The Psychological Effects Of Alcoholism And Mental Health

When people talk about the effects of alcoholism they often only talk about the physical effects; people rarely talk about alcoholism and the psychological effects. A person suffers from alcoholism when both their mental and physical health deteriorates as a direct result of their drinking. Mental health refers to a person’s overall emotional well-being. It plays a significant role in your ability to maintain a healthy and productive life. Taking care of your mental condition is just as important to a long healthy life as taking care of your physical health. Just like physical health, mental health can affect motivation, energy levels and other daily functioning tasks. It also changes the way you feel about yourself, the quality of your relationships

Alcoholism is classified as a substance abuse disorder. Mental and substance use disorders affect people from all walks of life and all age groups. Mental and emotional symptoms of alcoholism exist long before the grave physical problems of the disease appear. Some behavioral symptoms are: taking in larger amounts of alcohol over a longer period than intended: persistent desire to cut down: continued drinking despite adverse social, occupational, or legal consequences: and frequent intoxication or withdrawal symptoms when your expected to fulfill major obligations at work, school, or home. All these mental or behavioral symptoms, unless interrupted permanently by treatment, will inevitably lead to physical complications of alcoholism. The core of the disease is the cluster of psychological indicators that constitute the mental disorder called alcoholism. Consequently, the treatment of alcoholism targets the mind rather than any physical system. Alcoholism is a mental disorder, with a high physical complication rate. Learning about some of the most common mental and substance use disorders can help people recognize their signs and to seek help. However, most people do not go to a mental health professional for a mental health exam as they do for physical exams. In many cases, people only seek out a mental health professional after a crisis has

It changes the brain to such an extent that thinking processes are clouded, emotions are all out of whack, and what seems right and normal to non-drinking individuals is totally foreign to an alcoholic. Heavy, frequent drinking increases a person’s vulnerability to become depressed. Alcohol and depression can be a toxic combination and, unfortunately, it is not just the alcoholic who is affected. Alcoholism is a disease of uncertainty, it ends up taking away the life of the one who suffers from it and destroys the people around them. It is apparent that alcoholics drink to escape depression, anxiety and other stresses that occur in life. “Individuals with depression and alcoholism have a heightened risk of suicide, vehicular accidents, as well as other harmful and risk-taking activities” (Cheever, 2016, p.32). Together, the illnesses can enhance an existing depressive state, impair judgment and escalate