How to Recognize Alcoholism

By Robert Thatcher

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image: can abusive drinking for this teen result in alcoholism? Alcoholism is a devastating disease that effects millions of people every year. Recognizing alcoholism in yourself or someone else can be difficult. Alcoholism is defined as a disease that allows a persons use of alcohol to interfere with their life and the basic functioning of their daily tasks, needs and responsibilities.

The clinical way of looking at alcohol is by examining the amount of alcohol a person consumes. A women who drinks more than seven drink per week or more than three drinks a day and a man who drinks more than 14 drinks per week or four drinks in a day would be considered an alcoholic. A drink is defined as 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine or 1.5 ounces of 80 proof liquor.

Those who use alcohol may begin to show early signs of a problem, then progress to showing symptoms of alcohol abuse; if drinking continues, they may later show symptoms of alcoholism or alcohol dependence.

image: college student drinking wine Warning signs of alcoholism may vary form person to person. Usually though these warning signs will be obvious. The following list outlines some of these signs.

- misses a lot of work or school
- losses interest in family, friends or activities
- depression
- drinking to cope with any problem
- insomnia

25% of all emergency room admissions, 33% of all suicides, and more than 50% of all homicides and incidents of domestic violence are alcohol-related.

- being intoxicated often
- moody
- drinking related health problems

Early signs of alcoholism include frequent intoxication, an established pattern of heavy drinking and drinking in dangerous situations, such as when driving. Other early signs of alcoholism include black-out drinking or a drastic change in demeanor while drinking, such as consistently becoming angry or violent.

These are some of the noticeable warning signs. More serious behaviors can also serve as a wake-up call. Risky behavior like drinking and driving should be taken seriously.

Alcohol when taken in moderation is a nice way to relax or enjoy a social engagement, where when alcohol becomes a problem it can effect everyone who is close to the alcoholic. Some things that can tell a person they may be having a problem with alcohol are:

- worry over not having alcohol or money to buy it
- hiding alcohol so others do not know you have it
- often wishing to be drunk or get drunk faster
- unable to stop drinking once started
- hearing others comment on your drinking

Denial is so common in people with alcohol abuse problems that denial itself is a warning sign of alcoholism. The drinker simply does not see, or refuses to admit, that alcohol use is the source of problems.

Alcoholism should always be taken seriously. If you or someone you know has a drinking problem professional help is available in every community. Recognizing the problem is the first step to finding a solution.

Robert Thatcher is a freelance author based in Cupertino, California. He publishes articles and reports in various ezines and contributes on a regular basis to FreeNetPublishing.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Robert_Thatcher

It is truly sad that the "fun" and the "buzz" that many people experience when drinking frequently motivates them to drink more each time they drink and to drink more often. At some point, the line between alcohol abuse and alcoholism gets blurred as the person gradually becomes more reliant on alcohol until he or she simply needs to drink in order to function. Similar to silent killers such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol, however, realizing the damaging consequences of alcoholism may come too little, too late.

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