Posts tagged with ‘Alcohol Intervention’

When an alcoholic’s problems reach the crisis level, his or her loved ones will often plan a professional intervention, where the alcoholic’s family, friends, and employers tell the alcoholic in their own words how his or her drinking has negatively affected their lives, and urge him or her to seek treatment. Interventions should be carefully planned and developed by professional interventionists.

Emergency Room Good Place for Alcohol Interventions

Emergency Room Good Place for Alcohol InterventionsBrief alcohol interventions are short sessions that doctors and other health professionals use to identify people affected by serious drinking problems or at risk for such problems, and also to encourage a switch to safer patterns of alcohol intake. Current evidence indicates that these interventions have a positive effect in a number of settings. In a study published in September 2014 in the journal Substance Abuse, a team of American researchers explored the usefulness of brief alcohol interventions given to young people receiving treatment in an emergency room. Full Story

‘Stage of Change’ Interventions Best for Those in Denial About Alcoholism

evolutionSome psychologists and addiction specialists believe that people affected by substance abuse or substance addiction go through varying stages of willingness to change and seek help for their problems. They also believe that affected individuals may have the greatest chance of breaking a damaging pattern of substance use when the interventions or treatments take their relative willingness to change into account. In a study slated for publication in 2014 in the journal Addiction, researchers from three German institutions compared the effectiveness of “stage-tailored” alcohol interventions to the effectiveness of interventions that don’t vary according to a problem drinker’s stage of willingness.

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Do Brief Alcohol Interventions Work?

Brief alcohol interventions are short educational sessions that doctors and other professionals can use to help people who drink alcohol in unhealthy ways alter their behaviors. Unlike formal treatment programs, these interventions are typically conducted by people who don’t specialize in alcohol-related issues. In a study review published in January 2014 in the journal Alcohol and Alcoholism, a multinational research team analyzed the real-world usefulness of brief alcohol interventions in modifying dangerous drinking patterns. These researchers concluded that such interventions clearly work, at least for certain groups of drinkers.

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Should Doctors Do More to Educate Their Patients About Alcohol Risks?

When you visit your doctor there are a few standard questions you’ll be asked: How are you feeling? What’s going on in your life? Do you have any health concerns? Now the government agency that keeps tabs on our nation’s health is asking doctors to spend more time discussing alcohol use with patients.

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Arming Parents with the Knowledge to Confront Teen Drinking

Studies have shown that parents are the most significant factor in whether a teen decides to drink alcohol. Peer pressure gets all the media attention, but research has shown that parental influence lasts through their children’s adolescence.

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Online Games Teach Teens Alcohol Risks

Early alcohol initiation is of great concern for many reasons. Those that begin drinking during adolescence are more likely to develop a dependence on alcohol when compared with those that begin drinking in adulthood. There are short-term risks, such as assault, injury and vehicle crashes, and long-term risks like sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy and organ damage. 

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Parental Guidance to Help Teens Avoid Drug and Alcohol Abuse

As a parent, if you know how to talk and listen with your child you can better help them avoid drug and alcohol abuse.

Parents are encouraged to have caring and intimate talks with their children all throughout their childhood – one talk about drugs and alcohol is not enough. As young minds develop over the years, their views, opinions, awareness and desires change. At some stages of a child’s life discussions about drugs and alcohol may be long and intense. Other times it might be a few sentences that point out a healthy lifestyle choice or a wise decision.

If parents suspect that their teen may have used or may be using either drugs or alcohol the parents should not be secretive about it as it’s often best to confront the teen about their behavior. Parents should make the teen aware they know what’s going on and that they don’t condone their actions. Through talks with their teen, parents can clearly set their rules about the use of drugs and alcohol and set appropriate consequences if those rules are broken.

Some teens may claim that their parents just don’t understand, with the parents doing much more talking than listening. It’s important for parents to hear their teen’s thoughts, concerns and daily pressures. Through a trusting relationship a parent may be able to sense when their teen needs help to avoid alcohol or drug abuse. Moms and dads can even offer to be the “excuse” when teens want to say no to drug and alcohol use with friends, letting their teens know they’re working with them to stay healthy.

Knowing their teens’ friends and meeting the parents of those friends allows better communication and awareness of possible dangers, such as when a party might be in works, and can let their kids know they can call any time with any concerns.

When all parents are watching out for their children bonds can be formed between families to secure the safety of all of their children.

How to Talk to an Alcoholic Who Has Not Yet Agreed to Seek Help

When someone develops a drinking problem, it can create quite a conundrum for his friends and family. To prevent tragedy, they know they must intervene before the situation gets any worse, but they are usually at a complete loss about how to proceed. Full Story

Secret Alcoholics

Secret AlcoholicsYou may remember having shared a few drinks with a colleague after work on a few occasions. The colleague was drinking responsibly and only having a few drinks at the holiday office party. The colleague may also have looked well-groomed, was a responsible person, and was a friendly and competent worker. That is why it can be so surprising to find out the colleague later went through alcohol addiction rehabilitation. Full Story

Drug and Alcohol Intervention for Young Adults

Entering adulthood can be an exciting time. It can also be a time of great stress and temptation to engage in drug and alcohol experimentation which can lead to dependence and addiction. It’s tough to see a young adult go through the misery associated with substance abuse problems, and maybe the time could be right to consider drug and alcohol intervention for young adults. Full Story