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Alcohol Abuse Treatment Guidelines

The Greater Dallas Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse reports that more than 100,000 Americans die each year due to excessive alcohol abuse. Death occurs by drunk driving, cirrhosis of the liver, accidents, cancer and stroke---all preventable actions and diseases. Further, alcohol affects judgment and coordination in the short term; long-term alcohol abuse leads to alcoholism, organ damage, high blood pressure and sexual dysfunction.

  1. Intervention

    • Only 15 percent of people dependent on alcohol actually seek treatment, according to the National Institutes of Health. That's why the Department of Health and Human Services recommends that intervention should be the first step in treating a person abusing alcohol. An intervention could be one or several people asking their loved one to get help. A formal intervention employs a drug counselor, along with those closest to the alcoholic, to confront the person about their use. The only goal in an intervention is to convince the person to agree to, and go, get help.

    Detoxification

    • The most mild symptom a person will experience when he stops drinking is craving; the most severe symptoms are delirium tremens---also called DTs---which is a potentially fatal reaction to a full or partial withdraw from alcohol. Regardless of how severe the alcohol abuse, a person should commit to four to seven days of inpatient detox. There, they will be monitored around the clock by medical staff trained to treat symptoms of alcohol withdraw. A doctor may prescribe sedatives like clonazepam (sold as Klonopin) or lorazepam (sold as Ativan) to ward off seizures and tremors. Doctors will also monitor the patient for blood pressure abnormalities, liver and kidney disease.

    Rehabilitation

    • After several days of detoxification, the patient can then begin the process of recovery. Recovering alcoholics can go to a residential treatment facility, or attend an outpatient program for 28 to 90 days. There, they will receive psychological and psychiatric treatment; attend group therapy, individual counseling and alcohol education classes. Many programs also offer family counseling. The Mayo Clinic reports that recovery from addiction is more likely to be successful if the addict has family support. Alcoholics are also offered the chance to learn new coping methods for addressing stress and anxiety. Often, drug use is a form of self-medicating other problems like lack of confidence or relationship stress. During rehab, a therapist can observe the patient further to see if they have co-occurring disorders like depression, or personality or mood disorder. These are problems that increase the risk of relapsing.

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