Springtime is a fun time for a lot of us. Vacations may increase with the kids off for Spring Break and we are all ready to blow past the winter with the fun of the warmer temperatures. Party days are ahead. But there may be some of us who need to pay more attention to how we use those party days.
April is Alcohol Awareness Month and this is the time to
increase not only public awareness about alcohol but education regarding the
treatment and the prevention of alcohol abuse. Alcohol abuse is a preventable
disease and treatments for it are good.
The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans continues to
recommend one drink or less a day for women and two drinks or less a day for
men. Alcohol misuse or heavy drinking is described as four or more drinks on
any day or eight or more per week for women; for men it is five or more drinks
on any day or fifteen or more per week.
Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) is defined as an impaired ability
to stop or control alcohol use despite social, health, or occupational
consequences. It can cause lasting changes in the brain and can make patients
vulnerable to a relapse. Most people who have AUD benefit from treatment such
as behavioral therapies, medications, or a combination of both.
Signs of an Alcohol Use Disorder:
- Hearing comments from friends and family about how much you drink
- Spending more time drinking or thinking about drinking than you used to
- Drinking more or longer than you planned to
- Trying to cut down or stop drinking but being unable to
- Feeling depressed or anxious when drinking but continuing to drink
- Drinking interferes with work and social activities
- Having legal problems due to drinking
- Experiencing withdrawal symptoms when you don’t drink such as tremors, headaches, insomnia, anxiety, sweating
- Mental health conditions
- High blood pressure
- Stroke, heart disease, digestive problems
- Poor sleep
- Liver disease
- Cancer
“Rethinking Drinking” https://www.rethinkingdrinking.niaaa.nih.gov/
is a government website with lots of great information on alcohol and health.
Items include learning about the guidelines for drinking, seeing signs of a
problem, and using website tools to make a change. The website goes over what
counts as a drink, how many drinks are in common containers, what’s your
pattern, thinking about a change with pros and cons/readiness for change/a plan
for change, strategies for cutting down, and support for quitting. Really good
stuff here. Building new and healthy habits is the key to change whether this
is done by increasing physical activity, eating healthily or cutting down on
alcohol consumption when needed.
If more help is needed, SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental
Health Services Administration) has a national helpline in English and Spanish
that is free and confidential, 24 hours a day, seven days a week for
information and treatment referral for mental health and/or substance use
disorders. 800-662-HELP (4357). People can also contact their primary care
office or health insurance organization for resources.
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