Alcohol is the most common socially acceptable psychoactive substance. Eighty-five percent of people in the United States use it in some quantity, and about one-third have abused it at least once and struggled with addiction. This is a serious problem also because alcohol has a strong effect on the brain and psyche. If you don’t stop in time, you can shorten your maximum life expectancy by decades and acquire many chronic diseases.
The brain under the influence of alcohol
The human brain is a very complex organ. Its functionality is largely determined by the balance of neurotransmitters, which are used to transmit signals between nerve cells. Alcohol disrupts this balance, and a person does not die immediately just because the brain manages to adapt to the changes.
In the long term, there is a decrease in the hippocampus. And the dependence is direct: the more a person abuses alcohol, the more this part of the limbic system of the brain decreases. It is responsible for emotions, spatial memory, the transition of short-term memory to long-term memory.
Alcoholism can lead to brain damage from the development of Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome caused by thiamine deficiency. The swelling of the brain results in impaired eyeball movement, coordination problems, confusion and learning problems.
Since alcohol affects the cardiovascular system, it often causes strokes, resulting in death or disability.
Time plays against the alcoholic. The longer he uses, the more damage he does to himself. But at a certain stage, loved ones can help him: find a suitable alcohol addiction rehab in California and convince him to attend the first counseling session. If the rehab center is chosen correctly, the doctor will be able to convince the addicted person to undergo an evaluation and start a course of treatment.
The effects of alcohol on the psyche
Alcohol is a nervous system depressant. That is why it is consumed in an attempt to reduce stress, anxiety or to cope with depression. Paradoxically, this psychoactive substance only exacerbates all these symptoms later on.
The danger of alcohol is that it quickly causes non-mental and physical dependence. At the same time, tolerance develops: the body needs higher and higher doses of alcohol to reach the same level of comfort.
How exactly alcohol affects the psyche depends on the individual characteristics of the person with addiction. But it is most obvious to trace the changes in the short and long term.
Short-term perspective
Mental effects of short-term exposure to alcohol:
- Euphoria and relaxation. Small doses reduce levels of anxiety and stress and elevate mood.
- Impulsivity. Alcohol leads to decreased self-control and increased risk of rash behavior because it suppresses activity in the frontal lobes of the brain.
- Deterioration of cognitive abilities. This is accompanied by scattered attention, slowed reaction time, and poor concentration.
- Aggressiveness or indifference. Depending on the peculiarities of the psyche, a person with addiction can manifest polar qualities.
Long-term perspective
With regular use of alcohol, profound changes in the psyche occur:
- Development of addiction. Alcohol addiction is formed, in which a person experiences an irresistible craving for alcohol, loses control over its use.
- Depression and anxiety disorders. Alcohol disrupts the balance of dopamine and serotonin, which leads to chronic depression, panic attacks and increased anxiety.
- Cognitive impairment. There is a significant deterioration of memory, reduced ability to learn, difficulties with logical thinking and concentration.
- Alcoholic psychosis. In the late stages of addiction, hallucinations, delusional disorders are possible, as well as “white fever”, which is accompanied by severe mental disorders.
- Personality changes. A person in the last stages of addiction becomes irritable, aggressive, withdrawn, emotionally unstable, loses interest in life and former hobbies. At this stage, there are irreversible consequences for the psyche caused by structural changes in the brain.
In the long term, alcohol can be a trigger for the development of mental disorders. This condition is called dual diagnosis. Such a person is in dire need of specialist help. Dual diagnosis drug treatment should be carried out in an inpatient setting under the constant supervision of medical staff. The difficulty of recovery in this case is that several diseases must be treated simultaneously.
How to keep yourself safe?
Alcohol is called a psychoactive substance for a reason. It alters the psyche.In simple terms, it changes a person, bringing him to a state in which he is unable to make informed decisions. He will be very lucky if there is a family member, partner or friend who cares.
In this case, it is necessary to persuade the patient to visit the rehab, examination and treatment. Inpatient conditions are best suited for this, when the patient is under the care of a specialist. This is safer for him, and the risk of relapse becomes minimal.
It is in hospital conditions that an effective and relatively painless procedure of medical detoxification is possible, which is necessary to remove alcohol and its breakdown products from the body. In the conditions of the clinic, the patient will struggle with withdrawal symptoms for 5-10 days. Thanks to the efforts of doctors and special drugs, they will manifest themselves to a lesser extent.
What happens in the end? It is better to start fighting addiction as early as possible. Because in the long run, it can cause enormous damage to mental health.
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