Many people have friends that they’ve known for a long time and they’ve seen them at their best and at their worst. Perhaps you can think of one person in particular, and you can’t help but wonder if your friend is at risk of alcohol addiction. You’ve noticed some changes in his behavior over time, and you have to admit, those changes are throwing up some red flags.
Today we’re going to go over a little bit of information about how you can know if your friend is at risk of becoming addicted to alcohol. It doesn’t take much for alcohol abuse to turn into a full-blown addiction. First, however, we’d like to talk about alcohol addiction help and how it works to empower anyone to overcome their addiction.
Alcohol Addiction Treatment
Alcohol addiction treatment works in a few different ways. First of all, it requires abstinence from alcohol. This is a difficult step for many to maintain, although many people try to give it up on their own and find that they’re unable to without continued support. Professional alcohol addiction help offers that support while providing people with the tools they need to stay quit.
What many alcohol addicts don’t realize is that what started as alcohol abuse as a way to deal with certain feelings, events or situations can quickly turn into an addiction. For them, it’s been a long time since they’ve allowed themselves to experience dealing with life on their own, without the use of alcohol. Alcohol addiction treatment gives them the support they need to do that while it provides them with insight into why they chose to abuse alcohol in the first place.
Signs Your Friend Might be at Risk of Alcohol Addiction
There are several different signs you can look for to determine whether or not your friend’s alcohol abuse has turned or has the probability of turning into an addiction. Knowing these signs can help you understand whether or not you need to encourage him to get alcohol addiction help.
Does your friend:
- Spend time alone drinking?
- Increase the amount of alcohol he drinks on a regular basis?
- Appear as though he needs to drink in order to manage his life?
- Use alcohol as a way to relieve stress?
- Talk about stopping his alcohol use but express that he doesn’t feel able to?
If any of these signs sound familiar to you, it’s possible that your friend may have crossed over from alcohol abuse into addiction. If that’s the case, please understand that he’s struggling.
Over time, it’s common for people in his situation to begin choosing to spend time alone rather than hang out with friends or even go to work. Health problems are always a major concern, and perhaps your friend has already started to show some signs of poor health. Your friend may know that there’s a serious problem in his life, but he feels powerless against it. Maybe he tried to stop drinking several times but as soon as difficult times came, he turned right back to using alcohol because it helped him to cope with those situations.
The best thing you can do as a friend is to talk with him. Express your concern and let him know that you want to help him as much as you can. Mention the idea of helping him find an alcohol addictions counsellor in the Toronto area and explain the benefits to him. You might find that all he really needed was for someone to point him in the direction of the way out.
If he would like to make an appointment to talk with a professional, please contact me for a free phone consultation.
