Why Is Alcohol Addictive?

Addiction can result from the psychological triggers of drinking alcohol. It’s easy to see the body’s motivation for creating this system. This keeps us wanting to perform behaviors that are good for us in some way. The problem is that your brain can’t always distinguish between good and bad. Chemicals like alcohol and other drugs cause your brain to release endorphins.

Cravings for alcohol can be intense, particularly in the first six months after you quit drinking. Good alcohol treatment prepares you for these challenges, helping you develop new coping skills to deal with stressful situations, alcohol cravings, and social pressure to drink. Build a sober social network – If your previous social life revolved around alcohol, you may need to make some new connections.

Physical and Psychological Addiction to Alcohol

Chemical dependency, sometimes called physical addiction, is when your brain chemistry has adapted to the presence of alcohol in your system. Some drugs, like marijuana, don’t cause very potent chemical dependence, but people can still become psychologically dependent on the drug. It’s common for people with a mental health disorder such as anxiety, depression, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder to have problems with alcohol or other substances. People who begin drinking — especially binge drinking — at an early age are at a higher risk of alcohol use disorder.

• Recovering from alcohol addiction or heavy drinking is not a quick and easy process.
• When the addict has a family, the cost of the addiction can wreck the home and have long-lasting effects on every person he interacts with.
• If you stop drinking, you’ll experience the consequences of suddenly imbalanced neurochemistry in the form of withdrawal symptoms.
• It can be attempted by regulating and limiting the sale of alcohol , taxing alcohol to increase its cost, and providing education and treatment.

For some alcohol abusers, psychological traits such as impulsiveness, low self-esteem and a need for approval prompt inappropriate drinking. Some individuals drink to cope with or “medicate” emotional problems. Social and environmental factors such as peer pressure and the easy availability of alcohol can play key roles. Poverty and physical or sexual abuse also increase the odds of developing alcohol dependence. Scientists believe they have discovered why some people are more at risk for developing alcohol use disorder.

Behavioral Therapies and Relapse Prevention

The brain’s reward and pleasure centers are overloaded, and the user experiences cravings to repeat those experiences. Although someone may have the intention to stop, alcohol can compromise impulse control and decision making, which makes relapse more likely. What starts as alcohol abuse can quickly and easily change to alcohol dependence.

MRI scans have revealed that the why is alcohol addictive of an alcoholic releases endorphins in response to drinking at a much higher rate than a nonalcoholic brain. It’s believed that other factors are at work in alcohol addiction as well. However, this offers some insight into the question of how addictive is alcohol, and why it varies so much from person to person. Within the medical and scientific communities, there is a broad consensus regarding alcoholism as a disease state. Current evidence indicates that in both men and women, alcoholism is 50–60% genetically determined, leaving 40–50% for environmental influences. Most alcoholics develop alcoholism during adolescence or young adulthood.

Alcohol and health

A wide range of immunologic defects can result and there may be a generalized skeletal fragility, in addition to a recognized tendency to accidental injury, resulting in a propensity for bone fractures. Alcoholics may also require treatment for other psychotropic drug addictions and drug dependencies. Benzodiazepines may be used legally, if they are prescribed by doctors for anxiety problems or other mood disorders, or they may be purchased as illegal drugs.

• Make meetings a priority – Join a recovery support group, such as Alcoholics Anonymous , and attend meetings regularly.
• Evidence suggests that topiramate antagonizes excitatory glutamate receptors, inhibits dopamine release, and enhances inhibitory gamma-aminobutyric acid function.
• As a CNS Depressant, alcohol poses a serious risk when mixed with other drugs of the same class like Benzodiazepines and some Painkillers.
• Following alcohol addiction treatment, you’ll want to have resources in place that support long-term recovery.
• This is known as a psychological addiction because the act of drinking alcohol becomes habitual and they need it in order to feel good or like their normal selves.
• The term “alcoholism” was split into “alcohol abuse” and “alcohol dependence” in 1980’s DSM-III, and in 1987’s DSM-III-R behavioral symptoms were moved from “abuse” to “dependence”.

Many clergy members, social workers, and counselors also offer addiction treatment services. Write your drinking goal down and keep it where you will frequently see it, such as on your phone or taped to your refrigerator. Let friends, family members, and co-workers know that you’re trying to stop or cut back on drinking. If they drink, ask them to support your recovery by not doing so in front of you. Most people with alcohol problems do not decide to make a big change out of the blue or transform their drinking habits overnight.