Alcohol Relapse Signs, Symptoms, Stages, Causes & Stats
The depressant effects of alcohol also limit your brain’s ability to coordinate physical movements, speak clearly and react quickly. This combination of reduced physical ability and feel-good chemicals often leads people to engage in risky behaviors while drinking. This could include driving while intoxicated or trying dangerous things while your inhibitions are lowered.
- Using fMRI, Sinha and colleagues (2007) compared alcohol-dependent individuals abstinent from alcohol for 4 weeks with social drinkers to assess brain structural changes and also functional responses to stress, alcohol cues, and neutral relaxing guided imagery.
- For individuals with a history of depression, turning to alcohol as a coping mechanism may provide temporary relief.
- Friends and family see the noticeable benefits of quitting alcohol when their loved one stops drinking and chooses to pursue a healthy life.
Many times, people self-medicate with alcohol in an attempt to escape these disruptive symptoms. 3In operant procedures, animals must first perform certain response (e.g., press a lever) before they receive a stimulus (e.g., a small amount of alcohol). By modifying the required response (e.g., increasing the number of lever presses required before the alcohol is delivered) researchers can determine the motivational value of the stimulus for the animal. 1In operant procedures, animals must first perform a certain response (e.g., press a lever) before they receive a stimulus (e.g., a small amount of alcohol). Studies of twins have shown that the same things that lead to heavy drinking in families also make depression more likely.
Does Depression Drive You to Drink?
The finding of a high prevalence rate of depression among the study participants calls for the need to evaluate persons for depression before and after alcohol dependence treatment. In addition it is important to obtain family history of mood disorder and life time diagnosis of depression since the presence of such histories puts the individual at a greater risk of developing major depression. Consistent with the generally negative results of these family type studies are the conclusions drawn from a recent study of 1,030 female-female alcohol relapse rate twin pairs (Kendler et al. 1995). The researchers concluded that the genetic influences important in alcoholism appear to be relatively specific for that disorder and did not significantly alter the risk for additional psychiatric disorders, including major depression and major anxiety disorders. Another twin study by Mullin and colleagues1 showed no increased risk for anxiety disorders in identical twins of alcoholics with the exception of conditions (e.g., anxiety) that might have resulted from the alcoholism in the person’s twin.
People with hidden alcoholism may limit their drinking to times when they are alone. However, treating most alcoholics’ depressive symptoms might not require the use of antidepressant medications. These medications are not needed to help clear an alcohol-induced mood or depressive disorder. In fact, with abstinence the depressive symptoms are likely to improve in a shorter period of time than would be required for an anti-depressant to take effect (Brown and Schuckit 1988; Powell et al. 1995).
In Depression
If you or someone you love is struggling with alcohol addiction, don’t wait any longer to seek help. At Promises Behavioral Health, we offer a variety of treatment programs tailored to meet individual needs. Our team of experienced professionals can guide you on the path toward lasting recovery and provide support every step of the way. A relapse prevention program can help individuals develop new hobbies and interests.
