There are several factors that can lead to alcoholism. Among the physical factors there may be a genetic predisposition, a greater ability to tolerate alcohol or a greater tendency to addiction; among the psychic factors underlying the addiction there may be conditions of stress or psychological distress, a depression, a personality disorder or a mental illness; between social factors there may be conflicts within the family or at work, or a marginalization of the challenging economic conditions. Then all those triggers must be considered that could give the definitive push towards addiction: difficulties in emotional and interpersonal relationships, a particularly difficult phase of life (bereavement, divorce, dismissal from the workplace), but also of wrong associates, an environment where the culture of alcohol is deeply felt, or paradoxically a favorable event that leads to euphoria “celebrated” with a toast.
Who is the alcoholic?
The alcoholic, is an individual who has lost the freedom to abstain from drinking, the distinction between a moderate drinker and an alcoholic lies precisely in this sentence. While a moderate drinker can remain abstinent without much difficulty, an alcoholic cannot get well unless he consumes alcohol on a daily basis. At this point it is no longer possible to go back. An alcoholic can never go back to consuming alcohol properly. The only option is total abstention from alcohol. In Alcohol rehabilitation centre in Mumbai programs insist a lot on this aspect with patients because it is central. An alcoholic patient must accept that if he is to return to life, he must completely renounce the consumption of any alcoholic substance.
The harm of alcoholism
The harms of alcoholism are enormous. The alcoholic patient has major problems related to socio-relational life. The alcoholic seriously damages his working life and also his relationship life. His pathology comes to affect the whole family context and therefore the whole family suffers from it. From an organic point of view, the main damages are obviously linked to the prolonged use of alcohol. Over time, the picture worsens progressively and irreversibly: organic damage can occur in the liver, pancreas, digestive tract, but there may also be disorders in the central and peripheral nervous systems. From a cognitive point of view we are witnessing a decline in performance, especially with impaired attention and short-term memory; the damage to the brain may be such as to favor the development of a true alcoholic dementia.
How to cure alcoholism?
The first step to recover from alcoholism is detoxification, which involves putting an end, overnight, to the consumption of alcohol, also with the support of some drugs that allow the patient to tolerate the symptoms of withdrawal, present in all forms of consumer addiction.
Detoxification is followed by Drug Rehabilitation Centre in Mumbai that allows the patient to overcome all the psychological problems related to addiction: they can be psychological counseling or group self-help supports, such as the Alcoholics Anonymous project.
Only in cases of a more serious addiction, a period spent in a specialized clinic that offers individual and group therapy, involving the family and allowing the patient to do some manual work to gradually return to an active life can also help and as normal as possible.