Alcoholism
Short term effects of alcohol
For many people, drinking is very harmless, however, for others it can
be quite destructive. There are many things that excessive alcohol
consumption can promote, which in effect raises risk factors. Obviously,
there is the state of being drunk. While intoxicated, the person experiences
a lack of coordination. This causes them to loose balance as well as depth
perception. However, most importantly, when someone is drunk, they loose
the ability to think properly. They have trouble thinking clearly, therefore,
more problems arise. Many times, being drunk leads to an increase in
sexual activity, and as we know, this leads to uncontrolled births.
Also, some teens tend to binge-drink (this is when they drink in large
quantities). Sometimes, binge drinking leads to alcohol poisoning as well as
even death. This is because alcohol acts as a depressant, it slows down the
central nervous system and this causes the heart to beat more and more
slowly.
Another effect of drinking is that is causes your veins to expand
slightly. A result of this is that your body temperature is more seceptable to
change according to the temperature of your surrounding environment.
Long term effects
Over a period of many years, drinking has been proven to cause
certain things in your body to change. For example, it gradually kills your
brain cells. It also causes you to lose your sense of taste for certain types of
foods. It even makes your sense of smell and touch weaker. Those are
simply the obvious effects, it doesn’t mention the emotional stress which the
alcohol places onto a person. Someone may lose many friends because
alcohol has made them very unpleasant to be around. Many married people
end up in divorce over alcohol related issues. These long term effects
certainly apply to you if you start at age twenty-one, but what if you started
as a child. The alcohol greatly effects a child’s brain much more quickly
and more drastically than it could to any adult. By starting alcoholism at an
early age, you are setting yourself up for a quick failure.
Stages of Alcoholism
There are a few stages of alcoholism. Some people can drink socially
and never have any type of alcoholic problem. However, there are people
who eventually decide to take it to the next level. From drinking a beer
every now and then with some friends, to having many beers, becoming
intoxicated. Then after that, you will have some people who eventually live
to drink, every time they get money, they decide to spend it on alcohol. This
is because they have let the “drug” control them.
Here are a few signs of alcoholism
· Drinking alone or in secret.
· Not remembering conversations or commitments.
· Making a ritual of having drinks before, with or after dinner and
becoming annoyed when this ritual is disturbed or questioned.
· Losing interest in activities and hobbies that used to bring pleasure.
· Irritability as usual drinking time nears, especially if alcohol isn't
available.
· Keeping alcohol in unlikely places at home, at work or in the car.
· Gulping drinks, ordering doubles, becoming intoxicated intentionally
to feel good or drinking to feel "normal."
· Having problems with relationships, employment or finances or legal
problems.