Waldron and Kaminer (2004), in a review of CBT approaches to substance-use disorders (which is broader than alcohol misuse alone), concluded that individual CBT treatment may be effective in reducing substance misuse as well as other related problems. They also made a number of suggestions about the adaptation of CBT approaches to young people, addressing developmental stages and levels of maturity. This review reported that CBT in group format was as effective as individual therapy.
The literature reviewed in this section is focused on a reduction or cessation of drinking and hence assesses any outcomes pertaining to this. Most of the literature in the field is focused on adults over the age of 18 years. However, for young people under the age of 18 years old, literature assessing the clinical efficacy of psychological therapies for alcohol misuse alone (without comorbid drug misuse) is limited. The psychological evidence below is for an adult population only and a review of the evidence for the treatment of young people is described in Section 6.22. People who are alcohol dependent amphetamine addiction treatment and who have recently stopped drinking are vulnerable to relapse, and often have many unresolved co-occurring problems that predispose to relapse (for example, psychiatric comorbidity and social problems) (Marlatt & Gordon, 1985). This should include interventions aimed primarily at the drinking behaviour, including psychosocial and pharmacological interventions, and interventions aimed at dealing with co-occurring problems.
After detoxification, various forms of individual or group therapy or support groups can help keep a person from returning to drinking. The medications acamprosate, disulfiram, or naltrexone may also be used to help prevent further drinking. Environmental factors and genetics are two factors affecting risk for alcoholism, with about half the risk attributed to each. Someone with a parent or sibling with alcoholism is three to four times more likely to become an alcoholic themselves, but only a minority of them do.
That could lead some people, for example, to turn to drinking to cope with stress caused by these issues. If a person with alcohol use disorder will not get help, you can still join a support group and gather resources. Drug withdrawal is usually an aversive experience, and it can https://ecosoberhouse.com/ be a life-threatening process in individuals who have a long history of very high doses of alcohol and/or barbiturates. A history of high doses of substances is of such concern that people who are trying to overcome addiction to these substances should only do so under medical supervision. With repeated use of many central nervous system depressants, such as alcohol, a person becomes physically dependent upon the substance and will exhibit signs of both tolerance and withdrawal.
There was very limited evidence of low-to-moderate quality to support the efficacy of counselling, short-term psychodynamic therapy, multi-modal treatment, self-help-based treatment, psychoeducational interventions and mindfulness meditation. Of the five included trials, there was only one involving a comparison of counselling versus control that met criteria for inclusion. SELLMAN2001 assessed counselling (non-directive reflective listening) versus control (no further treatment – feedback only). See Table 67, below, for a summary of the clinical review protocol for the review of counselling.
If you drink regularly, alcohol changes the way your liver works, your brain function and creates dependence – meaning you need to drink more to have the same effect. If you find it very difficult to enjoy yourself or relax without having a drink, you could have become dependent on alcohol. If you find that you ‘need’ to share a bottle of wine with your partner most nights of the week, or always go for a few pints after work just to unwind, you’re likely to be drinking at a level that could affect your long-term health. The risk of developing a range of health problems increases the more you drink psychological dependence on alcohol on a regular basis. For the European Union, the US and Canada, social costs of alcohol were estimated to be around €270 billion (2003 prices; Anderson and Baumberg, 2005), US$185 billion (1998 prices; WHO, 2004), and CA$14.6 billion (2002 prices; Rehm et al., 2006), respectively.
