Wondering About Rehab and Whether to Stop Drinking

Do you need rehab?

Is it time to quit drinking alcohol?

If you are asking these questions, it may be time to examine the issue.

Lots of people use drugs and alcohol; normal people with normal lives, real relationships and real problems, right? This might even be the argument you have used when others talk to you about alcohol.

Just because you drink or use once in a while, or occasionally get just a bit too high, doesn’t mean you’ve got a substance abuse problem and need rehab, does it?

The answer may not be simple and will be specific to each individual. Identical sets of symptoms can mean one thing for one person, and something else for another.

The answer to the question about whether a problem exists and what treatment, if any, is indicated lies in a thorough and (most importantly) honest assessment of your history.

Sometimes a person has thoughtfully looked at their drinking or use and can be rigerously honest about it’s extent and it’s role in their life. Most often this is not the case.

An, objective assessment may require history not just from the client, but from their family, workplace and friends. Also those facts which have brought up the question of possible abuse need to be considered.

There are a number of formal, casual, and commonsense initial questions which can be asked. Remember, the validity of results depends to a great extent on how open the individual is, how they feel about looking at their possible drug or drinking abuse, and what the social and personal consequences of the screening outcome may be.

Here are a few of the questions that need to be addressed first:

Have you used drugs recreationally, (other than for medical needs)?

Are you feeling bad or guilty about your drinking or use of drugs and what is causing this concern?

Have you tried to stop or cut down either the amount, or how often you drink or use?

Has that effort been successful each time?

Did you have any physical symptoms after you quit?

Has a spouse or parents complained about drinking or use?

Have you had work or legal problems because of drinking or drugs?

These might be looked at as start-out diagnostic questions to establish whether a problem is apparent. Is the person aware of the problem’s extent, or are they defending against an examination of it?

Here are some further additional inquiries which can help define the duration, the severity and the consequences the person has encountered. This will help establish a fuller and clearer picture of the situation and possible implications for treatment.

Have you misused multiple drugs and/or alcohol at the same time?

Have you given up friendships, neglected spouse or family, quit relationships, or stopped doing activities that used to be important to you because the people or activities made the drinking or use a bigger problem?

Have you spent more money on drinking and/or drugs than you’ve intended to?

Have you spent a lot of your time getting drugs or alcohol, using them and/or recovering from them?

Have you done illegal things to get drugs or alcohol (other than strictly their use)?

Have you had blackouts, memory lapses, or flashbacks as a result of using alcohol or drugs?

Have you moved on to stronger drugs, or used more to get the same effect? (Do you have to drink more to get the same buzz that used to take less?)

Do you sometimes drink or use just to feel normal, not sick?

Have you ever had medical treatment for problems caused by drinking or using (e.g., hepatitis, vomiting or passing blood, seizuries, abscesses or blood infections)?

Obviously, affirmative answers (answering yes) to some of these questions are of greater concern and significance than to others. It takes a qualified therapist with substance abuse treatment experience to determine the extent of an individual’s problem, their specific diagnosis and what level of treatment or intervention may be called for.

However, if you are answering these questions for yourself, and if you are honest about it, you can probably get a feeling for whether the outside world would conclude that you have a problem.

It’s very important for you and for those around you to understand that chemical abuse and dependency is a treatable medical condition, for which there are effective interventions and recovery programs.

Do not give up hope.

Never give up hope.

Read some more here about steps you can take to turn your situation around.