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10 Signs You Need Treatment For An Alcohol Problem

Written by Enlightened Recovery on . Posted in Addiction, Addiction Recovery, Alcoholism, Drugs & Alcohol. No Comments on 10 Signs You Need Treatment For An Alcohol Problem

How big of a problem is your alcohol problem? If you’re concerned your problem with drinking might be big enough to warrant a trip to treatment to teach you how to live sober and help you heal, chances are, it’s a big enough problem. You are not alone. Alcohol use disorder affects millions of people around the world. Unfortunately, not all of them reach out and ask for help. Making the call to go to treatment can save your life. Alcoholism is progressive- it always gets worse, it won’t get better. Problematically, many become convinced that their problem hasn’t reached the worst it can reach. With alcoholism, there’s never any telling how bad bad will have to be. Accidental death, injurious accident, and liver failure can happen at any time due to alcohol abuse. If you aren’t sure, here are 10 signs you need to seek treatment for an alcohol problem.

  1. You’ve tried to make deals with yourself to only drink one or two drinks when you start to drink but you can never uphold your promise. Once you have one drink, it is impossible to stop. You either don’t realize you’ve continued drinking or you find yourself creating justifications for it until you are drunk again.
  2. After the urgent suggestion of friends, family, and even your doctor, you have tried to reduce your drinking to just once or twice a week. Similar to your attempts to control your drinking when you do drink, you are unable to drink controllably.
  3. You’ve found that when you do manage to take a break from drinking you experience strong cravings, urges, and impulses to drink. You notice alcohol everywhere and find it challenging to say no.
  4. Your ability to fulfill life’s responsibilities and be present in your relationship is affected by your drinking.
  5. Your life activities which have had the most meaning to you have taken a backseat to your drinking. You’re either hungover, already drunk, or planning to drink- because if you don’t drink you might experience symptoms of withdrawal.
  6. When you go without drinking you experience cravings in addition to symptoms of withdrawal. The withdrawal might be mild or severe, ranging from shaky hands, to getting the sweats, to experiencing seizures or becoming sick without alcohol.
  7. You have more than one story about getting into trouble, getting hurt, breaking the law, or engaging in other reckless activities when you were drunk.
  8. During a blackout episode, you have engaged in drug use which you weren’t aware of at the time.
  9. You experience blackouts more regularly. Once you start drinking, you are not sure when you will blackout.
  10. Despite negative consequences, you have continued to drink.

Recovery from alcoholism is possible. Make the life changing decision today by calling Enlightened Recovery. Bringing holistic healing, clinical therapy, and 12 step philosophy together, our partial care programs health alcoholism and co-occurring issues in mind, body, and spirit. For more information, contact us today.

Treatment For Addiction And Mental Health Should Be A Blend Of Eastern And Western Medicine

Written by Enlightened Recovery on . Posted in Addiction, Alcoholism, Drugs & Alcohol, Healthy Living. No Comments on Treatment For Addiction And Mental Health Should Be A Blend Of Eastern And Western Medicine

People are turning toward naturopathic, alternative, homeopathic medicines and treatments for a reason: Western medicine isn’t working. Finding a balance between eastern practices and western practices is bringing people to a holistic state of healing in which they find they are healing mind, body, and spirit. Western medicine largely focuses on the symptoms, rather than the core of the problem. Eastern medicine is more preventative, focusing on the core of the issue. Much of eastern medicine is spiritually connected, working under the philosophy that emotions are energy and emotional energy has the capacity to make us sick. Living a healthy and balanced lifestyle has to include balance for emotions and the spirit. Medications, tests, and examinations in western medicine tend to lead to an answer of “stress” and needing to get rid of whatever is causing stress. Eastern practices have the ability to pinpoint the cause of stress.

Acupuncture, for example, can identify emotional energy blockages by working with the body’s acupressure points. Massage can find tension in the muscles and release them, often releasing emotional energy. Essential oils can be calming, invigorating, grounding, and releasing. Crystals tend to only have effect when their specific energy and attributes are necessary, highlighting what the problem might be. Not reacting to rose quartz? Your heart is probably doing fine. Feeling a tingle or some kind of draw to obsidian? You might have some issues from the past to work out.

A blend of both kinds of medicine is necessary because Eastern medicine can sometimes fall short in the western body. Treatment for addiction and alcoholism as well as other mental health issues has to be taken seriously in its holistic approach. How many oils would it take to balance depression and anxiety which are becoming a clinical issue? Should cravings be considered an emotional issue or warrant a prescription for drugs like Naltrexone? The goal in treatment is to make clients comfortable, help them relax, heal them, and show them how to live a fully sober life in recovery. Balancing east and west is a primary example of doing so.

At Enlightened Recovery Solutions, we’re bringing together the best of clinical therapy, holistic healing, and 12 step philosophy. Recovery starts with you. Start your recovery with us. For information on our integrative programs for partial care, contact us today.

The Relationship Between Anxiety and Alcoholism

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Many of the physical and psychological effects of alcohol can produce anxiety. The relationship between anxiety and alcohol, in addition to alcoholism, might be more complicated than many realize. Refinery29 reports on the relationship between drinking and alcoholism but frames the article for active drinkers. For those seeking recovery from alcoholism, their lifestyle will include abstinence from alcohol. Learning to cope with anxiety without alcohol is a challenge because of the way the relationship between the two become deeply ingrained in the brain.

 

CHANGE IN HORMONE PRODUCTION

Alcohol changes the way the brain functions, which is why alcohol can cause sensations like euphoria, relaxation, and impair judgment. The way alcohol achieves these changes is by interacting with hormone and neurotransmitter production. Dopamine, for example, is commonly discussed when examining alcohol’s effect on the brain because it is a primary way alcohol creates change. Mind altering substances like alcohol create an overproduction of dopamine, which is a neurotransmitter sometimes called the “happy hormone”. A surplus of dopamine has effect in other areas of the brain while also creating the sense of euphoria alcohol initially creates. Serotonin is another neurotransmitter more involved in mood and anxiety. Depression, for example, is a lack of serotonin. Alcohol consumption can cause a disruption in the production of serotonin, which results in anxiety. In addition, alcohol can increase the production of cortisol, a hormone for stress. When the body and mind enter fight-or-flight mode, which is a chronic for anxiety, cortisol is released. Cortisol puts the body on edge and prepares it to fight against a perceived threat. Interestingly, alcohol could be the perceived threat but also feel like a solution to anxiety.

 

CHEMICAL DEPENDENCY INCREASES ANXIETY

Using alcohol as a means to cope with anxiety can increase anxiety and thereby increase chemical dependency on alcohol to cope with anxiety. The relationship of alcohol addiction and co-occurring mental health disorders can be unruly, creating a vicious cycle. Drinking to cope with anxiety creates a memory association in the brain which, accompanied by the disruptions in neurotransmitter as well as hormone production, can become problematic. Instead of turning to other coping mechanisms, the body and the brain learn to turn to alcohol. Eventually the brain might realize that alcohol creates more anxiety than it gets rid of. Being chemically dependent on alcohol, the inability to choose differently will continue to cause anxiety.

 

The partial care programs at Enlightened Recovery Solutions are dual diagnosis, focusing on the holistic treatment of substance use and mental health disorders. Providing a compassionate environment of whole person care, our integrative programs utilize alternative therapies designed to heal the soul. For information, call us today at 833-801-5483.

What Are Some Ways Alcoholics Hide Their Alcoholism?

Written by Enlightened Recovery on . Posted in Addiction, Alcoholism, Drugs & Alcohol. No Comments on What Are Some Ways Alcoholics Hide Their Alcoholism?

Alcoholics have to hide two things: their drinking and their alcoholism. Inherently, one protects the other.

They Refuse To Admit They Have A Problem

While they may not be doing the best job at hiding their drinking problem anymore, they are giving their denial every effort that they have. By refusing to acknowledge the truth, they can evade criticisms and accusations. Locking themselves further away from their loved ones and friends, they can continue to drink in spite of themselves. For those who have never experienced what is often called the “insanity” of alcoholism, it is difficult to understand this process. Chemical dependency upon alcohol changes the brain’s ability to make good judgments and choices based on consequences. Alcoholism is essentially a non-consequential mental health disorder for those who have it- meaning that they have a constitutional inability to see the consequences of their actions- or at least to feel that any negative consequences outweighs the benefit of consuming more alcohol. Alcoholism in the brain causes a restructuring which results in alcohol being prioritized over everything else.

Friends & Family Are Often Enablers

Codependency is a term which was born out of alcoholism treatment. Therapists were confounded by the way that so many family members and spouses of alcoholics enabled their loved one’s drinking and using. Alcoholism is commonly referred to as a family disease, meaning that the entire family is effected with a “sickness” when their loved one falls “ill” to alcoholism. Out of concern for their loved one’s health, they continue to allow them to drink and even buy them alcohol. Enabling is just one characteristic of codependency. It can include harmful behaviors like covering for the alcoholic, paying for legal matters, buying alcohol, or even getting drunk with the alcoholic.

Environment Can Play A Part

Some environments are riddled with unspoken alcohol abuse. College campuses, for example, are infamous as being the headquarters for binge drinking and the early development of alcoholism. High stress work places can include a lot of alcohol, as can work places which encourage the sale and distribution of alcohol. Alcohol based industries, for example, thrive on consuming alcohol and convincing others it’s enjoyable. Often times there are many alcoholics fledgling in these environments who can cover it up by simply saying that everyone is doing it. While may people, even a majority of people, may be abusing alcohol, not everyone will become chemically dependent upon it.

Alcoholism can be healed. If you or a loved one are struggling to manage drinking, there is a solution. Our programs provide integrative care, bringing together holistic and clinically proven treatment methods with a twelve step foundation to provide total healing of mind, body, and spirit. Call us today for more information, at 833-801-5483.

High Functioning Alcoholism: Should We Be Calling It That?

Written by Enlightened Recovery on . Posted in Addiction, Alcoholism, Mental Health. No Comments on High Functioning Alcoholism: Should We Be Calling It That?

There is always a certain level of shock and disbelief when a loved one who, aside from their recent admittance to alcoholism, seemed to have it “all together”. Despite a few difficulties here and there, everything in their life was happening according to “normal”. Daily responsibilities were being met within reason. They had a job the woke up and went to in the morning. If they had children, the children were well attended to. Bills were paid, mouths were fed, and they might even have been in decent physical shape, constantly working to take care of themselves. Somehow, behind the facade of “normalcy” or even what some might call “success” there was a chronic and worsening problem with alcohol. The stigmatized image of the alcoholic, which is not an uncommon story, minimizes the experience of others. As a result, other people who experience their alcoholism in different ways can perpetuate their problem unnoticed, until, their is no room left for hiding.

Bustle reports in depth about understanding the “high functioning alcoholic” and why this kind of alcoholism is often difficult to spot. “…people can fit the measure of a severe drinking disorder—inability to quit drinking, tendency to put themselves in situations where they may get hurt, experiences with withdrawal— while still appearing outwardly like perfectly healthy beings with functional lives.” The result is “a very dangerous combination.” High functioning alcoholism poses a significant threat not just to the life of the alcoholic but to the lives of those involved.

The stereotype of normalcy often prevents an alcoholic from recognizing their problem. Denial is a huge issue which prevents many alcoholics from taking the highly remarked “first step” in solving their problem with alcohol- admitting they have a problem with alcohol. As a result, the problem can continue to worsen. Eventually, it could lead to injury or death on the part of the alcoholic or on the part of their children, spouses, friends, coworkers, or other people. Simply stated, when an alcoholic— high functioning or not— is not held accountable for their problem, the alcoholism grows out of control.

If you feel that you or a loved one are living under the guise of high functioning alcoholism, your drinking does not have to get worse before everything gets better. Your journey to recovery starts with you. Start it with us at Enlightened Recovery. Our integrative programs bring together the best of holistic treatment, spiritual healing, twelve step philosophy, and clinically proven therapy modalities. Call us today for more information at 833-801-5483.

Which Comes First: Alcoholism Or Mental Health Disorders?

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Alcoholism is a greater risk for those who are living with a preexisting mental health condition or those who have the genetic predisposition for one. Likewise, for those who are living with alcoholism, there is a greater risk of also developing a mental health disorder. Alcoholism by its technical name is alcohol use disorder, falling under the substance use disorder category. Widely, alcohol use disorder and other substance use disorders, called addictions, are mental health disorders of their own. When alcohol use disorder happens at the same time as another mental health disorder, it is referred to as dual diagnosis, or co-occurring disorders. For treatment and rehabilitation to be as successful and effective as possible it is necessary for treatment centers to make a full diagnosis of any existing mental health conditions in addition to substance use issues. Mistaking one issue for another is common. Discovering the source of each issue and treating it thoroughly is the best way to ensure long term recovery.

Alcoholism As A Result Of Mental Health Disorders

Abuse of alcohol is a common side effect of many mental health disorders, especially when they go untreated. Anxiety, depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, borderline personality disorder, bipolar disorder, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder as some of the most common mental health disorders with a high rate of co-occurring alcoholism. Substance abuse spurs from mental health disorders like these for a number of reasons. First, some of these disorders come with a high likelihood of impulsivity. Impulsive decision making can lead to rash decisions and skewed senses of relations among peers. When substance abuse becomes an option, there is little functioning in the brain to prevent someone from making the decision. Consuming alcohol in large quantities will be of little consideration and as a result can lead to chemical dependency. Second, alcoholism can result as a way to cope with the difficult emotions of other mental health disorders. Living with severe emotional pain, unmanageable mood swings, or chronic irrational thoughts can become exhausting and overwhelming. Upon introduction to alcohol, there is a relief and sanctuary discovered in the euphoric effects of intoxication.

Mental Health Disorders As A Result Of Alcoholism

Alcohol abuse chemically alters essential neural networkings of the brain. Consequently, many of the processes used on a daily basis to regulate emotions, cognitive functions, and other important activities become shifted. Mental health disorders like depression, anxiety, schizophrenia and paranoia can result from long term substance abuse.

Recovery from co-occurring alcoholism and mental health disorders is possible through integrative and enlightened treatment. Bringing together holistic recovery and proven treatment, the programs at Enlightened Recovery are designed to let recovery start with you. Call 833-801-5483 today for more information.

Staying On Medication and 3 Other Helpful Habits For Bipolar And Addiction

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Psychiatrists, physicians, and treatment professionals often quip that bipolar disorder is one of the most curious mental health disorders to treat because of the way that people relate to their medication. Bipolar disorder is well known for creating delusion within its two emotional states: depression and mania. Mania is defined by highs which make depression seem even lower. Part of the depression is caused by the sudden loss of euphoria which can be experienced during mania. Mood stabilizers and other medications which treat bipolar disorder help someone feel more stable and feel better in their lives. Once they feel better and like the way they feel, people with bipolar seem to forget they’re bipolar and in need of medication. They stop taking it, stop attending meetings with their psychiatrists, and slowly spiral back out of control. Problematically, they will repeat this cycle over and over again.

Get Consistent Sleep

Having shifting moods which cannot be controlled can mess with your daily routine. Part of the challenge of living with bipolar disorder is creating consistency from one end of mania to the other end of depression. Mania causes people to lose sleep while depression can cause an excess amount of sleep. Maintaining a regular sleep schedule each night can create stability and not cause other major disruptions which result due to abnormal sleep.

Stay Sober

Bipolar disorder and addiction, as well as alcoholism are frequently co-occurring and present a constant problem. In times of a manic episode, someone is inclined to feel invincible and energetic, inspiring them to party and use substances excessively. During depressive episodes, someone with bipolar will turn to depressant substances to cope with their feelings or stimulant substances to try and make themselves feel like they did during mania.

Ask For Help

Learning to manage bipolar disorder during recovery from drug and alcohol addiction is challenging. Nobody expects you to do it perfectly! If you are struggling with manic-depressive episodes which are causing you to have cravings, it is okay to reach out for help. Don’t feel ashamed that you have bipolar and that you struggle with addiction. Courageously reach out for help and get the assistance you need to feel better.

If you are struggling with bipolar disorder and addiction, help is available. Enlightened Recovery has a variety of programs which can work for you to heal mind, body, and spirit. You will have balance again. For more information, call 833-801-5483

Does The 12 Step Philosophy Really Work?

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Project Match is an infamous study, one of the first to dive deeply into the debate of Alcoholics Anonymous and the efficiency of the twelve steps as a viable form of treatment. 900 drinkers were split into three groups to receive one of three treatments, either using AA-based treatment which utilizes the 12 steps and emphasizes attendance of meetings, cognitive behavioral therapy, or motivational enhancement therapy. Problematically, there was not a fourth group of individuals who had to quit drinking on their own.

Conclusively, the study found that the twelve step approach combining the attendance of meetings and utilizing the program of the twelve steps worked as well as other treatment methods, according to Scientific American. Citing another study, the article points out that in 2006 a Stanford University professor found that AA worked remarkably well. This study followed problem drinkers for an astonishing 16 years. The drinkers had either quit on their own, attended AA, or worked with therapists. “Of those who attended at least 27 weeks of AA meetings during the first year,” Scientific American writes, “67% were abstinent at the 16-year follow-up,” the remaining 34% did not participate in AA in any way. For the participants who received therapy, 56% remained abstinent 16 years later.

Alcoholics Anonymous and the use of any twelve step program is not meant to be an exclusive treatment method, or a treatment method at all. The steps are called suggestions and a program of recovery. Within the primary text of the group, The Big Book Of Alcoholics Anonymous, the authors encourage people to work with therapists. A vast majority of treatment facilities today are 12 step based or utilize 12 step philosophy. Though this raises controversy because AA is not scientifically based, once one reads a section of the book titled The Doctor’s Opinion, they see points which directly correlate to many of today’s “evidence-based” treatment methods.

The twelve step approach does not work for everyone. Relapse can happen at any point in time throughout someone’s life if they let down their routine of recovery, which does not have to include AA. For those who adhere to the program, continue therapy, and create meaning in their new sober lives, long term, even lifelong abstinence is completely possible.

Enlightened Recovery believes in the spiritual solution of the twelve step philosophy and utilizes integrative holistic approaches to support proven clinical methods. Our partial care programs are designed to heal alcoholism and addiction in mind, body, and spirit. For more information, call 833-801-5483.

Using 12 Step Meetings For Recovery

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Before there was a solution to the problem of alcoholism, there was no answer. People who had an uncontrollable relationship with alcohol were sent to hospitals and psychiatric wards. Doctors warned patients that their brains and livers would be damaged for good with one more drink or drug, yet patients did not listen. Around the country small groups were finding religious relief through simply programs of action that were helping them stay sober. The message of one such group found a man named Bill who had a spiritual experience. After discussing his experience, strength, and hope with a fellow struggling alcoholic, Bill and his new friend Bob, had an idea. That idea became Alcoholics Anonymous, the original 12 step program. Since the release of the primary text for the recovery group, The Big Book Of Alcoholics Anonymous, in 1939, millions of people have found a spiritual solution to alcoholism, all over the world.

Many people find sobriety through the rooms of AA or similar twelve step programs like Narcotics Anonymous, Cocaine Anonymous, and Heroin Anonymous. For others, recovery programs are an essential supplement to their ongoing treatment and therapy. During treatment, you will likely be taken to multiple meetings of different kinds a week. In the meetings you can find a sponsor. Sponsors are meant to take a newcomer, someone with less than thirty days, through the twelve steps. After completing the twelve steps, you will then be in a position to sponsor someone else through the twelve steps.

Creating A Recovery Program Outside Of Treatment

When you graduate treatment you will either move to sober living or move on your own, which might include moving back home. Finding a new routine of twelve step meetings is easy to do with a few simple steps:

  • Research meetings online. All you have to do is do an internet search of “12 step meetings in ____” to find an online schedule
  • You can search for AA central in your area and call for a list of meetings nearby
  • Ask your AA central volunteer if they have ride shares in case you don’t have a way of getting to a meeting
  • Introduce yourself at a meeting and ask for phone numbers. New friends in recovery can take you to meetings, introduce you to new meetings, and support your recovery
  • Find a home meeting which you commit to attending every week
  • Get a new sponsor and work the twelve steps with them, call them every day, and check in with your daily inventory
  • Volunteer to a commitment at a meeting like being a secretary, a treasurer, or literature person

The spiritual solution of the twelve steps has worked for millions of people around the world. Enlightened Recovery adopts the twelve step philosophy as part of our integrative programs of treatment. For more information, call 833-801-5483.

Women Are More At Risk For Addiction Than They Have Been In Decades

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The Washington Post reports that new studies are emphasizing the problematic relationship of women and alcohol. One study the article cites compiled 68 varying alcohol-use studies from around the world in which researchers from Australia discovered a “gender convergence”. Data revealed that the gender gap between males, females, and their relationship with drinking is closing. In the early 20th century, men who were born were “more than twice as likely as women to drink and three times as likely to have an alcohol problem.” By the end of the century, that difference was practically non-existent.

Women in Culture

What is causing this closure? George Koob, director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, explains that women are living in a different culture than they were 100 years ago. “Instead of being at home,” Koob describes, “they’re in society, and drinking is part of business and social gatherings.” Another problem is that underage drinking in men has declined. Women are continuing to drink underage at a steady pace. Additionally, Koob expresses, women report experiencing depression and anxiety twice as often as men. Depression and anxiety are two of the most highly co-occurring or “comorbid” problems with addiction. Often, women, and men alike, will turn to drugs and alcohol to cope with the symptoms of depression, anxiety, or other mental health disorders. Koob points out a final fact which is emphasized in The Big Book Of Alcoholics Anonymous.

The primary text for the free recovery support group and founding group for the world wide twelve step program, was written for men, by men. A singular chapter addresses women, and that is only to the wives of alcoholic men. Quite quickly, the founders discovered that women were equally perilous alcoholics as their male counterparts. The authors write that there are no specifics like length of time drinking alcoholically or just how much one drinks to determine the effect of alcoholism. “To be gravely affected, one does not necessarily have to drink a long time nor take the quantities some of us have. This is particularly true of women.” The authors then dedicate two more important sentences to female alcoholism, not daring to call it any more or any less than what males experience. “Potential female alcoholics often turn into the real thing and are gone beyond recall in a few years. Certain drinkers, who would be greatly insulted if called alcoholics, are astonished at their inability to stop.”

Enlightened Recovery understands the shame and guilt which can come from developing alcoholism. We have a solution. Our partial care programs fuse together clinical treatment, alternative and holistic healing modalities, and 12 step philosophy to create a dual diagnosis curriculum for mind, body, and spirit. For more information, call 833-801-5483.