Alcohol intoxication impairs your judgment and cognition, which increases your risks of engaging in dangerous, risky, or uncharacteristic behaviors. Early treatment is one of the best ways to improve your chances of achieving sobriety. So if you’re wondering why do I need alcohol abuse counseling, the short answer is that treatment includes therapy because it improves your ability to manage symptoms and remain sober.
Alcohol is one of the most commonly used and abused psychoactive substances in the United States, with 55.3% of adults drinking at least once a month. Alcohol is especially popular among young adults, as drinking is a common theme at social and sporting events. Besides developing a dependency, alcohol can cause serious damage to your health. Your liver is only capable of filtering one serving of alcohol every 90 minutes. Activities like binge drinking, which is when a man consumes 5 or more or a woman drinks 4 or more servings of alcohol within two hours, overwork your liver.
What is Alcoholism?
Alcoholism is a mental health disease that is progressive, chronic, and incurable. Alcoholism causes physical changes to your brain, altering your pleasure and reward center and damaging your neurotransmitter receptors. These changes to your brain chemistry influence your thoughts and feelings, which leads to lowered inhibitions and personality changes.
During alcohol intoxication, you can experience blackouts and memory loss. Because alcohol lowers inhibitions and reduces anxiety, it’s typical to say or do things while drunk that you later regret. This makes increased conflict common when you abuse alcohol.
As alcoholism progresses, you may have to drink solely to avoid detox symptoms. Physical dependency causes intense and powerful withdrawal symptoms if you suddenly stop drinking, making it difficult to quit without alcohol addiction treatment.
Alcohol withdrawal can cause:
- Delerium tremors, seizures, and disorientation
- Body temperature and heart rate changes
- Tremors, sweats, and shakes
- Nausea, diarrhea, and malaise
- Mood changes
- Intense cravings
Why Do I Need Alcohol Abuse Counseling
If you’re wondering do I need alcohol abuse counseling, you or a loved one is likely struggling with a drinking problem. Since symptoms continue to get worse the longer you abuse alcohol, early treatment is an essential part of recovery. Evidence-based treatments are utilized because they’re proven to work on past patients following extensive research and studies. Cognitive-behavioral therapy and dialectical behavioral therapy are two types of evidence-based treatments used by most inpatient and outpatient alcoholism treatment centers.
So if you’re still asking yourself why do I need alcohol abuse counseling, it’s important to remember that alcoholism alters the way you think, perceive, and behave. Therapy ensures that you understand how your thoughts, feelings, and actions are connected. Negative thinking patterns are important to address during treatment because they can make you prone to experiencing a relapse. Alcoholism is an incurable condition, meaning you’ll continue to deal with cravings and other triggers long after your last drink.
Improving your problem-solving and communication skills helps you cope with triggers, stressors, and major life changes. Understanding how to handle conflict, especially with friends and loved ones, reduces your risk of relapsing. Negative emotions are a prevalent trigger during recovery, which is why learning how to rebuild trust and foster healthy relationships is an important part of recovery.
During treatment, you can choose to complete an inpatient or outpatient program, both of which offer medically assisted detox programs.
Finding Alcoholism Treatment Today
If you’re wondering why do I need alcohol abuse counseling, chances are you’re struggling with a drinking problem. Alcoholism makes it difficult to maintain a stable life, as drinking can lead to unemployment, financial debt, and legal problems. If you’re struggling with alcoholism and are ready to regain control of your life, contact Promises Treatment Centers today at 1.713.528.3709 to find out more about our alcohol abuse treatment programs.
