myths and facts about alcoholism
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: West Coast
Posts: 774
myths and facts about alcoholism
I found a pretty good article about some myths and facts provided by a treatment center's website. Just wanted to share it here :-)
http://www.lakesidemilam.com/alcohol-drug-addiction/under-the-influence/a-guide-to-the-myths-and-realities-of-alcoholism/
http://www.lakesidemilam.com/alcohol-drug-addiction/under-the-influence/a-guide-to-the-myths-and-realities-of-alcoholism/
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: West Coast
Posts: 774
Not sure if that link is going to work. Here is the article:
Dr. James R. Milam and Katherine Ketcham
Selected excerpts from the book address many long-held myths about alcoholism and its treatment. Also included are definitions of alcohol treatment terminology.
The Myth and the Reality
Separating myth from reality is not an easy task. Myth is, in fact, reality for many people; to suggest another reality exists is to turn their world upside down. But if the truth about alcoholism is ever to be understood, the myths must be attacked and destroyed. Only facts can destroy myths; and facts are the backbone of this book.
Myth: Alcohol is predominantly a sedative or depressant drug.
Reality: Alcohol’s pharmacological effects change with the amount drunk. In small quantities, alcohol is a stimulant. In large quantities, alcohol acts as a sedative. In all amounts, however, alcohol provides a rich and potent source of calories and energy.
Myth: Alcohol has the same chemical and physiological effect on everyone who drinks.
Reality: Alcohol, like every other food we take into our bodies, affects different people in different ways.
Myth: Alcohol is an addictive drug, and everyone who drinks long and hard enough will become addicted.
Reality: Alcohol is selectively addictive drug; it is addictive for only a minority of its users, namely, alcoholics. Most people can drink occasionally, daily, even heavily, without becoming addicted to alcohol. Others (alcoholics) will become addicted no matter how much they drink.
Myth: Alcohol is harmful and poisonous to the alcoholic.
Reality: Alcohol is a normalizing agent and the best medicine for the pain it creates, giving the alcoholic energy, stimulation, and relief from the pain of withdrawal. Its harmful and poisonous aftereffects are most evident when the alcoholic stops drinking.
Myth: Addiction to alcohol is often psychological.
Reality: Addiction to alcohol is primarily physiological. Alcoholics become addicted because their bodies are physiologically incapable of processing alcohol normally.
Myth: People become alcoholics because they have psychological or emotional problems which they try to relieve by drinking.
Reality: Alcoholics have the same psychological and emotional problems as everyone else before they start drinking. These problems are aggravated, however, by their addiction to alcohol. Alcoholism undermines and weakens the alcoholic’s ability to cope with the normal problems of living. Furthermore, the alcoholic’s emotions become inflamed both when he drinks excessively and when he stops drinking. Thus, when he is drinking, and when he is abstinent, he will feel angry, fearful, and depressed in exaggerated degrees.
Myth: All sorts of social problems—marriage problems, a death in the family, job stress—may cause alcoholism.
Reality: As with psychological and emotional problems, alcoholics experience all the social pressures everyone else does, but their ability to cope is undermined by the disease and the problems get worse.
Myth: When the alcoholic is drinking, he reveals his true personality.
Reality: Alcohol’s effect on the brain causes severe psychological and emotional distortions of the normal personality. Sobriety reveals the alcoholic’s true personality.
Myth: The fact that alcoholics often continue to be depressed, anxious, irritable, and unhappy after they stop drinking is evidence that their disease is caused by psychological problems.
Reality: Alcoholics who continue to be depressed, anxious, irritable, and unhappy after they stop drinking are actually suffering from a phenomenon called “the protracted withdrawal syndrome.” The physical damage caused by years of excessive drinking has not been completely reversed; they are, in fact, still sick and in need of more effective therapy.
Myth: If people would only drink responsibly, they would not become alcoholics.
Reality: Many responsible drinkers become alcoholics. Then, because it is the nature of the disease (not the person), they begin to drink irresponsibly.
Myth: An alcoholic has to want help to be helped.
Reality: Most drinking alcoholics do not want to be helped. They are sick, unable to think rationally, and incapable of giving up alcohol by themselves. Most recovered alcoholics were forced into treatment against their will. Self-motivation usually occurs during treatment, not before.
Myth: Some alcoholics can learn to drink normally and can continue to drink with no ill effects as long as they limit the amount.
Reality: Alcoholics can never safely return to drinking because drinking in any amount will sooner or later reactivate their addiction.
Myth: Psychotherapy can help many alcoholics achieve sobriety through self-understanding.
Reality: Psychotherapy diverts attention from the physical causes of the disease, compounds the alcoholic’s guilt and shame, and aggravates rather than alleviates his problems.
Myth: Craving for alcohol can be offset by eating high-sugar foods.
Reality: Foods with a high sugar content will increase the alcoholic’s depression, irritability, and tension and intensify his desire for a drink to relieve these symptoms.
Myth: If alcoholics eat three balanced meals a day, their nutritional problems will eventually correct themselves.
Reality: Alcoholic’s nutritional needs are only partially met by a balanced diet. They also need vitamin and mineral supplements to correct any deficiencies and to maintain nutritional balances.
Myth: Tranquilizers and sedatives are sometimes useful in treating alcoholics.
Reality: Tranquilizers and sedatives are useful only during the acute withdrawal period. Beyond that, these substitute drugs are destructive and, in many cases, deadly for alcoholics.
The Need for Definitions
“Each of us has his own private view and private meaning attached to the words that are used in the alcohol field.”
Universally accepted definitions do not exist in the alcoholism field. As the researcher quoted above acknowledges, everyone involved in the field has his own private view of the disease. And yet, as this book makes clear, there is a firm basis of research evidence for understanding the disease. The need for precise definitions should be obvious. The following definitions, based on the facts already established in the scientific literature, are central to any attempt to communicate clearly about alcoholism.
Alcoholism: A chronic, primary, hereditary disease which progresses from an early, physiological susceptibility into an addiction characterized by tolerance changes, physiological dependence, and loss of control over drinking. Psychological symptoms are secondary to the physiological disease and not relevant to its onset.
Recovery: A return to normal functioning based on total, continuous abstinence from alcohol and substitute drugs, corrective nutrition, and an accurate understanding of the disease. The word “cure” should not be used because it implies that the alcoholic can engage in normal drinking after his “problem” has been corrected.
Problem Drinker: A person who is not an alcoholic but whose alcohol use creates psychological and social problems for himself and others.
Heavy Drinker: Anyone who drinks frequently or in large amounts. A heavy drinker may be a problem drinker, an alcoholic, or a normal drinker with a high tolerance for alcohol.
Alcoholic: An alcoholic is a person with the disease of alcoholism regardless of whether he is initially a heavy drinker, a problem drinker, or a light or moderate drinker. The alcoholic’s increasing problems and his heavier drinking stem from his addiction and should not be confused with problem drinking or heavy drinking in the non-alcoholic.
Recovered Alcoholic: The alcoholic who maintains continuous, total abstinence from alcohol and substitute drugs and who has returned to a normal life style. The term “reformed alcoholic” implies that the alcoholic has been “bad” and is now being “good”—a reflection of the moralistic approach to alcoholism which has no basis in fact. The term “ex-alcoholic” should not be used either, for it implies a cure rather than a recovery.
Relapse: (“Slip” in A.A. language). Any intake of alcohol or substitute drug by a recovering alcoholic. The taking of a substitute drug, although not usually considered a relapse, seriously interferes with recovery and almost always leads to a return to drinking.
Dr. James R. Milam and Katherine Ketcham
Selected excerpts from the book address many long-held myths about alcoholism and its treatment. Also included are definitions of alcohol treatment terminology.
The Myth and the Reality
Separating myth from reality is not an easy task. Myth is, in fact, reality for many people; to suggest another reality exists is to turn their world upside down. But if the truth about alcoholism is ever to be understood, the myths must be attacked and destroyed. Only facts can destroy myths; and facts are the backbone of this book.
Myth: Alcohol is predominantly a sedative or depressant drug.
Reality: Alcohol’s pharmacological effects change with the amount drunk. In small quantities, alcohol is a stimulant. In large quantities, alcohol acts as a sedative. In all amounts, however, alcohol provides a rich and potent source of calories and energy.
Myth: Alcohol has the same chemical and physiological effect on everyone who drinks.
Reality: Alcohol, like every other food we take into our bodies, affects different people in different ways.
Myth: Alcohol is an addictive drug, and everyone who drinks long and hard enough will become addicted.
Reality: Alcohol is selectively addictive drug; it is addictive for only a minority of its users, namely, alcoholics. Most people can drink occasionally, daily, even heavily, without becoming addicted to alcohol. Others (alcoholics) will become addicted no matter how much they drink.
Myth: Alcohol is harmful and poisonous to the alcoholic.
Reality: Alcohol is a normalizing agent and the best medicine for the pain it creates, giving the alcoholic energy, stimulation, and relief from the pain of withdrawal. Its harmful and poisonous aftereffects are most evident when the alcoholic stops drinking.
Myth: Addiction to alcohol is often psychological.
Reality: Addiction to alcohol is primarily physiological. Alcoholics become addicted because their bodies are physiologically incapable of processing alcohol normally.
Myth: People become alcoholics because they have psychological or emotional problems which they try to relieve by drinking.
Reality: Alcoholics have the same psychological and emotional problems as everyone else before they start drinking. These problems are aggravated, however, by their addiction to alcohol. Alcoholism undermines and weakens the alcoholic’s ability to cope with the normal problems of living. Furthermore, the alcoholic’s emotions become inflamed both when he drinks excessively and when he stops drinking. Thus, when he is drinking, and when he is abstinent, he will feel angry, fearful, and depressed in exaggerated degrees.
Myth: All sorts of social problems—marriage problems, a death in the family, job stress—may cause alcoholism.
Reality: As with psychological and emotional problems, alcoholics experience all the social pressures everyone else does, but their ability to cope is undermined by the disease and the problems get worse.
Myth: When the alcoholic is drinking, he reveals his true personality.
Reality: Alcohol’s effect on the brain causes severe psychological and emotional distortions of the normal personality. Sobriety reveals the alcoholic’s true personality.
Myth: The fact that alcoholics often continue to be depressed, anxious, irritable, and unhappy after they stop drinking is evidence that their disease is caused by psychological problems.
Reality: Alcoholics who continue to be depressed, anxious, irritable, and unhappy after they stop drinking are actually suffering from a phenomenon called “the protracted withdrawal syndrome.” The physical damage caused by years of excessive drinking has not been completely reversed; they are, in fact, still sick and in need of more effective therapy.
Myth: If people would only drink responsibly, they would not become alcoholics.
Reality: Many responsible drinkers become alcoholics. Then, because it is the nature of the disease (not the person), they begin to drink irresponsibly.
Myth: An alcoholic has to want help to be helped.
Reality: Most drinking alcoholics do not want to be helped. They are sick, unable to think rationally, and incapable of giving up alcohol by themselves. Most recovered alcoholics were forced into treatment against their will. Self-motivation usually occurs during treatment, not before.
Myth: Some alcoholics can learn to drink normally and can continue to drink with no ill effects as long as they limit the amount.
Reality: Alcoholics can never safely return to drinking because drinking in any amount will sooner or later reactivate their addiction.
Myth: Psychotherapy can help many alcoholics achieve sobriety through self-understanding.
Reality: Psychotherapy diverts attention from the physical causes of the disease, compounds the alcoholic’s guilt and shame, and aggravates rather than alleviates his problems.
Myth: Craving for alcohol can be offset by eating high-sugar foods.
Reality: Foods with a high sugar content will increase the alcoholic’s depression, irritability, and tension and intensify his desire for a drink to relieve these symptoms.
Myth: If alcoholics eat three balanced meals a day, their nutritional problems will eventually correct themselves.
Reality: Alcoholic’s nutritional needs are only partially met by a balanced diet. They also need vitamin and mineral supplements to correct any deficiencies and to maintain nutritional balances.
Myth: Tranquilizers and sedatives are sometimes useful in treating alcoholics.
Reality: Tranquilizers and sedatives are useful only during the acute withdrawal period. Beyond that, these substitute drugs are destructive and, in many cases, deadly for alcoholics.
The Need for Definitions
“Each of us has his own private view and private meaning attached to the words that are used in the alcohol field.”
Universally accepted definitions do not exist in the alcoholism field. As the researcher quoted above acknowledges, everyone involved in the field has his own private view of the disease. And yet, as this book makes clear, there is a firm basis of research evidence for understanding the disease. The need for precise definitions should be obvious. The following definitions, based on the facts already established in the scientific literature, are central to any attempt to communicate clearly about alcoholism.
Alcoholism: A chronic, primary, hereditary disease which progresses from an early, physiological susceptibility into an addiction characterized by tolerance changes, physiological dependence, and loss of control over drinking. Psychological symptoms are secondary to the physiological disease and not relevant to its onset.
Recovery: A return to normal functioning based on total, continuous abstinence from alcohol and substitute drugs, corrective nutrition, and an accurate understanding of the disease. The word “cure” should not be used because it implies that the alcoholic can engage in normal drinking after his “problem” has been corrected.
Problem Drinker: A person who is not an alcoholic but whose alcohol use creates psychological and social problems for himself and others.
Heavy Drinker: Anyone who drinks frequently or in large amounts. A heavy drinker may be a problem drinker, an alcoholic, or a normal drinker with a high tolerance for alcohol.
Alcoholic: An alcoholic is a person with the disease of alcoholism regardless of whether he is initially a heavy drinker, a problem drinker, or a light or moderate drinker. The alcoholic’s increasing problems and his heavier drinking stem from his addiction and should not be confused with problem drinking or heavy drinking in the non-alcoholic.
Recovered Alcoholic: The alcoholic who maintains continuous, total abstinence from alcohol and substitute drugs and who has returned to a normal life style. The term “reformed alcoholic” implies that the alcoholic has been “bad” and is now being “good”—a reflection of the moralistic approach to alcoholism which has no basis in fact. The term “ex-alcoholic” should not be used either, for it implies a cure rather than a recovery.
Relapse: (“Slip” in A.A. language). Any intake of alcohol or substitute drug by a recovering alcoholic. The taking of a substitute drug, although not usually considered a relapse, seriously interferes with recovery and almost always leads to a return to drinking.
A work in progress
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: South Jersey
Posts: 16,633
The only thing in there I think I'd really take issue with is that "most" recovered alcoholics were forced into treatment against their will. Not my experience with the hundreds/thousands of recovered alcoholics I've met. There are a few I know who got sober and stayed that way after being forced into rehab. There are a few more I know who will acknowledge that a seed was planted as a result of forced treatment, but that it didn't bear fruit until they wanted to get sober for themselves. Most that I know (admittedly, mostly AA members) were only "forced" into treatment (AA or rehab) by their life circumstances and they went under their own steam.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Vancouver, BC
Posts: 333
Originally Posted by biminiblue 
I agree with Lexie, but then it was written by a Rehab facility/owner. There may be a bit of financial bias.
Member
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Texas
Posts: 2,872
Thank you for posting-valuable information. I think I would only add one more (sorry if it's in the post-didn't see it)....the definition of an alcoholic is not just someone that drinks all day every day-alcoholics can sometimes abstain when it may benefit them-threatened with divirce, loss of job, DUI, etc. However, the monster is still inside of then abd will return with a vengeance bc they are alcoholics-it is the nature of the beast. Anyway, my two cents for what I've lived and learned 
Member
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Casper, WY
Posts: 287
Originally Posted by Thomas45
Possibly also observational bias of working in a center that accepts people who are forced into rehab. How could they obtain accurate statistics on recovered alcoholics who cleaned up through AA?
What definition of "force" is this article using? I've never been legally compelled to seek treatment, but there are other influences that could "force" a person to seek treatment externally. Spouses, family, employment, etc all come to mind. Personally, when I was in a locked down acute psychiatric hospital courtesy of the State of Wyoming for 49 days, I had to have a plan to address my substance abuse (secondary to my Major Depressive Disorder at the time) prior to discharge. However, there was nothing external compelling me to follow through once I left, and indeed, it was a while before I found lasting recovery, through a combination of external and internal motivations.
Excellent primer article. I might be forwarding this to some people. I don't know that I agree with everything it says, but it's a fantastic jumping off point for some discussion, and that may be it's greatest single merit.
Sent from my LG Transpyre VS810PP using Sober Recovery
Member
Join Date: Sep 2013
Posts: 845
Some interesting points here, but I don't agree with this:
" Myth: Alcohol is harmful and poisonous to the alcoholic.
Reality: Alcohol is a normalizing agent and the best medicine for the pain it creates, giving the alcoholic energy, stimulation, and relief from the pain of withdrawal. Its harmful and poisonous aftereffects are most evident when the alcoholic stops drinking."
This seems to suggest that alcohol isn't harmful while the alcoholic continues to drink. In fact alcohol has devastating health consequences whether or not the alcoholic ever quits. My father drank almost until the day he died--literally until he could no longer get out of bed. The alcohol killed him. He developed pancreatitis, then pancreatic cancer, which killed him within six months of diagnosis.
" Myth: Alcohol is harmful and poisonous to the alcoholic.
Reality: Alcohol is a normalizing agent and the best medicine for the pain it creates, giving the alcoholic energy, stimulation, and relief from the pain of withdrawal. Its harmful and poisonous aftereffects are most evident when the alcoholic stops drinking."
This seems to suggest that alcohol isn't harmful while the alcoholic continues to drink. In fact alcohol has devastating health consequences whether or not the alcoholic ever quits. My father drank almost until the day he died--literally until he could no longer get out of bed. The alcohol killed him. He developed pancreatitis, then pancreatic cancer, which killed him within six months of diagnosis.
A work in progress
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: South Jersey
Posts: 16,633
Well, yeah, that's misleading at best. It DOES cause harm--cirrhosis isn't caused by quitting drinking, it is a direct result of drinking alcohol at a rate that the liver can't process.
If they are talking about "harm" in the sense of how it makes the alcoholic FEEL, then they are correct.
If they are talking about "harm" in the sense of how it makes the alcoholic FEEL, then they are correct.
Member
Join Date: Sep 2013
Posts: 845
Yes, I suppose that when the alcoholic has enough alcohol in their system to stave off withdrawal, maybe they don't feel quite as bad as when they're in withdrawal. But even if we're talking about how the alcoholic feels and not how healthy they actually are, I still wouldn't exactly say that alcoholics who are actively drinking feel normal or pain-free or energetic, or that alcohol is the best medicine for what ails them. Even alcoholics who are drunk as skunks can still feel pretty darn awful from the effects of alcohol. I remember going on vacation with my father a couple years before he died, and hearing him vomiting every morning in the bathroom of the beach house where we were staying from the effects of pancreatitis.
Life Health Prosperity
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Louisana
Posts: 6,752
There are plenty who have been forced by court order. Addiction is a massive problem worldwide and addictive substances are more readily available and at a low price, and so much money is being made that there is no political will to do away with mind altering drugs. 
Member
Join Date: Nov 2010
Posts: 2,052
I categorically reject all recidivism statistics...
...for two reasons.
The first is that 74.656 percent of the time statistics are made up on the spot.
The second is that I don't care-- when it works, it works, and when it doesn't, it doesn't. If their failure rate is 90 percent that means the success rate is 10 percent. What if a given person is in the 10 percent? Well, it means that it was successful for that person 100 percent of the time.
Especially with alcohol and drug addiction you have to try something or many things. If you don't, you'll never find what is going to 100 percent work for you.
If AA didn't work for thousands of people, thousands of people would be going to AA. The vast majority of people I have met in AA and Alanon were not "forced" into it, and I know hundreds.
The first is that 74.656 percent of the time statistics are made up on the spot.
The second is that I don't care-- when it works, it works, and when it doesn't, it doesn't. If their failure rate is 90 percent that means the success rate is 10 percent. What if a given person is in the 10 percent? Well, it means that it was successful for that person 100 percent of the time.
Especially with alcohol and drug addiction you have to try something or many things. If you don't, you'll never find what is going to 100 percent work for you.
If AA didn't work for thousands of people, thousands of people would be going to AA. The vast majority of people I have met in AA and Alanon were not "forced" into it, and I know hundreds.
Originally Posted by Thomas45
Possibly also observational bias of working in a center that accepts people who are forced into rehab. How could they obtain accurate statistics on recovered alcoholics who cleaned up through AA?
Member
Join Date: Dec 2015
Posts: 214
Originally Posted by biminiblue
I agree with Lexie, but then it was written by a Rehab facility/owner. There may be a bit of financial bias.
I find it helpful to read only a small % of people are true alcoholics. I would agree, it takes a medical diagnosis to know for sure. Many problem drinkers are mis-labeled as alcoholics I think. Its easy as an assumption but treatment can be very different.
Member
Join Date: Dec 2015
Posts: 214
Originally Posted by neferkamichael
There are plenty who have been forced by court order. Addiction is a massive problem worldwide and addictive substances are more readily available and at a low price, and so much money is being made that there is no political will to do away with mind altering drugs.
Member
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 1,222
Originally Posted by LemonGirl
Myth: Alcohol is an addictive drug, and everyone who drinks long and hard enough will become addicted.
Reality: Alcohol is selectively addictive drug; it is addictive for only a minority of its users, namely, alcoholics. Most people can drink occasionally, daily, even heavily, without becoming addicted to alcohol. Others (alcoholics) will become addicted no matter how much they drink.
Reality: Alcohol is selectively addictive drug; it is addictive for only a minority of its users, namely, alcoholics. Most people can drink occasionally, daily, even heavily, without becoming addicted to alcohol. Others (alcoholics) will become addicted no matter how much they drink.
Member
Join Date: Dec 2015
Posts: 214
Originally Posted by LexieCat
The only thing in there I think I'd really take issue with is that "most" recovered alcoholics were forced into treatment against their will. Not my experience with the hundreds/thousands of recovered alcoholics I've met. There are a few I know who got sober and stayed that way after being forced into rehab. There are a few more I know who will acknowledge that a seed was planted as a result of forced treatment, but that it didn't bear fruit until they wanted to get sober for themselves. Most that I know (admittedly, mostly AA members) were only "forced" into treatm
ent (AA or rehab) by their life circumstances and they went under their own steam.
ent (AA or rehab) by their life circumstances and they went under their own steam.have helped them. To see the true results you have to compare people wjo were still very sick, in denial, confused. I think Ive seen articles studying and discussing this. AA success rates could be inflated because the people were already making the decision to quit. AA is what they happened to fall into. Your comments were very helpful allowing me to see this more clearly.
Currently Active Users Viewing this Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
