Alcohol and Other Drugs

The pleasurable effects of alcohol and other psychoactive drugs sometimes makes it easier for us to forget the short term and long term harmful effects they pose not only to our general health and wellbeing but also to our mental stability and productivity. 
Although alcohol is legal, it is very important you understand the health issues and complications that can arise from over indulging yourself.

Effects of Alcohol

Alcohol addiction is real:

• Alcohol addiction is real and it is very dangerous. Also known as alcoholism, alcohol addiction is a chronic disease that affects your brain making it close to impossible for you to consciously control yourself from drinking alcohol.

The signs of this disorder includes:
Constant uncontrollable urge to always drink
Inability to stop yourself or control how much alcohol you drink

• Always having negative thoughts or feeling distressed when you’ve not had an alcoholic drink for sometime
• Always feeling incapable or afraid until after taking a drink
• Always feeling sick if you go without a drink for sometime
• Apart from all the health issues, one of the other major problem alcohol addiction leads to is “alcohol poisoning”. 

• Alcohol poisoning can kill:  

Alcohol poisoning can become a life threatening issue sometimes if the appropriate steps are not taken to prevent it.
Some alcohol poisoning signs and symptoms includes:

• Dizziness and confusion
• Stomach upset and vomiting
• Fainting spell and seizures
• Slow, irregular and labored breathing
• Blue – tinged or pale skin
• Low body temperature and passing out

Once you see anyone with these alcohol poisoning signs, it is important you do not leave them on their own and you call the police immediately they go unconscious or can’t seem to be awaken. Fast medical aid can prevent them forming going into comma or dying.

• Alcohol has detrimental effects to your organs:
• Alcohol will affect the heart causing high blood pressure
• Alcohol will affect the liver
• Alcohol will irritate your stomach causing you to vomit
• Alcohol will dehydrate you, which cause complicated issues with your brain
• Alcohol will cause seizure due to low blood sugar levels
• Alcohol will erode your immune system making you susceptible to various kinds of diseases.
• Alcohol is a poison and you should be wary of it.

• Alcohol affects the mind:

Some classical alcohol effects on the human mind includes:

• loss of memory and constant black outs
• Dementia and hallucination   
• Sluggishness and inability to stay focused
• Brain damage 
• Headaches and fatigues 

• Alcohol can put you at risk:

When you are drunk, there is a high potential of you doing crazy things that you might end up regretting (that is if you are still alive when the effects of the alcohol wash out). Most of the accidents occur due to drunk driving, most of the drowning, most of the fighting, most of the sleeping out in the cold and freezing…you name it.
Once you are intoxicated, there is a high tendency you might do something you will regret, something as stupid as sleeping in the middle of the road or jumping from a 5 story building. 

• Alcohol Rehabilitation and Withdrawal Symptoms

Treating alcohol addiction is possible but it involves dedication from the individual. Alcohol rehabilitation involves combining both medical and psychotherapeutic treatments in order to fully address the reasons for the dependency on alcohol. The treatment will also help you abstain and provide you with all the necessary psychological tools to prevent alcoholic addiction in the future.
But it’s not all that easy though. Some withdrawal symptoms include:

• Headaches and disorientation 
• Hallucinations
• Loss of appetite
• Restlessness, agitation and aggressiveness 
• Anxiety and nervousness
• Nausea and vomiting 
• Seizures