January 5th, 2013 
John P Table of Contents
Different Stages of Alcoholism Podcast
Alcoholism is a Progressive Disease
Most of us usually know at least one person who is in one of the stages of alcoholism. They may drink excessively, can’t control their drinking, has tried to stop repeatedly, goes on binges, or just has no control over how much they drink. We may even be the person we know, but will not face the fact that we have a serious problem and are in denial of the situation.
We all have to deal with problems that arise from time to time, but some people, because they lack coping skills, turn to alcohol to help them cope with things like, inhibitions, family problems, stress from work, relationship issues, finances or just life in general.
In the early stages of alcoholism as this disease starts to develop, a person becomes more reliant on that feeling that they receive from alcohol. Their tolerance level increases causing the person to drink larger quanties in order to achieve the level of intoxication that they so desire.
Lack of Recognition and Denial
For people who are in the early stages of alcoholism, they don’t recognize or acknowledge the fact that they are exhibiting signs of alcoholic behaviors. Some of these signs are an increase in tolerance, changes in their behavior, bragging about how much they can drink, drinking more often, they get tense or quick-tempered when they can’t drink and they drink more than normal or gradually increasing the amount of alcohol they consume.
Constantly drinking too much alcohol can cause physical and neurological problems such as, vomiting, hand tremors, stomach cramps, blackouts and hangovers. When these symptoms of alcoholism do occur, an alcoholic will deny the fact that they have a problem.
As different types of problems arise in the alcoholics life, they focus the blame on persons other then them selves and/or environmental issues. They do not put the blame on the real cause of their problems which is alcohol.
For an alcoholic, instead of drinking to relieve stress, alcohol becomes more of a dependency factor. They may also feel remorseful, suffer from depression and wallow in self-pity.
The Destruction of an Alcoholic
As the progression of alcoholism increases, the alcoholic’s life becomes more dysfunctional. Areas of their lives that suffer even more would be their health, relationships with family and friends, finances and work. They neglect the things in life that once were important to them.
Certain behaviors prevail like, grandiosity and aggressiveness, doesn’t eat or sleep properly, patterns of destructiveness or violence, increasing physical signs, neglecting family and friends, long bouts of being intoxicated, morals deteriorate and acquires resentments that are irrational.
The most serious alcoholic behaviors happen in the final stage of this disease. The alcoholic becomes totally obsessed with drinking to the point where they cannot control their drinking period and experience repeated binges in all different forms. They have lost all control to the point where drinking is their number one priority.
They only want to be around others that drink like them to help feel release from guilt. It gives them a sense of relief and they can justify their behavior because they don’t feel wrong knowing their are others who share their lifestyle.
Symptoms of Neurological Damage
The neurological damage worsens as the alcoholic experiences delirium tremens also know as the “DT’s”. These result from withdrawl or lack of alcohol in their system. This can cause death without proper medical attention.
In this stage, the only thing that is important in an alcoholic’s life is alcohol and until they hit bottom and willingly seek treatment, the cycle will continue until they are either jailed, institutionalized or dead.
If you know of someone that needs help, there are agencies in your area or online where you can get information that will help you deal with a person who has a problem. Please try to be gentle when dealing with a person you are trying to help because they can get resentful and distance them selves further away from you.
Remember this, a person will accept help only if they are willing to receive it.
Thank you and God Bless You
John Park
Lehigh Acres | Ft. Myers, Fl.
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
Find AA Meetings in your area
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