Alcohol Addiction Intervention

When the Egyptians discovered fermentation from baking dough and started to make wine and alcohol, they were not aware of the extent of damage that these chemicals were capable of. Since then, people have learned how to make alcohol beverages through fermentation. We now have ways to make wine, different kinds of beers, and different kinds of spirits. Everywhere we eat, there would always be something on that menu that has alcohol in it. With the rampant spread of alcohol across the world and the legal age of drinking lowered, a lot of people today find themselves addicted to this intoxicating chemical. Alcohol addiction remains to be a problem of society and families.

People who are hooked to them do not know if they are addicted to alcohol because the tolerance to the chemical increases with daily intake. The denial of each addict and family members would pile up to the whole problem. Researches have shown that the earlier a person starts to drink, the higher incidence he or she may have of being addicted to it. In the strategic plan conducted by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism over a period of four years from 2001-2005, they found out that fourteen million Americans have alcohol dependence problems. In other words, that fourteen million would be equivalent to one in every thirteen adults. This is very alarming and depressing because this number only accounts for one country and they did not mention the whole world yet. I do not believe that a country does not have alcohol in their culture. Even Jesus Christ had some alcohol at a dinner before he died! Intervention is very much needed in order to cure this disease that has plagued our society.

The first step in intervening an alcohol addict is to have an interview in a non-threatening environment. The interviewee should be sober to some extent so that he or she may be able to answer the questions correctly. The CAGE questions should be applied here and they are: (1) Have you ever felt the need to Cut down on alcohol? (2) Have you ever felt Annoyed by people’s criticisms? (3) Have you ever felt Guilty of drinking? (4) Do you consider this experience as an Eye opener?. If ever the client says yes to two questions then further investigation should be done. Diagnostic tests may be ordered for accurate results such as blood alcohol levels, liver test to know levels of liver enzyme activity, and psychological assessment as well. The person may undergo a lot of withdrawal symptoms during the first 48 hours in the absence of alcohol intake. The symptoms may be very uncomfortable to a person and they usually are very violent at this stage. Medications may be ordered to suppress the manifestations and the craving for alcohol. Rehabilitation and detoxification may be needed for those who are severely addicted. Psychotherapeutic interventions may also be done for those who have developed psychological impairment.

These are only few of the interventions that can be done to these people. Instead of society keeping the alcoholics away, the better solution should be reaching out to them because most of them are just simply misunderstood.