Did you know that alcoholism is:

• A chronic illness - lasts more than 3 months.
• A brain disease - once you drink enough to become alcoholic, the brain cannot return to its pre-alcoholic state, where ‘normal’ drinking was possible.
• A primary illness – many secondary ailments (e.g. Depression) simply disappear once the alcoholic is in stable recovery.

Alcoholism affects millions of people and their families having severe repercussions on individuals and society. If you or a loved one is seeking effective alcoholism treatment methods please contact us today for help near you. 

For alcoholics, drinking leads to job loss, marital problems, legal troubles, and a loss of self-esteem.  The cost to society lies in the increased burden on Health and Legal services as well as the fact that people who might otherwise contribute to society function below their potential.

The pain caused by alcoholism is often what drives family members to contact us in search of potential alcoholism treatment methods for their alcoholic loved one. It also makes alcoholism an urgent topic of further research.

Goals of alcoholism treatment methods

The desired outcome of any alcoholism treatment method is to provide quality rehabilitation for the alcoholic.  This may sound like common sense, but let’s unpack what this means in more detail.  We noted that alcoholism affects many different areas of life, so surely alcoholism recovery should also affect many different areas of life?  This holistic view of rehab treatment allows for the complex issues of alcoholism to be untangled and dealt with comprehensively.

Holistic alcoholism treatment methods

Since recovery involves addressing multiple areas of life an effective treatment approach to alcoholism will involve different sorts of therapy and employ a treatment team consisting of various sorts of professional addiction treatment consultants in order to address each area of life.

Therapeutic interventions such as group therapy, individual therapy, art therapy, music therapy, equine therapy, and psychodrama all form part of the toolkit of the alcohol counsellor.

Abstinence and alcoholism treatment methods

While being sober is a prerequisite of recovery it is definitely not the end goal of modern alcoholism treatment methods.  Being sober without changing behaviour is referred to as “abstinence”.  This way of living can actually be very miserable.  The person has not learned to cope with life on life’s terms but realizes that resorting to alcohol is not an option.  They therefore struggle through life always wishing they could drink but never finding any sense of peace.

It is extremely difficult to dry out from alcohol independently.  Therefore abstinence is best obtained by undertaking a medically supervised detoxification in a proper rehab.  Doctors have established clear protocols that define the alcoholism treatment methods used in the detoxification phase of rehab.  They are able to prescribe medications and vitamins that will reduce the symptoms of withdrawing from alcohol.

Alcoholism treatment methods in more detail

We’ve mentioned various alcoholism treatment methods but not properly examined each in detail.

Individual therapy is conducted privately between a patient and his/her case worker or alcoholism counsellor.  These confidential sessions allow the patient a safe environment in which to disclose shameful secrets to a trusted therapist.  These issues may be so painful to the patient that they feel unable to talk about them with their peers, let alone in public.  The alcohol counsellor will help the patient to examine these issues and find ways to deal with them. 

Group therapy is a powerful example of alcoholism treatment methods.  Alcohol counsellors will sit together with a group of patients, usually about 10 at a time, and facilitate a process of discussion.  Although groups can be themed to remain on certain areas of discussions they will follow the same general format.  Patients will share with one another and provide feedback that helps expose blind spots.

Art therapy is one of the alcoholism treatment methods that is used to bypass the defense mechanisms that the disease creates.  These barriers to healing are typically caged in denial (thinking “I don’t have a problem”) or in emotional responses (fear, shame, anger).  By expressing emotions in a creative format, rather than by talking about them, the patient can access core issues and gain new insights into their illness.

If you have reached the point where you are sick and tired of the problems that alcohol creates and want to live a normal, happy life then please contact one of our treatment coordinators for expert, confidential advice.

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