Flat Abs Blog

Posts Tagged ‘alcohol treatment’

 Powered by Max Banner Ads 

Dante was a eighteen year old high school senior who was exhibiting quite a few alcohol-related issues at school. Therefore, the principal explained to him that he had to see Miss Johnson, the school psychologist, before he would be allowed to return to school.

Later that afternoon when Dante went home after school, he had to explain his school discharge to his parents. His Mother and Father were “relatively traditional” and told Dante that getting removed from school was not a doable educational option. They told Dante that failing to graduate from high school would most probably be like a lead weight around his legs that could probably hinder his educational attainment for the rest of his adult life. In addition, Dante’s parents were very distraught that he was drinking in the first place and drinking with his buddies in the second.

They explained to Dante that although he may be young, he needs to comprehend fairly swiftly that drinking is the pathway to failure, ill health, pain, and financial problems.

It was evident that his Mother and Father were absolutely in accord with Dante’s principal and told Dante that he had better come to the understanding that he needs to see Miss Johnson, the school psychologist. After his dialogue with his parents, Dante finally agreed to see Miss Johnson the next school day. So Dante phoned the school and scheduled an appointment to see Miss Johnson the next day during lunch.

The Psychologist Asks Dante if He Knows Why His Recent Alcohol-Related Activities Were Such a Cause For Concern By the School Administrators

When Dante went to see Miss Johnson, she promptly looked at all of the alcohol-related problems Dante had experienced and asked him if he understood why his recent alcohol-related behavior signaled such alarm.

Quite sincerely, Dante was not sure why the principal told him he had to see a school counselor. As he expressed to Miss Johnson, why should he see a professional counselor about his drinking activities? Due to the fact that just about all of his pals drink the same amount that he does, essentially, drinking shouldn’t be such a big deal. Stated more explicitly, if just about everybody is drinking, why is this such a big thing?

Miss Johnson asked Dante when he started to drink alcoholic beverages. He said that some of his older buddies introduced him to drinking wine coolers when he was twelve or thirteen years old and in the seventh grade.

Miss Johnson told Dante that while his classmates may in fact drink more than he does and that they may be an unhealthy influence on him, the facts are that he is the one who is getting suspended from school due to alcohol-related absenteeism, fighting, and delinquency, not his peers. What is more, Miss Johnson also highlighted the fact that Dante, and not his peers, is the one who is failing and who is missing at least one day of school per week because of his alcohol related issues. Finally, Miss Johnson emphasized the fact that because of his drinking activities, Dante is getting into a dangerous cycle of alcohol abuse that can in time ruin his dreams, hopes, and aspirations.

In short, Dante’s involvement with youth alcohol abuse was starting to thwart his ability to function as an accountable young man. As verbalized by Miss Johnson, “Just because most of your classmates drink wine coolers, wine, beer, or hard liquor does not mean that it is the right thing to do for you.”

Dante Learns That Sooner or Later He Must Be Responsible For Himself In Order to Keep Away From Dangerous, Damaging, Destructive, and Unhealthy Effects Down the Road

Miss Johnson informed Dante that one’s buddies can unquestionably influence an individual in a negative way, but that the person herself or himself has to ultimately claim responsibility for herself or himself in order to steer clear of damaging, destructive, dangerous, and unhealthy effects in the future.

Luckily, Miss Johnson was very well equipped for her meeting with Dante. She showed him reports and research studies she had underlined that listed diverse drinking facts and statistics that applied to most people in general. Then she showed Dante quite a bit of information that applied particularly to teens.

As an illustration, Miss Johnson explained the difference between alcohol abuse and alcohol addiction and informed Dante that drinkers who continue to drink abusively habitually become alcoholic.

Miss Johnson also explained the concept of binge drinking that she defined as follows: drinking five or more drinks in one sitting for males and consuming four or more drinks in one sitting for females.

The Therapist States More Than a Few Alcohol Addiction and Alcohol Abuse Facts and Statistics

Then Miss Johnson stated various alcohol facts and the following eight alcohol abuse statistics:

1. According to the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, there are 105,000 annual alcohol-related fatalities in the U.S. due to inebriated drivers and related medical conditions, injuries, or diseases.

2. Around twenty-five percent of all U.S. people who register in general hospitals have alcohol problems or are undiagnosed individuals who are addicted to alcohol who are being treated for the consequences of their irresponsible drinking.

3. Alcohol dependency and alcohol abuse are the third leading cause of preventable fatalities in the United States.

4. More than seven percent of the population that is 18 years old and older — approximately 13.8 million Americans — has drinking problems, including 8.1 million individuals who suffer from alcohol addiction.

5. 500,000 Americans who are dependent on alcohol are between the ages of 9 and 12.

6. As revealed by one U.S. research study of 18 to 24 year-old current drinkers who failed to complete high school, about 60% started to drink before they were sixteen years old.

7. Currently, roughly 14 million Americans, 1 in every 13 adults, are alcoholic or abuse alcohol.

8. According to the research literature, non-alcoholic members of alcoholic’s families use ten times as much sick leave as families who do not display alcohol problems.

Dante Receives An Important Jolt of Reality About the Long Term and the Short Term Results of Teenage Alcohol Addiction and Alcohol Abuse

After Miss Johnson stated the aforementioned alcoholism and alcohol abuse statistics and facts, it was clear that what Miss Johnson made known to Dante was a real shock to him. Why? Because for the first time in his young life, someone not only made the effort to give an explanation of the short term and the long term results of alcohol abuse and alcoholism, but she also made the effort to corroborate what she was saying with alcohol abuse and alcohol addiction statistics and facts that related to everyone in general, and principally to underage drinkers.

To be sure, it was almost as if a light went on and Dante immediately realized why he should not be engaging in abusive and excessive drinking with or without his pals any longer. Dante thanked Miss Johnson for her concern and for the material she went over.

Miss Johnson then asked Dante how he felt about getting a physical exam and an alcohol evaluation for the alcohol abuse or alcoholism treatment he would probably need.

Dante thought about this for few minutes and then agreed to get a complete physical exam and to go through a comprehensive appraisal of his drinking situation so that he could start an alcohol abuse or alcohol addiction rehab program without pause.

Teresa was a forty-two-year-old real estate agent who realized that she had some problems with her drinking. As an illustration, within the past seven months she has experienced the need to have one or two drinks before going to work, five weeks ago she failed a random breathalyzer test where she is employed, two weeks ago she got pulled over by the police for a DWI, and lastly, for the past two months she has begun to fail to remember what she does and says when she drinks with her pals.

Like other people, Teresa’s experiences with alcohol began slowly and stayed at this pace for quite some time due to the fact every now and then she engaged in occasional social drinking. As a matter of fact, for around a year, every time she went out with her friends to drink, she made sure to drink in a responsible manner. Something about her drinking activities, however, seemed to totally change when she divorced her husband.

So She Can Overcome the Loss of Her Husband More Painlessly, Teresa Determined That She Will Begin Hanging Out More Regularly With Some of Her Pals Who Love to Drink and Have Fun

Teresa got very “down” about the divorce from her husband, and as a way to refrain from fixating on her depressing feelings she came to the conclusion that she would begin going out more often with some of her friends who love to have fun and drink.

Quite sincerely, Teresa thought that having fun just about every day by getting an alcohol “buzz” with her buddies would help her recover from the divorce of her husband in a more trouble-free manner.

Teresa’s Drinking Escalates Greatly the More Often She Goes to Private Parties, Happy Hours, Sporting Events, Dinner Dates, and Family Get-Togethers With Her Buddies

It didn’t take very long, nonetheless, before her drinking increased to a significant degree the more frequently she went to and drank at sporting events, dinner dates, family get-togethers, private parties, and happy hours with her friends. Furthermore, the fact that her drinking buddies were all many years younger than she was and therefore able to party and drink more intensely was one of the reasons why she didn’t center more of her attention on her increased drinking. In short, she was drinking and having a lot of fun just like everybody else in her group of pals without much forethought about the negative results of her hazardous drinking.

Yet somewhere in the recesses of her brain she realized that she most probably required alcohol rehabilitation but avoided the thought as much as humanly possible.

Teresa Gets a Physical, Discloses the Truth About Her Excessive and Irresponsible Drinking to Her Physician, and Discloses the Truth About Her Depression

One late afternoon during her yearly physical, her healthcare professional asked her if she drank alcohol. Not wanting to lie to her doctor, Teresa disclosed the truth that she routinely drinks more than she should. As a matter of fact, she articulated that she frequently drinks in an abusive and irresponsible manner. Then Teresa told her doctor about her constant negativity. More explicitly, she articulated that broken relationships commonly sparked a negative chain of events characterized by increased drinking which further led to more depressing feelings that, in turn, resulted in more drinking. And this is specifically what took place when her husband and she got divorced ten months ago.

When her healthcare practitioner heard this, he informed Teresa that according to various alcoholism facts and statistics on alcoholism he was researching, alcoholism and depression frequently come about in the same individual. He then informed her that some of the alcohol statistics, research investigations, and facts he has been looking into also stress the fact that people who drink in an excessive manner and who also experience depression need to receive treatment for both medical conditions.

Teresa’s Physician Schedules an Appointment for a Psychological Appraisal and For an Alcohol Abuse and Alcohol Addiction Evaluation

Teresa’s physician then stated the following: “I am not trying to make an unprofessional analysis, but with your medical condition we may be working with two separate concerns. As a result, I think we probably need to make an appointment for you to get an alcohol addiction and alcohol abuse appraisal from my partner, Dr. Ulrich, who is an alcohol addiction specialist. Whether your drinking situation is more associated with alcohol dependency or alcohol abuse is unclear, but I feel that further exploration is warranted. Then I believe we should make an appointment for you to get a psychological evaluation from another one of my partners, Dr. Resni
ck, who is a clinical psychologist. I want to get some more insights about your depression and see how much your drinking and depression are interrelated.” Teresa displayed her approval of her physician’s strategy and thanked him for his time and concern. Now all she had to do was to try to cut back on her drinking and get ready for her appointments.

Jennifer is a twenty-nine-year-old quality improvement consultant who has been ingesting alcohol in an irresponsible and hazardous manner since her boyfriend and she broke up.  In truth, for the past five months she has been drinking almost two bottles of wine every night, and on the weekends she also has been drinking a number cans of beer throughout the day.  In a word, Jennifer has been drinking so abusively that it’s a wonder that she hasn’t suffered from alcohol poisoning.

After feeling downcast because she was beginning to close her eyes to her health, Jennifer at last told herself that she’s had enough, that it’s time to quit the self pity act, that it’s time to stop the irresponsible and abusive drinking, and time to make a new start with her life.  So the next Saturday morning at 9:30 AM, she decided to quit drinking completely and suddenly without preparation or planning.

When She Stopped Drinking She Felt Sick, Her Head Was Aching, She Was Extremely Moody and Restless, She Had Utterly No Appetite, She Started to Sweat Extensively, and She Vomited Several Times

When Jennifer stopped drinking, she thought that she would more likely than not be tempted to take a few drinks, but she never envisioned that she would feel so ill.  More correctly, approximately three hours after she stopped drinking, she vomited numerous times, her head was throbbing, she started to sweat profusely, she had absolutely no appetite, and she was extremely restless and moody.

When she called her best friend and informed her that she had stopped drinking and that after a few hours she suddenly began experiencing flu-like symptoms, Pauline, her best buddy, told Jennifer to call her healthcare professional and go over what was transpiring.

She Admits to Her Healthcare Practitioner That She Has Been Drinking Excessively, That She Just Tried to Stop Drinking, and That She is Experiencing Nasty Flu-Like Symptoms

So Jennifer called her medical practitioner, informed him that she has been drinking in an irresponsible manner for a number of months and that when she attempted to totally stop drinking earlier in the day, within a few hours she felt as if she had the worse flu-like symptoms that she had ever experienced.

Her medical practitioner told her that she may be suffering from symptoms of alcohol withdrawal and that she should have a friend or neighbor take her to the emergency room ASAP.

As soon as Jennifer got off the phone, she got a family member to take her to the hospital.  Interestingly, all the way to the hospital, as sick as Jennifer felt, the only thing she could think about was whether or not she might be an alcoholic.

Evidently her medical practitioner had called ahead and told the emergency room staff to expect Jennifer because when she got to the hospital, she was met by two emergency room employees who immediately asked her to get in the wheelchair they had with them.  After getting moved to the emergency room and undergoing two or three essential tests, it was verified that Jennifer was in fact experiencing alcohol withdrawal symptoms and was in need of alcohol detoxification.

A medical practitioner gave her some medications to diminish her flu-like symptoms and also administered some medications to help eliminate the alcohol that was still in her circulatory system.

An Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse Medical Practitioner Goes Over the Fact That She is Alcohol Dependent and Then Clearly Explains What Alcohol Withdrawal Symptoms and Alcohol Dependency Stages Are

After a couple of hours, Jennifer was taken from the ER and wheeled to the recovery room.  After she was in recovery for roughly two-and-a-half hours, Doctor Novak, an alcohol and drug addiction specialist, came to visit her.  He took plenty of time and explained that Jennifer had gone through alcohol withdrawal symptoms when she quit drinking because she had become addicted to alcohol.

He then elucidated the fact that with repeated and excessive drinking, the person’s brain in a step-by-step fashion gets acclimated to the alcohol in order to operate in a “semi-normal” manner.  When the person then all of a sudden abstains from ingesting alcohol, as one would expect, the brain responds by producing alcohol withdrawal symptoms.  Not only this, but her doctor also clearly explained the various alcoholism stages that an alcohol dependent person commonly experiences as the disease gets progressively worse over time.

It is Confirmed that Jennifer is in the First Stage of Alcohol Dependency and She Receives a Good Projection For a Full Recovery if She Gets the Alcohol Addiction Rehab She Requires

Fortunately for Jennifer, it was confirmed that she was in the first stage of alcoholism and, as a result, she received a good forecast for a complete recovery if she will get the alcohol dependency rehabilitation she needs.

Jennifer told the doctor that she will do whatever it takes to get sober and to restore her health.  She also mentioned that she has a first class hospitalization plan that will probably pay for most, if not all, of the costs needed for treatment.  It was clear to see that Jennifer was quite thankful about her optimistic prognosis and felt at ease knowing that she will be able to get the alcohol treatment she needs so that she can begin the road to recovery.