The symptoms of alcoholism are often subjective, which makes it difficult for outsiders to recognize them in the first phase of addiction. The diagnosis is made even more difficult by the fact that alcoholics can mask the symptoms of their disease for a long time, which become visible only in the advanced stage of alcoholism. Nevertheless, we can recognize the symptoms of alcoholism in a loved one. Check how alcoholism manifests itself in appearance and behavior.
Alcoholism (alcoholism, alcohol addiction)can develop for a long time and imperceptibly. It is often difficult to define the boundary between the liking to drink and the uncontrolled urge to drink. Another factor that hinders the diagnosis ofalcoholismis the feeling of shame - both in the addicted person and in their relatives, who do not want to acknowledge that one of their family members requires help in the form of alcoholism treatment. Alcoholism is a stigma, but the sooner it is recognized, the greater the chances of a person returning to normal life.
Alcoholism: Symptoms
Alcoholism is recognized by a psychiatrist, addiction psychotherapy specialist, and psychologist. The diagnosis is made on the basis of the observed symptoms - sometimes one of them is enough, especially when we are talking about advanced alcoholism, in other cases more than one of the following factors must occur.
The symptoms of alcoholism include:
- Alcohol craving- is the main culprit of addiction. The sick person feels a strong thirst, compulsion to drink, because stopping it causes great discomfort.
- Abstinence syndrome- occurs after you stop drinking alcohol or reduce it significantly. Symptoms of uncomplicated withdrawal syndrome include: blood pressure spikes, heart rhythm disturbances, tremors, not only in the hands but also in the whole body, nausea, vomiting, drenching sweats, feeling tense, hypersensitivity to sounds, anxiety. In the case of the complicated syndrome, there are also seizures, hallucinations, delirium, dehydration.
- Control impairment- difficulties in avoiding starting and stopping drinking, reducing the amount of alcohol consumed.
- Increased tolerance to alcohol- addicted person must consume more and more alcohol in order to feel the sameeffect what before. Tolerance can be found on the basis of a simple experiment: if someone has 1.5 per mille of alcohol in their blood and does not seem to be drunk, this is pathological tolerance.
- Concentrating life on drinking- an addicted person spends all his energy on acquiring and drinking alcohol and freeing himself from the consequences of its action. At the same time, he neglects other spheres of life, gives up hobbies, interests, relationships with family and friends.
- Persistent drinking despite the awareness of its effects- the addicted person is aware of the he alth and social consequences of his addiction, but does not change his behavior.
- Depressive states- are not only a possible symptom, but in some cases also the cause of alcoholism. Even if alcohol initially acts as a "cheerleader", with time it becomes another factor that exacerbates a person's depressive state. Regular consumption of alcohol causes a depression of mood, and may also lead to suicide attempts - statistically, 1 in 4 people committing suicide overuses alcohol.
- Alcohol paranoia- alcoholism can cause huge losses in the addicted person's relationship - he becomes morbidly jealous, has frequent mood swings, wants to constantly control his partner accusing him / her of treason. The alcoholic checks the other person's private messages, rummages through their belongings, demands translations of their time away from home, and may even go so far as to track them - this type of symptom has even been separately classified as Othello's syndrome.
- Alcoholic dementia- a symptom that appears at an advanced stage of alcoholism, sometimes after many years of drinking, and is associated with alcohol atrophy of the brain. A person with alcoholic dementia has severe intellectual impairment, although in certain cases dementia may be more severe or less symptomatic. Alcohol dementia generally means worse intellectual and physical performance, memory, concentration and criticism disorders.
- Korsakoff's syndrome- chronic disease resulting from alcoholism. The person suffering from it is completely confused - they do not know the day, time, or location. He has permanent and huge gaps in his memory, which he fills with false stories - but they are not deliberate lies. Korsakoff's syndrome is often accompanied by general weakness, malnutrition, and exhaustion of the body, which can even lead to death.
Alcoholism: appearance symptoms
Alcoholism manifests itself not only in our behavior,well-being, but also appearance. Alcoholic beverages lead to dehydration - drinking 1 liter of beer wastes 1400 ml of fluid.
This dehydration is visible on our skin, which becomes "faded" and gray, while wrinkles and furrows become more distinct. Alcohol dilates the capillaries, causes swelling of the face (as a result of lymph flowing from the blood vessels enlarged by alcohol into the skin of the face). There are also red spots on the skin and dark circles under the eyes.
Alcoholism also makes people who drink it… thinner. In this particular case, losing weight is not a cause for satisfaction as it slows down the body's ability to synthesize protein. Meanwhile, our muscle tissue is the greater, the greater the body's ability to bind protein.
Alcohol also aggravates the symptoms of psoriasis.
Alcohol consumption - cancer may be the consequence
Alcoholism: warning symptoms
Before an alcoholic develops the symptoms listed above, he may be diagnosed with the warning symptoms of alcoholism.
They are often very subtle and inconspicuous, but they should increase the vigilance of people who are with a person at risk of alcoholism on a daily basis. These include:
- Regular and daily consumption of at least 2 beers or 2 glasses of wine or 50 g of vodka,
- single drinking of liquids containing more than 100 g of ETOH (one liter of wine or a quarter of a liter of vodka or 5 large beers);
- alcoholism also means starting the day with drinking alcohol, the so-called morning beer,
- looking for an opportunity to drink - partying more than before, going out for a beer, drinking alcohol with meals,
- drinking alcohol to "ease" the symptoms of its earlier consumption, the so-called wedging,
- difficulty remembering what happened on a specific day after consuming alcohol,
- getting "behind the wheel" after drinking alcohol,
- offering alcohol at parties, urging others and encouraging them to drink "queues" more often,
- dramatic change in behavior after alcohol - a potential alcoholic after drinking becomes more self-confident, extroverted, relaxed, gets rid of complexes and inhibitions,
- drinking in stressful situations - reaching for alcohol in states of increased nervous tension, after experiencing some unpleasantness, failure, as part of relaxation after a hard day,
- gradual increase in alcohol tolerance (the so-called "strong head"),
- drinking until "the film breaks",
- drinking alone, in hiding,
- alcoholism is also irritating in situations of difficult contactwith alcohol.
Symptoms that should be particularly worrying include treating drinking as a way to soothe your nerves or to forget about an unpleasant event or feeling.
The risk of alcoholism occurs if a person has experienced any of the warning signals listed above at least twice within six months.
Alcoholism: who is particularly at risk from it?
The following people may be prone to alcohol dependence:
- people who were always drinking a lot of alcohol,
- people who drink a lot of alcohol at a young age,
- people easily subject to pressure from the environment, sensitive to criticism, mentally weak, often depressed,
- people for whom problem-drinking has become a way of "coping" with them.
Read also:
- Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) - Symptoms
- Alcoholic depression - types, symptoms, treatment
- Female alcoholism: a woman trapped in alcohol
- ACA syndrome (adult children of alcoholics) - symptoms and principles of therapy
- Co-addiction: Symptoms and Treatment
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