The Horror of Alcoholism Essay

Alcoholism is not some simple issue where there exists one or two definite answers. Everybody has their own

Before someone can be helped, it is important to figure out if they actually have a drinking problem. Alcoholism is not just drinking one too many beers on a single night. Individuals with this problem have a physical, emotional and mental dependence on alcohol. Because of this, they will often deny that they have a problem.

According to Enoch (2010), alcoholism has a lifetime prevalence rate of 30 % meaning that it is a widespread problem that affects almost third of the American population for their entire lives. This ugly picture does not affect America alone. The problem of alcohol

Alcoholism may be a coping strategy or desperate attempt for self-medication. Alcohol abuse aggravates health and psychological conditions, such as anxiety and depression. Since alcoholics are more likely to suffer from depression, their drinking habits and mental health conditions from a vicious cycle that keeps getting worse. Therefore, alcoholism interferes with work, school and relationships.

Alcohol always slows down your reaction time in the brain and cuts down tension so that the person drinking feels more relaxed. Drinkers who take in a large amount of alcohol could become more aggressive and have their judgment flawed. Walking becomes harder and coordination is difficult. It is said that heredity plays a role in becoming an alcoholic and that the tendency inclines to become addicted to a substance and can be handed down in the body’s chemistry. A person whose life is controlled by alcohol may become very depressed. Their health gets worse because of the abuse or they lose their job due to not being able to perform it well enough. The failure to stop drinking adds to the feeling of helplessness to escape their situations. (On Page 209 in the book) “The Glass Castle” by Jeanette Walls Her father Rex said, “Hon, I need some money.” Jeannette would have gladly given him the money, but it was for cigs and beer. This made Jeannette feel like he had no regard for her what so ever. Rex did not care enough to find his own way of getting money for his addictions, let alone provide food for his family. Jeannette agreed to give him the money, and he agreed to pay her back, but when he wanted to pay her back, Jeannette was staring to realize how sickening her father really is, this comes to show how alcohol really can jeopardize your

When my father got help over these years I wondered why some people who suffer from alcoholism do not get help or it just doesn’t work for them. In the United States statistically the cost for alcoholic substance abuse is 224 billion according to the national instituted of drug abuse. (National Institute Of Drug Abuse, 2014). The main age groups that starts drinking range from 12-17. This tells me that many people who have this problem of alcoholism really don’t care about their health or they don’t have any guidance in getting help after they turn 18 and continue drinking obsessively. This shows that it does not bring down the population of alcoholics. From the people who use alcohol only, drugs and alcohol, or just drugs only, alcohol comes

“Alcoholism is a primary, chronic disease with genetic, psychosocial, and environmental factors influencing its development and manifestations. The disease is often progressive and fatal. It is characterized by impaired control over drinking, preoccupation with the drug alcohol, use of alcohol despite adverse consequences, and distortions in thinking, most notably denial. Each of these symptoms may be continuous or periodic.”(The Columbia Encyclopedia, 2013)

Alcoholism is not a lifestyle choice for alcoholics. It is a disease, like cancer, where intervention, treatment, and follow up are needed to recover. As with cancer, remission and a cure cannot be guaranteed. Alcohol causes a wide range of negative effects in the lives of alcoholics and those who know and love them.

Alcoholism,“ alcoholism is also known as alcohol dependence. It occurs when you drink so much over time that your body becomes dependent on or addicted to alcohol. When this happens, alcohol use becomes the most important thing in your life” (Burke). People drink to socialize, celebrate, and relax. Alcohol often has a strong effect on people and throughout history, humans have struggled to understand and manage alcohol’s power. When a person drinks, they would show signs of tolerance, which means that over time the body needs more alcohol to drink to feel that feeling. They would start having withdrawals, loss of control, and some people want to stop drinking but they cannot. Alcohol can take up your time; energy and focus some people don’t realize how alcohol can hurt a body. When a person drinks, it can cause a lot of problems with oneself and others. It can affect others because the person that is drinking can hurt the person’s feelings or say something to them that they really do not mean. Some people continue to drink even if they do know

Alcoholism is a chronic and it often progressive disease. In which, the person drink alcohol until drinking hurt his or her life. Alcoholics find that, drink those people who have problems with people close to them, with school or work, and with other parts of their lives. If you do not used any treatment

If not genetically manifested, there are stages of drinking that lead up to alcoholism. The safest type of drinker, who tends to follow the law, is the social drinker who does not drink alone, typically only drinks with meals or at social events and is responsible about their alcohol consumption. The next stage in alcoholism is the situational drinker. Unlike the social drinker, they usually drink alone and consume alcohol at periods of stress in their lives. The more advanced step of this stage is the problem drinker, when in periods of stress they drink heavily to cope. The stage before alcoholism is binge drinking, where you uncontrollably drink on a regular basis. Finally, one reaches the diagnosis of an alcoholic: uncontrolled and excessive drinking. An alcoholic feels they cannot manage their life without regular and compulsive drinking.

Alcoholism is a an addiction of excessive consumption of alcohol that has been the cause all kinds of abuses in thousands of families. Throughout many years families of an alcoholic person have suffered the hardships of dealing with a person who consistently drinks alcohol in excessive and can not be controlled.While the causes of why a person becomes an alcoholic varies for each person, the effects of this addiction can sure noted. NOt only does alcoholism cause damage to your body, but it also cause a destruction in family, and poor conducts with the people you love and people you do not even know.

Alcohol is one of the most popular substances worldwide. Alcohol has been around for centuries and in the early United States, alcohol was consumed during major battles, as well as during many social and historical gatherings. Originally, alcohol was thought to be a health drink because it is rich in protein. People from all walks of life would drink alcohol to boost their spirits and to relieve pain if someone was physically injured. However, as alcohol became more popular in the United States, a severe rise in problems began to occur. There was an increase in drug use, prostitution, gambling, and gang activity and many people attributed the changing society to alcohol. The community bound together and made the consumption, sale, and transportation

“Alcohol affects virtually every organ system of the body”.- Jacqueline Langwith. Alcoholism is a disease, it ruins the human body, as well as the host’s family and friends. It puts high risk on someone, and makes someone function off of alcohol. Alcohol also changes someone’s mood and attitude day by day.

People drink in many ways, for many different reasons. We drink socially, to gain acceptance into a group. We drink alone to ease stress, to cope with our problems, or we “drink because we like the taste or how it makes us feel”#. Often drinking is a learned behavior, starting out as a social drinker; you quickly become psychologically and physically dependent. When someone reaches this stage they are often classified as an alcoholic. To an alcoholic, drinking becomes a compulsion; they cannot stop themselves from having another drink, like a social drinker can. In many cases alcoholics don’t even have to drink continuously in order to be an alcoholic. One the problems of alcohol addiction is that it’s something that doesn’t just effect the individual but it effects, friends and family as well. Spouse abuse, child abuse and dysfunctional family relationships can all be influenced by alcohol abuse.