Rehab Educates Public on Signs of Alcoholism

Lexington, KY - Altruism Counseling Services, a local rehab facility, recently published a blog post educating the public on the signs of an alcohol use disorder. An alcohol use disorder is a medical condition that comes with several criteria listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5). This criteria has to exist for 12 months and includes drinking more than intended, spending a lot of time obtaining, drinking, and recovering from alcohol, giving up on important activities to drink alcohol, and experiencing withdrawal symptoms. This disorder can only be diagnosed by a medical professional.

“If you or a loved one are commonly ‘drunk,’ that’s an early cause for concern. It’s best not to drink alcohol at all, but one drink or less per day for women and two or less for men is considered ‘moderate alcohol use,’ and isn’t necessarily something you need to worry about,” the blog post states.

Someone who has frequent intoxication will have symptoms such as disinhibition, slurred speech, sleepiness, and memory gaps. Other signs of an alcohol use disorder include behavioral changes such as drinking heavily, binge drinking, drinking to cope with stress, and lying about drinking habits. It also comes with consequences for a person’s mental health. This includes feelings of anxiety and depression both during withdrawal and outside of the withdrawal period. Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome (WKS) is also a possible condition to develop from an alcohol use disorder. This causes confusion and challenges with learning and memory. Even if WKS does not develop, long-term alcohol use can result in a cognitive decline.

Long-term alcohol use also results in damage to a person’s body physically, including liver damage. Possible liver damage could include impaired liver function, hepatitis, cirrhosis, and steatotic liver. It sometimes results in inflammation in other parts of the body, like the pancreas. Alcohol use might put people at risk of developing diabetes and hypoglycemia. Tingling and numbness in the hands are also possible with long-term alcohol use. With several years of drinking alcohol, people have developed ulcers and experienced heart concerns, such as raised blood pressure, high cholesterol, and blood clots. These can turn into an irregular heartbeat, heart disease, and a potential heart attack.

Other physical conditions that can result from a long-term alcohol use disorder are a decreased immune system and an increased risk of developing tuberculosis and pneumonia. Certain cancers are possible from an alcohol use disorder, like esophagus, liver, and breast cancer. This is especially true for those who smoke tobacco alongside their alcohol use. Physical withdrawal symptoms also occur for those with alcohol use disorders. These symptoms can include nausea, tremors, sweating, and seizures.

“A sign of alcohol use disorder is drinking in hazardous situations, such as driving. People with alcohol use disorder are more likely to drive while intoxicated than those without it. 32% of driving fatalities in 2022 were due to alcohol use. This is just another reason to help people with alcohol use disorder, and one that isn’t spoken about frequently,” the blog post continues.

At Altruism Counseling Services, they are dedicated to helping people find themselves again. This rehab was founded on the Alcoholics Anonymous principle of altruism, which is helping others without financial gain or incentive. They offer DUI and anger management classes and provide psychological assessments for both mental health and substance use disorders.

People find themselves again through Altruism Counseling. To learn more, call 859-310-6505 or visit their website today.