Types Of Alcohol Treatment Programs

Alcoholism is an addiction that varies in severity and cause from person to person. For this reason, there are several different types of alcohol treatment programs available. Alcoholism is both a physical and psychological disease, and sometimes a combination of different treatment approaches is necessary. Since every person is different, what works for one may not be effective for another. Some techniques used for treating alcohol addiction are as follows.

Detoxification is the beginning of nearly every alcohol treatment program. This is basically the process of allowing the body to adjust to not having alcohol in it’s system. It is usually done under close medical supervision, since the withdrawal symptoms can be quite severe. Typically, alcohol withdrawals are more dangerous than drug withdrawals. These symptoms will usually last for several days before the body gets used to not having the alcohol.

Behavior Modification

This first group of alcohol treatment programs can be classified as behavioral treatments. The first is Alcoholics Anonymous, which has been a popular treatment method for many years. It’s basically a support system that is based on a twelve-step program. The support comes from attending meetings with other recovering addicts.

Another type of alcohol treatment program is Motivational Enhancement Therapy. This program will address the specific causes of the addiction and formulate a series of reasons to motivate the addict to quit. This is different than guiding a person through a series of steps designed for recovery. This program is designed to cause the patient to come up with reasons to change their behavior.

Cognitive Behavior Therapy is another type of alcohol treatment program that is designed to recognize the risk factors and situations in which a relapse may occur. This is done by role-playing and practicing the possible responses to those situations.

Medication

In many cases, alcohol treatment programs include the use of various medications to assist in the recovery process. These medications can be used to combat withdrawal symptoms, as well as fight cravings. Other medications used for the treatment of alcohol abuse are called aversive medications. These medications will cause unpleasant reaction when alcohol is introduced into the system. Other medications are used to treat the depression and anxiety symptoms that often accompany alcohol addiction.

There are as many different types of alcohol treatment programs and centers as there are alcoholics. Some are done on an outpatient basis, and some require a stay in a treatment center. All of them provide some type of counseling for the patient, and some even offer counseling for their loved ones as well. Many times, a person's alcohol addiction affects their family members as much as themselves. If it's time for you to get serious about living a clean and sober life, talk to your family health care provider to help you determine what kind of alcohol treatment program is best for you.

Prevention and Treatment of Alcohol Abuse

Alcohol abuse and alcoholism are not same. In fact, these two conditions can be critically differentiated from each other. As alcoholism is typically characterized by a very strong urge to abuse alcohol and alcoholic can not resist abusing alcohol once he starts off. Contrary to that condition, an alcohol abuser uses alcohol in an effort to fabricate an alteration in mood and emotional feelings.

While the abusers typically show their concern and persistently become worried about their level of alcohol consumption, alcoholics reveal their strong denial in accepting the problem. In this article, we will limit our discussion regarding the prevention and treatment of alcohol abuse at home, while excluding the topic of alcoholism.

Before beginning our discussion about the alcohol abuse home treatment, we will reflect on understanding the issues concerning the risk factors for alcohol abuse problem. Although scientists have not reached into a single conclusion about the definitive cause for alcohol abuse, they agree that genetic makeup plays some role. However, it is not true that family history of alcohol abuse always ensures an alcohol abuser and vice versa. Prevention Similar to drug abuse, the best known method of alcohol abuse treatment is of course rehab and anonymous group. Parents may play a significant role for preventing their child from becoming an alcohol abuser. The first step of prevention is of course education. Parents may try educating their children about alcohol abuse and its potential harm to health.

It is parents' duty to be supportive to the action of their children and provide them an open environment so that they could be able to discuss their problems and innermost feelings openly. This is one of the most crucial steps for prevention. Understanding child's needs and being responsive over the needs are the best methodologies for prevention.

Parents are responsible for setting up an example to their children by not being into drug or alcohol abuse problem. Even if the genetic makeup does not influence the occurrence, the learning process may play vital role. For example, when a child finds his father is an alcoholic, he may tend to become an abuser too.

Treatment

It is not an easy job for parents if they wish to provide their children home treatment for alcohol abusing problem. In fact, the relapse rate is significantly high for this type of home treatment for alcohol related problem. While encouraging the children for a treatment for their alcohol problem at home can be the first step of recovery, this is not all.

An active participation in self-help group and regular visit for a counseling session is mandatory for the success of the treatment. However, parents should encourage their children about their recovery and treatment procedure. Alcohol abuse treatment is an ongoing care in which development of an abstinence plan is necessary to keep the individual alcohol free even after the completion of the treatment.