol abusers (known as alcoholics in general), alcohol abusers experience physical withdrawal symptoms that dependents do not display. While alcohol dependents need a reason to drink, an abuser just drinks because he wants to experience the high one gets from being drunk. He is still in control of his thoughts but not his physical faculties. Alcoholism is a major illness that causes a person to lose control of his life. It is a very gradual spiralling into darkness that the person does not even realize is happening to himself. This is why they refuse to admit they have a drinking problem and that is also why it is his peers who notice the problem and try to call his attention to the situation.
The medical professionals cannot really tell us what causes alcoholism although there are some sign and symptoms that could point to the potential causes of the illness depending upon the situation of a person. Most often, there is a history of alcoholism in the family and men seem to be more prone to it than women. We can also view the causes of alcoholism as somewhat related to genetics or the possibility that there was an alcoholic present in the household who was emulated by the person later on in life, emotional stress, psychological factors like low self esteem or depression, and social or cultural factors that make drinking excessively an acceptable part of life. There are also alcoholics who first used the drinking as an excuse to relieve themselves of anxiety, depression, tension, loneliness, self doubt, or unhappiness. No, it is not true that anybody can just stop once the addiction has started to get out of control. Serious medical and psychological interventions are often necessary before the problem results in life ending medical complications or accidents. Some of these interventions include.
The problem is even worse for teen-agers who are at that stage in their lives where peer pressure plays a significant role in their development as a person. It is during this time of experimentation and learning that they often lose their way and end up abusing alcohol just to fit in during parties and other social events. For them, alcohol is the same as using drugs. It causes a significant change in personalities and physical abilities of the teen. It causes a sanitizing effect that blurs his capability analyze situations and alters his perception and concentration. Alcoholism at such an early stage in life usually results in life altering predicaments that, once they have gotten over their addiction, they realize they are incapable of handling.
Teenagers who are experiencing social problems in school are often encouraged by non educated friends to experiment with alcohol in order to gain a sense of gurmption that allows them to do things they would not normally do if they were sober. For some teenagers who have low self esteem, drinking and eventually becoming an alcoholic only makes the problem worse as they undergo physical changes that make them even more unacceptable to their peers. Some of these changes include weight gain, bad breath, clumsiness, acne and pimples, or loss of self control.
Admittedly, the entertainment industry has caused alcohol consumption to come across as the cool thing for young people to be doing. That is one reason why underage drinking has become such a problem. Adults admittedly drink and keep alcohol in the house. Either a bottle of wine of a can of beer in the fridge. These serve to enhance the image of drinking in the eyes of the youth and only encourage them to try it out. Just like their television and movie counterparts. Due to the lack of alcohol information given by parents to their children, they usually end up drinking without realizing that the end results will always be adverse and there is nothing cool or hip about throwing up your guts into a trash can and then going back for more because you were pressured to do it.
Perhaps the best way to explain why these alcoholic beverages causes a different reaction in a teen agers body is thoroughly understanding the alcoholic content of various alcoholic beverages. According to the website FamilyDoctor.org, ” Beer usually contains 3% to 5% alcohol. Wine has 9% to 16%. Hard liquor usually contains the highest levels (up to 50%). All states consider an adult to be intoxicated, or drunk, at 0.08% blood level of alcohol. For a man who weighs 170 pounds, this might mean only 4 beers (12-ounce cans) on an empty stomach in an hour. For a woman who weighs 137 pounds, this might mean less than 3 beers in an hour. For people under 21, all states now have zero-tolerance laws, which means you are breaking the law if you drive with any alcohol in your system.” (FamilyDoctor.org website, n.d.)
As you can see from the information supplied, there is no such thing as a harmless drink. Once a person ingests the beverage, it changes the body metabolism and impairs functions without exception.
Although alcoholism is considered an incurable disease at the moment, it is still treatable provided the alcoholic recognizes he has a problem and submits to treatment and constant supervision. Making the person realize he has a problem and his eventual acceptance that he has a problem, including his seeking of treatment is but the start of the healing process. Just like any addiction, an alcoholic can still fall off the wagon, more so for teen agers who get addicted while in high school.
For teenagers who are about to enter college and will be attending school far removed from the safety of home, they will be exposed to the dangers of the world without any parental supervision. In such situations, the person tends to become experimental and does not realize the pitfalls of his choices until it is too late. Alcoholism in this particular era of life is not uncommon because it becomes the release button for the stressed out minds and bodies of teenagers.
It is of the utmost importance that teenagers realize that the frat parties and clubbing they do without thinking about it could spell the difference between seeing their graduation day or saying goodbye to this world. Alcohol is an addictive drug and just like any drug, changes your personality and the way you perceive things. It makes you believe you can do things you could not do before, and you probably can. But with the side effect of slower reactions, confused thoughts, lack of concentration and coordination skills, and even loss of consciousness. Keeping that in mind, would you knowingly drink, get drunk, and drive yourself of a buddy home afterwards?
Let us look at the facts related to alcohol abuse and drunk driving. In the year 2000, the country spent about $114.3 billion dollars on alcohol related crashes (MADD, n.d.) 63% of the total crashes were alcohol related and with a drunken driver behind the wheel. As of the year 2006, there was a 36% rate of crashes with alcohol impaired drivers behind the wheel. Car crashes are the most common end result of alcohol abuse among teen agers and these crashes usually result in death or physical disabilities. No matter what articles I read, I have not come across any evidence that a person can actually have more heightened senses when driving under the influence of alcohol. DUI tests more often than not prove that the driver cannot even make his finger tips meet when asked to do so. So what point am I trying to make here? The point is that teenagers seem to have a sense of inviciblity. A belief that he or she is unbreakable and can survive anything and therefore can try anything. That is not the case when the alcohol ingested goes over the legal limit. The actual result of their actions can result in only one thing. A life altering accident.
If you have read this far into my paper, then that means that you are either very interested in the topic I am discussing, know a teenager or friend who might be an alcoholic, or, you are coming to terms with the fact that you are an alcoholic. You may find yourself asking “So, what should I do if I think I or a person I know has an alcohol problem?” Let me answer that. The next step is the hardest step you will ever have to take. You will have to make that person admit he has a problem, seek help, and complete the treatment. Or, if you are the alcoholic, you will have to accept the fact that you are one and commit yourself wholeheartedly to getting that life threatening vice under control or eliminated completely from your daily life. But how can you do all of this? Is is it even possible to seek proper help and treatment? What is the first step? Where do you go? The latter part of my research paper will now address those concerns and offer various avenues of treatment that can be done by anybody willing to go through the treatment process no matter how difficult it may get.
Once you have made the conscious decision to seek help in recovering from alcoholism, you have begun your first step towards recovery and improving your health. It is very important that you go to a family doctor to seek his treatment advice in order to receive the proper emotional support from him and your family during this trying time. There is also a possiblity of medical complications arising during the treatment so having constant medical supervision during this period is of the utmost importance to you. Some of the whithdrawal symptoms to expect during this time period are ” mood changes, such as irritability, anger, depression and anxiety, insomnia (problems sleeping) and problems with sexual function.” (FamilyDoctor.org, December 2006).
Dealing successfully with the aforementioned symptoms will mean that you are on the road to recovery. But you cannot do this without the help of your family, friends, and doctor. Those who do not deal with the withdrawal period successfully usually return to the bottle.Withdrawal symptoms do not occur in people who practice social drinking. It only happens to people who have abused the bottle over a period of time and then suddenly stop. In such cases, the person will encounter the same symptoms each time he tries to stop drinking unscuccessfully. in order to get over this first hurdle, there has to be an open communication line between you and the doctor. Honesty is the only option if you want to successfully work together on your rcovery. Aside from the emotional support your doctor gives you, he can also opt to prescribe medications to help ease the withdrawal symptoms of shakiness, anxiety and confusion early in the withdrawal phase.
It is at this point in time when an alcoholic will need his family and friends to support him and keep him strong. The tendency to commit suicide due to the lack of alcohol is strong and there are times when the alcoholic may need to be put on a suicide watch for a period of time. Once the worst is over, it is important to sign up the person, together with a friend or family member for treatment programs or a sobriety program. The most popular of these is Alcoholics Anonymous.
Such support groups are meant to help ease the healing process and lead the alcoholic towards the realization of why he ended up at the place he found himself in. It is not a place where blame is laid out. There are no scapegoats allowed because nobody is ever turned into an alcoholic by anybody. It is a personal choice that was made and can only be ended by another personal choice. If anything, the group is meant to serve as your extended family support system. The “Buddy System” is meant to insure that one will never fall off the wagon because there will always be somebody there to back him up and stop him. AA, as it is more commly called, serves as an emotional support when your immediate family is out of reach. Everyone at AA is on equal footing and not one person is better or more recovered than the other. It is a family that does not judge the alcoholic but instead reinforces his desire to recover from alcoholism.
More importantly, we have to realize that the seeds of alcoholism are planted early on in a child’s life. Admit it, we all grew up seeing our parents or some other family member having a social drink during family festivities or functions. As a child, we often wondered about the colored water and why they seemed to enjoy drinking it so much. Oftentimes, we would beg a family member to let us have a sip to no avail. Such situations strengthen a child’s desire to taste alcohol when he comes of age and often times, it is this excitement at finally being able to get a taste of the forbidden drink that makes the teen ager go overboard when drinking. Therefore, effectively communicating the effects of alcohol on a person, as well as instilling safe drinking practices must be discussed and instilled within a person from childhood. The reality that most parents choose to ignore is that children will first try alcohol during their high school and college years. Maybe even earlier if you believe studies as indicated in the website FamilyDoctor.org that indicate “80% of high school kids have tried alcohol.” (FamilyDoctor.org, 2008).
As a parent who practices responsible parenting, one must lead by example. the parents must realize that a child looks up to him as a role model. Therefore, if you want to avoid having a child with an alcohol abuse problem in the future, you should rethink how you enjoy alcohol in the presence of your child. An option would be to drink non alcoholic beverages at parties where your child is present in order to send the message that drinking alcohol is not necessary to have fun. More importantly, once a parent finds himself in a stressful situation, he must show the child that problems are solved by actively seeking solutions through dialogue and destressing by engaging in activities like sports or exercise, instead of hitting the bottle.
According to an article by Dr. Barbara P. Homeier entitled ” Kids and Alcohol”, it is important for parents to clearly define what is expected of their teen age children when they reach a certain age. She specifically mentions a behavioral contract covering a teenager’s drinking and driving. She explains that ” for teens, especially those old enough to drive, it’s a good idea to negotiate and sign a behavioral contract. This contract should spell out the way you expect your child to behave and state the consequences if your teen drives under the influence. Follow through and take the keys away, if necessary.” (Homeier, B. Kids and Alcohol, 2005).
In the end, making sure our children will not become alcoholics in the future depends upon the foundation that we set for them as children. The importance of freedom with responsibility can be directly tied in to responsible drinking by implementing rules like losing family car priveleges if the child comes home smelling of alcohol or extending curfews if a child proves to be responsible enough to not drink and drive over time.
Work Cited
Alcoholics Anonymous. (2008). Information on A.A. Web.
familydoctor.org. (2006). Alcohol: What to do if it’s a problem for you. Web.
familydoctor.org (2006) Drinking and teens. Web.
Homeier, Barbara P. (2006). Kids and alcohol. Kids Health: Information For Parents. Web.
Healthology. (2008). Alcoholism: getting past the addiction. Web.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving. Statistics. 2008. Web.
MayoClinic.com. (2007). Alcoholism. 2008. Web.
MayoClinic.com. (2007). Alcoholism: causes. Web.
MayoClinic.com. (2007). Alcoholism: screening and diagnosis. Web.
MedicineNet.com. (2008). Definition of Alcoholism. Web.
MedicineNet.com. ( 2008). Alcohol abuse and alcoholism. Web.