Alcohol Addiction: Signs, Symptoms, and Treatment

Your drinking may damage relationships with loved ones because of anger problems, violence, neglect, and abuse. Their babies are more likely to have fetal alcohol syndrome and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Not everyone gets the same access to screenings for alcohol use. A study involving almost 1,000 people found that Black and Latino people and other ethnic groups were less likely than White people to get “quality” alcohol screenings.

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A person who needs help for alcohol addiction may be the last to realize he or she has a problem. Even if the addicted person refuses treatment, family members can get help and support from an organization like Al Anon. As alcohol abuse worsens, the person becomes preoccupied with alcohol and can lose control. He or she may have blackouts, which are episodes in which a person completely forgets what occurred when he or she was drunk even though he or she was conscious at the time. Feb. 13, 2025 – For years, some people taking the drug semaglutide to treat diabetes or obesity have reported not only eating less, but drinking less alcohol. Make sure your friends and family know to seek help even if you aren’t old enough to be legally drinking (under 21).

Causes and Risk Factors of Alcohol Use Disorder

As with most other mental disorders, alcohol addiction has no one single cause and is not directly passed from one generation to another in families. Rather, it is the result of a complex group of genetic, psychological, and environmental factors. It can take the form of support groups, counseling, or a combination of the two. Some prescription medicines can treat alcohol misuse by helping people stop or reduce their drinking. About 30% of people with alcohol use disorder are able to abstain from alcohol permanently without the help of formal treatment or a self-help program.

• Physical symptoms such as weight gain (or loss) usually show up in this mid-stage, too.
• The American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders says someone has alcohol use disorder if they meet two or more of 11 criteria in one 12-month period.
• Alcohol use disorder is sub-classified into mild, moderate, and severe categories.
• Although it may seem counterintuitive, suddenly cutting yourself off from all alcohol when you’re a heavy drinker can also become a medical emergency.

A maladaptive pattern of drinking alcohol that results in negative work, medical, legal, educational, and/or social effects on a person’s life characterizes the disorder. The individual who abuses this substance tends to continue to use it despite such consequences. Effects of alcohol use disorder on families can include increased domestic abuse/domestic violence. The effects that parental alcoholism can have on children can be significantly detrimental in other ways as well. For example, the sons and daughters of alcoholics seem to be at higher risk for experiencing feelings that are more negative, stress, and alienation as well as aggression.

What causes alcohol use disorder?

The medical examination will usually include lab tests to evaluate the person’s general health and to explore whether or not the individual has a medical condition that might have mental health symptoms. Prior to entering any inpatient or outpatient rehabilitation program for alcohol use disorder, the possibility that the person with this disorder could suffer from physical symptoms of alcohol withdrawal needs to be addressed. Alcohol use disorder (sometimes called alcoholism) is a common medical condition. People with this condition can’t stop drinking, even if their alcohol use upends their lives and the lives of those around them.

Mindfulness techniques such as yoga, meditation, breathing exercises, and visualization may be useful to some people for focusing their thoughts away from drinking. As with any chronic condition, proper nutrition is an important component of any recovery plan, but so is physical activity. AUD refers to what is colloquially known as alcoholism, which is a term that the DSM-5 no longer uses. No content on this site, regardless of date, should ever be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinician. Maintaining sobriety—often called recovery—is a long-term process that can take many forms. Fellowship groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous are often very helpful.

• A heavy drinking binge may even cause a life-threatening coma or death.
• Among all drinkers who have heard of these studies, 41% say they plan to reduce the amount they drink either a lot (11%) or a little (30%) due to the findings.
• The main focus of AUD treatment is to help you stop drinking and realize that getting sober can improve your well-being and quality of life.
• Disulfiram (Antabuse) may be an option for people who want to try a drug to help prevent them from drinking.
• Social control involves family members and other significant others of the alcoholic in treatment.

Living with alcohol misuse means recognizing the triggers that make you want to drink. For example, hanging around with others who drink will make it difficult for you. You may be experiencing stress or unhappiness in your life and don’t have a counselor or friend to talk with.

Mutual-support groups provide peer support for stopping or reducing drinking. Group meetings are available in most communities at low or no cost, and at convenient times and locations—including an increasing presence online. This means they can be especially helpful to individuals at risk for return to drinking. Combined with medications and behavioral treatment provided by health care professionals, mutual-support groups can offer a valuable added layer of support. Necessarily, public and internalized stigma surrounding alcoholism can have widespread effects. In an epidemiological survey of individuals with reported alcohol use disorder, the desire to both initiate and complete treatment were severely impacted by the stigma of substance use disorder.

• The screening and assessment process of substance use behavior is important for the diagnosis and treatment of substance use disorders.
• It also increases the risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, larynx (voice box), and esophagus.
• One alcoholic drink is defined as a 12-ounce bottle of beer; a 5-ounce glass of wine; or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof distilled spirits (such as whiskey, rum, or tequila).
• You, and everyone else who’s present, will also share what you’ll do if the person refuses to get treatment.
• Longer-term residential treatment, often called rehab, of three to five months that addresses peer relationships, educational problems, and family issues is often used in treating alcohol use disorder in teens.
• You and your community can take steps to improve everyone’s health and quality of life.

Alcohol Use Disorder Effects and Complications

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a medical condition in which a person continues to consume alcohol despite the adverse consequences. Health professionals Sober living house sometimes prescribe medications to reduce the symptoms of withdrawal. Other medications can help you quit drinking by suppressing alcohol cravings or making you feel sick when alcohol enters your body. Becoming cognitively impaired from excessive drinking of alcohol can lead to risky behaviors that can result in injury or death of an affected person or of others.

If you’re concerned about your drinking or someone else’s, a good first step is to see a GP. You can take steps to lower your risk of alcohol-related harms. More information about alcohol and cancer risk is available in the Surgeon General’s advisory. Choose a symptom and answer simple questions using our physician-reviewed Symptom Checker to find a possible diagnosis for your health issue. This information provides a general overview and may not apply to everyone.

Treating alcohol use disorder

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a medical condition characterized by an impaired ability to stop or control alcohol use despite adverse social, occupational, or health consequences. It encompasses the conditions that some people refer to as alcohol abuse, alcohol dependence, alcohol addiction, and the colloquial term, alcoholism. Considered a brain disorder, AUD can be mild, moderate, or severe.

And some medications can help when situations come up that may put you at risk for drinking again, such as the death of a family member, the loss of a job, or divorce. Even if your case of AUD is mild, it can have a serious effect on your physical and mental health. Often, AUD causes other problems that you try to avoid by drinking. The American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders says someone has alcohol use disorder if they meet two or more of 11 criteria in one 12-month period. AUD may be mild, moderate, or severe, based on how many of the criteria are true. Another way to look at your drinking habits is to think about how much you have during an average week.