Alcohol Use Disorder: What It Is, Risks & Treatment

Social and environmental factors such as peer pressure and the easy availability of alcohol can play key roles. Poverty and physical or sexual abuse also increase the odds of developing alcohol dependence. Alcohol and drug abuse can make symptoms of a mental health problem worse. Substance abuse may sharply increase symptoms of mental illness or even trigger new symptoms.

Mental and emotional symptoms occur long before physical symptoms appear. If behavioral or mental symptoms aren’t appropriately treated, long-term alcohol abuse can lead to physical complications such as cirrhosis of the liver, chronic brain deterioration and, the most serious consequence of all, death. Situated in the heart of St. Lucie County, our retreat-like environment provides a tranquil setting in which our patients can heal. We offer 24 hour mental health services provided by licensed professionals in various disciplines. The hospital has varying programs that can be tailored to patient needs, as well as the traditional 28 day inpatient treatment program for patients with dual diagnosis issues.

What is a Mental Health Disorder?

Because of the high prevalence of co-occurring disorders, many addiction and mental health professionals are highly trained in all aspects of substance abuse and mental health treatment modalities. In this article, we will answer the question — Is alcohol misuse a mental illness or chronic disease? We will also talk about how to recognize alcohol abuse and offer some tips on seeking addiction treatment for drug or alcohol addiction.

• In addition, clinicians have become more aware of the high prevalence of AOD-use disorders and more skilled at identifying them (Cuffel 1996).
• Not only is alcoholism considered a mental illness that can exist in sync with other mental illnesses, but it may also lead to the development of a mental illness.
• It is at this point that the drinker might also begin to start pulling away from friends and family members, as well as start to show some of the more common signs of addiction.
• The National Institute for Mental Health’s Mental Health Information page has information about specific conditions and disorders as well as their symptoms.
• Additionally, by this point, the brain is so convinced that it needs alcohol just to function properly that when there isn’t any alcohol in the body, the brain thinks something is wrong.
• The drinker might also begin to experience health issues, performance issues at work or school, or even financial problems.

The intoxication and withdrawal cycle can also cause MDD and other mental health concerns. The organization updated the terminology again in 2013 to “alcohol use disorder,” which fits under the umbrella of substance use disorders in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition, text sober house revision (DSM-5-TR). Too much alcohol affects your speech, muscle coordination and vital centers of your brain. This is of particular concern when you’re taking certain medications that also depress the brain’s function. The two manuals use similar but not identical nomenclature to classify alcohol problems.

Dual diagnosis and denial

With all alcoholic beverages, drinking while driving, operating an aircraft or heavy machinery increases the risk of an accident; many countries have penalties for drunk driving. Once people begin drinking excessively, the problem can perpetuate itself. Heavy drinking can cause physiological changes that make more drinking the only way to avoid discomfort. Individuals with alcohol dependence may drink partly to reduce or avoid withdrawal symptoms.

• Millions of readers rely on HelpGuide.org for free, evidence-based resources to understand and navigate mental health challenges.
• We will also talk about how to recognize alcohol abuse and offer some tips on seeking addiction treatment for drug or alcohol addiction.
• People who are experiencing major life stresses like a breakup or job loss commonly use the phrase “drowning in your sorrows”.
• This disorder also involves having to drink more to get the same effect or having withdrawal symptoms when you rapidly decrease or stop drinking.
• However, it becomes a problem when your body begins to need alcohol just to get through the day, or the second a minor inconvenience pops up; this is a major, universal sign of alcohol abuse.

They can develop as a result of a situation like how military service or experiencing an assault can cause a person to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). They can also happen with no obvious specific cause which may have to do with a person’s family history of having mental illnesses. Specifically, alcoholism or alcohol use disorder is defined as a chronic disease characterized by uncontrollable drinking and preoccupation with alcohol. People with this disorder struggle with the inability to control their drinking due to both a physical and psychological dependence on alcohol. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is used by physicians to diagnose mental illnesses.

Anxiety in Children and Teens

In the USA, the first population study to employ a measure of social distance with regard to alcohol-dependent people was published by Ries in 1977, who reported results of a survey in an Upper Midwest town. The desire for social distance was considerably stronger towards alcohol-dependent persons than towards someone with epilepsy or who was blind. There was no relation between the view that people were self-responsible for their condition and the desire for social distance (Ries, 1977). The diagnosis is made when drinking interferes with your life or affects your health.