Alcohol Rehab in Longview, TX
Alcohol addiction is a chronic disease that generally is seen as the last stage of alcohol abuse. Initially, when you start abusing alcohol, you have control over your drinking, and the drinking doesn't cause problems with relationships or everyday living. But over time, repeated exposure to the alcohol causes changes to your brain. Specifically, it affects the reward centers and the production of chemicals such as dopamine, which help you feel happy and perform other biological roles. Because of these changes, you become dependent not only psychologically, but also physically. If you try to stop drinking, you experience withdrawal symptoms like anxiety, nausea, cramps or depression. Alcohol rehab in Longview is designed to manage these problems and keep you safe, as well as to unravel what triggers or motivates you to drink outside of the dependence.
People often believe that alcohol addicts can stop drinking if they just have willpower. But because of the dependence involved with addiction, your ability to say no is impaired. In fact, continuing to seek out alcohol even when you're aware of negative consequences is a hallmark of the disease. To get better, you will need help from a facility that offers alcohol rehab in Longview.
Drug and alcohol rehab specialists are continuing to research to figure out what causes someone to become an addict. Genetics might account for up to half of your risk. But other elements, such as co-occurring psychiatric conditions from dual diagnosis in Longview, culture, the environment, trauma/stress or a lack of support systems all might play a role in alcohol addiction development, too.
Dangers of Alcohol
Alcohol usually is not problematic when occasionally consumed in small doses appropriate for a person's height and weight. But when you suffer from alcohol addiction, the alcohol has negative effects on your body. One of the most common issues is liver disease, as too much alcohol can damage and destroy liver cells and interfere with the organ's ability to break down the alcohol and remove it from the body. Other complications include:
- Heart disease
- Stroke
- Depression
- Stomach bleeding
- Cancer
- Diabetes
- High blood pressure
- Birth defects
Additionally, alcohol interferes with judgment, as well as physical performance like balance. Subsequently, as an addict, you also are at risk for problems like sexually transmitted diseases. Risky behaviors prompted by alcohol account for 40 percent of fatal motor vehicle crashes, suicides and fatal falls, 50 percent of severe trauma injuries and sexual assaults, and 60 percent of fatal burn injuries. In the worst case scenario, alcohol is deadly, accounting for 88,000 deaths annually.
Why Should I Enter an Alcohol Addiction Rehab?
Alcohol rehab in Longview might seem like a frightening prospect. What will people think? How will you care for your children? What about your job? What will happen if you let go of the beliefs driving you to drink? But entering alcohol rehab in Longview is one of the best choices you can make, not only for yourself, but for everyone who cares about and depends on you, too.
Alcohol addiction means that, if you try to stop drinking, withdrawal symptoms will occur. Some of these, like nausea, are very uncomfortable. But other symptoms, such as hallucinations, elevated body temperature or seizures can be life threatening. Some people also experience depression and anxiety so severe that they want to harm themselves or have suicidal thoughts. The first stage of alcohol rehab is drug detox in Longview. During this phase, medical and psychology professionals carefully monitor you to keep you safe. They can give you medications to reduce your withdrawal symptoms and make it easier for you to cope.
Seeking help from drug and alcohol rehab professionals also means that, once you are finished safely detoxing, you have access to many kinds of therapies that can help you through recovery. For example, a rehab center can offer group therapy, individual cognitive behavioral therapy, art therapy or even biofeedback.
Through these therapies, you will come to better understand your drinking habits and triggers, and therapists can help you come up with and practice strategies for new behaviors that are healthier. In many cases, the group and family therapies offered help form or repair relationships, which means you are less likely to feel isolated as you go through your recovery and can establish a stronger support network. Inpatient therapy also effectively keeps you away from triggers and temptations as you reform your way of thinking, and both inpatient and outpatient alcohol rehab offer accountability. Education and other support, such as connections to housing aid or job training, also is often available. Call now at (877) 804-1531.