Under the Influence: Someone close to you may be an alcoholic
8/26/06
Because of an avalanche of bad publicity following his drunken tirade on the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, Calif., much of the world now knows that Mel Gibson has a drinking problem.
"I have battled with the disease of alcoholism for all of my adult life and profoundly regret my horrific relapse," he said in a statement reported by The Associated Press last month.
Fellow Hollywood actor Robin Williams also grabbed headlines recently when his publicist acknowledged that the frenetic funnyman had fallen off the wagon after 20 years of sobriety and would be seeking rehab.
Picking up on these cases is as easy as turning the pages of a celebrity magazine.
But would you be able to spot a serious drinking problem closer to home, such as in yourself or someone you love?
Some 18 million Americans -- 8.5 percent of the population 18 or older -- has an alcohol use disorder, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
They drink too much, too fast, too often or a combination of those.
Individuals gripped by alcoholism, which is commonly called "alcohol dependence" by experts, don't just like the taste of liquor. They have a chronic disease that when out of control rules their lives and drives them to drink.
"We call it a three-fold disease, and that would be spiritual, physical and mental," said Pam Scott, women's program director at The Healing Place, a recovery program primarily serving homeless men and women in Louisville. "It transcends every part of someone's life."
According to the institute, key elements of alcohol dependence include:
Craving: They have a strong need or urge to drink.
Physical dependence: They get symptoms such as nausea, sweating and anxiety when alcohol's effects wear off.
Tolerance: They need more and more alcohol to get high.
Loss of control: They can't stop drinking once the imbibing starts.
"Very simply put, they can't stop, even when they know it's killing them," said Rodney N. Brannon, vice president of programs for The Healing Place.
"In the home, it's damaging relationships, the job's at risk, their health's at risk. . It consumes them. It becomes what they live for."
But they don't get hooked right away.
"It's a long-term, progressive building of tolerance, because our body can withstand an awful lot of abuse before it finally kicks over into dependence," said Jay Davidson, president and chief executive officer of The Healing Place. ". Alcohol is slower than crack, cocaine, heroine, meth. It's so subtle."
Genetic factors
The problem sometimes runs in families.
"We do know, like with diabetes or breast cancer, that there are genetics that lend themselves to certain individuals having a predisposition to become addicted, just like with those other diseases," said Bette Hancock, a behavioral health therapist for Baptist Hospital East in Louisville.
"We know that it's a disease of brain chemistry. . It's a chronic disease and it's a progressive disease, meaning there's no cure and it always gets worse."
There are various kinds of treatment and recovery programs. An alcoholic might go into an inpatient facility first or maybe an intensive outpatient program with daily sessions. They might attend several Alcoholics Anonymous meetings each week.
But "people don't change till the pain of whatever they're doing becomes so intense they can't keep doing it," said Diane Hague, director of Seven Counties Services' Jefferson Alcohol and Drug Abuse Center in Louisville.
When the drinking starts, perhaps in their youth, they may just notice that they can hold their liquor better than their friends can, Hague said.
"When they're teenagers it's kind of like, 'Oh, this is great. All of my friends look sloppy stupid, and I can drink twice as much as them and I look normal,' " Hague said. "That's a warning sign."
Then it may be 10 to 15 years later before things really go downhill, she said.
"Their hobbies, they've kind of let go of them, and their extracurricular activities, they're not doing them as much anymore, and they're not keeping promises to the family," she said.
Young drinkers
But youths can have problems too. This month, former child star Haley Joel Osment, 18, received multiple charges, including drunk driving and marijuana possession, after wrecking his car July 20, the AP reported. Whether "The Sixth Sense" star's accident was a result of a serious drinking problem, experimentation or something else hasn't come to light.
But Scott said signs to look for in any youth include cutting school, staying out all night, stealing and other legal issues.
They also may sleep a lot, experience a drop in their grades, have a sudden change of friends, spend large amounts of money and have red eyes, slurred speech, blackouts and memory loss, Hancock said.
"If people come up to (you) and say, 'Oh man, last night you did this and this and this,' and (you) don't have any memory of that, that's a significant episode that lets you know, 'Yes, you need to get in and get some help,' " Hancock said.
Ignoring the elephant
Family members often are the first ones to notice a drinking problem but may not acknowledge it.
Frequently, "it's the old proverbial elephant-in-the-middle-of-the-living-room concept, where everybody knows that something's not right about this (drinking), but nobody's really discussing it out loud or taking proper action to do something about it," said John Walsh, co-founder of The Morton Center, a Louisville outpatient counseling facility for alcoholism and chemical dependency.
But relatives need to speak up, he and others said.
"I get calls from family members -- at least 10 a day -- and a lot of them are afraid to say anything," Hague said. "Don't be afraid to say something. This is not a secret."
But don't lecture drinkers, "especially when they're intoxicated," Hague said. "When they're intoxicated, you're wasting your time."
Wait until the person is sober and then call their attention to their behavior, Walsh advised.
"We can start off by presuming the individual doesn't know what they're doing with alcohol," he said. "The only way to know is to ask them."
Later, if the person continues to drink, you might say, " 'Well, I've noticed that two times in the last two weeks you've done it again,' " Walsh said. " 'I really think we should go and sit and talk with someone to see whether or not this is a problem.' "
Stop covering
It's also important to let drinkers know that you're not going to continue to cover for them anymore, such as calling in to work with excuses, Hague said.
Often, multiple short talks are required, she said. "It's called (the) broken-record technique, so you might be saying the same thing 50 times."
The reason is denial.
"The alcoholic believes the lie that the drinking is not causing the problems for him or her," Hague said. They believe "it's something else that's causing the problems, and they believe it so strongly that family members start thinking, 'Oh, there's something wrong with me. I must have misunderstood this.' "
Relatives can gain some perspective personally by connecting with Al-Anon, a support organization for family and friends of problem drinkers, or similar groups, according to experts.
"Go to some Al-Anon meetings to see whether or not the situation that you're living in fits what you hear at these meetings," Walsh said.
Then you'll know "you're not overreacting" and can start getting some support, he said.
Families need help
Hancock said children and spouses often try to figure out ways to fix, manage and control the situation at home.
There are a lot of people "out there dumping out bottles ... or breaking crack pipes or trying to do some interventions . walking on eggshells" or thinking if they were cuter or smarter, the drinker "wouldn't be out at the bar every night."
However, family programs teach that "you cannot stop them ... and you need to learn to take care of yourself," Hancock said.
If you've talked with a loved one about their drinking but don't seem to be getting through to them, contact a local professional for help, Walsh suggested.
"We listen to the case and attempt to strategize what would be the best way to engage the person who has the chemical dependency into some kind of treatment or recovery format," he said.
Hancock said it's imperative for problem drinkers to see an expert who can assess them and suggest the right kind of care.
A mental-health professional "can help you to take a look at those things that you otherwise might just explain away," she said. ". The disease process itself wants you to think you've got it under control."
At Buster's Liquors & Wines, we understand the responsibilities involved with retailing alcohol and, consequently, some of the negative effects that alcohol can have on our society and community. Therefore, we will continue to provide information like this from time to time to remind us all how important it is to DRINK RESPONSIBLY.
