Essays

There are several different ways to describe substance abuse. So many people think that substance abuse only pertains to alcoholism. There are several other substances that may cause someone to be diagnosed with substance abuse disorder. Some of those things include: marijuana, alcohol, stimulants cocaine and amphetamines), Hallucinogens, Inhalants, sedatives, and even nicotine. Even though some people may not see some of these things as things that may become addicting they are.

More and more people are becoming addicted to the smallest things such as alcohol. For hundreds and thousands of American citizens alcoholism is become far too common. Alcoholism is a disease that affects many people in the United States today. It not only affeds I he alcoholic, but also their family, friends, co-workers, and eventually total strangers. The symptoms are many, as are the causes and the effects.

What is alcoholism? Alcoholism is a complex chronic psychological and nutritional disorder associated with excessive and usually compulsive drinking. Alcoholic abuse is a destructive pattern of alcohol use, leading to significant social, occupational, or medical impairment.

A person’s alcohol tolerance can be measured by how many alcoholic beverages they can drink before becoming intoxicated. Being an alcoholic has several downfalls, such as the withdrawal symptoms- Some of the withdrawal symptoms consist of sweating or rapid pulse, increased hand tremor, insomnia, nausea or vomiting, anxiety or grand mal seizers. There are two types of drinkers. The first type, the casual or social drinker, drinks because they want to. They drink with a friend or with a group for pleasure and only on occasion.

The other type, the compulsive drinker, drinks because they have to; despite the adverse effects that drinking has on their lives. The cause of alcoholism is a combination of biological, psychological, and cultural factors that may contribute to the development of alcoholism in an individual. Alcoholism seems to run in families.

"Although there is no conclusive indication of how the alcoholism of family’s members is associated, studies show that 50 to 80 percent of all alcoholics have had a close alcoholic relative" (Some researchers have suggested that in several cases, alcoholics have an inherited, predisposition to alcohol addiction. Studies of animal’s and human twins have lent support to this theory.)

Alcoholism can also be related to emotional instabilities. For example, alcoholism is often associated with a family history of manic-depressive illness. Additionally, like many other drug abusers, alcoholics often drink hoping to “drown' anxious or depressed feelings. Some alcoholics drink to reduce strong inhibitions or guilt about expressing negative feelings.

Social and cultural factors play roles in to establishing drinking patterns and the development of alcoholism. In some cultures, there is conflict between abstaining and accepting the use of alcohol as a way to change moods or to be social, thus making it difficult for some people to develop stable attitudes about and moderate patterns of drinking. Society tends to aid in the development of alcoholism by making alcohol seem glamorous, showing that by drinking, you will become more popular, more glamorous and more worthy of respects from others.

The physical effects of alcoholism are somewhat gruesome. Excessive intake and prolonged use of alcohol can cause serious disturbances in body chemistry’ Many alcoholics exhibit swollen and tender livers. The prolonged use of large amounts of alcoholism without adequate diet may cause serious liver damage, such as cirrhosis of the liver”. Alcoholism also causes loss of muscular control.

The condition delirium tremens, known primarily to heavy drinkers, causes hallucinations along with loss of control of muscular functioning. When this condition develops and the alcoholic slows their drinking, withdrawal syndrome can and often does occur. This may include agitation, tremors, seizures, and hallucinations. Alcoholism also causes damage to the bram.

Alcoholics may suffer from lack of concentration. The alcoholic may also experience "blackouts," occasional onsets of memory lapses, and possibly complete memory loss. They may also suffer from more serious forms of brain damage. Alcohol-induced deaths, excluding accidents and homicides: 19,928 and deaths from chronic liver diseases. The social effects of alcoholism can be as devastating as the physical effects. Children of alcoholics may be affected by the parent’s alcoholism in several different ways. Having a problem- drinker parent often increases the risk of becoming a problem drinker oneself,

This may happen for reasons such as identification with or imitation of the alcoholic parent- It may also happen because of the social and family conditions that are thought to be associated with the development of alcoholism. These include family conflict, job insecurity, divorce, and social stigma. Being diagnosed with alcoholism has a major effect on the person personally.

It causes them to change their way of thinking collectively. It changes their view of life and the things going on around them. In the alcoholics personal obstacles they usually have history and a pattern of use. They probably have gone through relapse and other associated problems. If the alcoholic started drinking in their secondary education (college) they may obtain deficits in their education. They may even obtain a learning disability or something of that nature.

Because of this persons deficit they may not have the proper education or skills to obtain a high paying job. If the alcoholic is already in the workforce they tend to be in high paying positions that cause them to be over worked and highly stressed- They also they may choose to ignore the problem, do nothing, and hope it will either rectify itself or at least not worsen.