Monthly Archives: July 2017

Drug Addiction, Mental Health, Women's Health

The dangers of a refreshing beverage

Leave a comment

Today, alcohol is easily accessible in our world today. While many people use a drink here and there to ease their levels of stress and to relax, over the long term it can lead to a range of physical and mental problem. What’s more, a person can become dependent on a strong substance like alcohol if they drink frequently each week. There is no doubt that our culture is one that promotes social drinking, whether it’s to get “lit” for raging college parties, prepare for a music festival, have fun at happy hour, or just survive a family reunion.  Many people believe that there are no penalties or long term consequences from having a casual beer from time to time. Yet, some statistics clearly show that alcohol is in fact causing a dent in the welfare and overall health of our society.

Damaging Effects from Alcohol

Scientific research shows that as much as 86 percent of all people in the United States will drink alcohol at some point their lives. Around 70 percent will drink at least one time in any given year. This shows that alcohol is present in many Americans lives, and thus from that starting point an addiction can spawn. It only takes one time for someone to gain an addiction to a substance. Therefore, as it is a legal drug it’s very hard to recognize if someone has an addiction problem.

So, why is it exactly so important that we stay on the lookout for a loved one or friend who may be suffering from alcoholism? The haunting consequences that come with consistent alcohol consumption is enough to make a difference. We all are granted one life to live, and as the traditional saying goes, our body is a temple that must be taken care of. As a result, binge drinking alcohol on a daily, or even weekly basis would be just like treating your fragile body like a waste outlet. While drinking alcohol, a person will experience a range of damaging short term and long term impairments on their mind and body.

Long Term Consequences

If you were initially unaware, alcoholism is documented to kill five times the number of individuals annually than all other drugs known to man put together. In fact, more than 80,000 deaths are directly linked to  drinking every single year according to national health records. These deaths are often drawn out and very painful since alcohol slowly degrades the body by eroding critical health systems. For example, on alcohol can cause irreversible damage in the form of fatty liver disease. This condition is often unspoken of, but is basically caused by excessive fat in the liver, making it harder for the organ to process toxins effectively and do its job normally. Another long term illness directly linked to frequent alcohol use is alcoholic cirrhosis. With this condition, the liver becomes so damaged that it scars. These wounds inhibit the function of the liver and are the last stage of the chronic liver disease. Along with this acquiring, alcohol hepatitis is always a possibility. This refers to high swelling of the liver, which in turn causes damage. This disease affects as many as 35 percent of heavy drinkers and can be mild to severe. In the latter, it can cause life-threatening complications or death.

These are just a few of the fatal diseases that alcohol can cause. Binge drinking on a regular basis can lead to someone developing a dangerous alcohol addiction and should be taken seriously. Just because you may be young and your body seems to recover from alcohol abuse quickly, doesn’t mean it will always be this way. Before you drink, please think about how your body will react to these dangerous substances and what damage it can do.

Recognizing the Signs

If you think someone you know may be suffering from alcoholism here are some of the signs to look out for. There are many signs that someone may be struggling with an addiction. First of all, if someone is starting to go out less and less for no apparent reason, they may be staying in to drink by themselves. If these actions are coupled with irregular mood swings and eating habits, there is a strong chance some type of substance abuse addiction is present. Furthermore, if you find out they are lying to you about their activities and the amount they drink, it is likely they are ashamed of an addiction or just don’t want you to know about it. If someone is conveying these signs, getting in touch with a rehab center to help out may not be a bad idea. Trained professionals will work closely with you to make sure you are doing the right things every day. It is worth having the correct support, addictions are a tough uphill battle, and you should get the help you need today.

Uncategorized

Teen Mental Health

Leave a comment

These days, the dialogue about mental diseases like anorexia, depression, and addiction among teens has been brought up more than ever before thanks to school education programs, awareness conferences, and the movies and shows developed from the mainstream media. Television series like the new “13 Reasons Why” is a prime example of what factored into this resurgence, as it depicts a teenager who struggles with depression from her environment and being angry at her peers. While it’s based on a fake story line, the issues it shows are extremely realistic since many kids go through social pressure, stress from school, and adapting to puberty. Studies show that at least one of every eight teens in the U.S. are diagnosed with depression, which is shocking. That means that out of a normal sized class of 32 students a high school, 4 of those students will be going through depression at the time. Depression can build up to a boiling point for many reasons, but it’s a given that adequate treatment is crucial for the health and safety of someone if they have it.

Forming Depression

Depression can be caused for a great deal of reasons, from feeling extremely insecure compared to others, experiencing emotional or physical abuse from a friend or parent, feeling consistently hopeless, or not being accepted by the people around you. For a teen, being teased in school or flunking tests, feeling left out from friends, and being extremely dissatisfied with their body, social status, etc. all play a role. With these events bringing constant stress, depression can develop and spiral into an abyss of negative emotions and idleness for an individual.  

Spotting someone with depression may be difficult, but it’s generally agreed that a change in personality and behavior will be apparent. Look out for red flags like seeing someone being less interested in activities they once enjoyed, sleeping a lot more, eating a lot more or less, and not being able to focus at school or at tasks. They could also have bad memory, underperformance, or may even turn to addictive substances to get through the pain. That’s definitely a dangerous plan and could lead to much more harmful consequences in the future.

Getting through Depression

There’s a lot of professionals who can help a teen with their profession. Spending time with them to hear their fears, stress, and hopes will help you gain their trust to pursue help and hopefully start a rehab program. Make sure to let know that their emotions are okay to experience, but their idleness and reluctance to change at the moment is not. After some time, you can move on to approaching the topic of seeking therapy and telling them that it will be a positive impact to their health and future years.

Receiving Treatment

It all comes down to what their lifestyle and personality is like to choose what therapy will work best. However, helping them acknowledge the problem is the most important step so they can take action on it. If they are extremely stubborn at this stage, you may even have to resort to taking a medical test which shows concrete proof of depression being active. One example is doing a blood test to identify genetic markers associated with depression. With the test’s help, doctors can get to the cause of their problem way quicker and reach a much quicker diagnosis as well. From there, they can recommend what type of therapy to take and changes they can make to their sleeping habits, nutrition, and physical activity to aid the process.

Persistence is Key

Depression is a great mountain to climb, but with a team of help and dedication to getting better it can be tackled. Instead of taking no action or turning to unhealthy addictions to cope, asking for help will bring quicker results and better health overall. Combined with using holistic therapy that includes aromatherapy, massage therapy, meditation, better nutrition, and more exercise, awareness of the body can be increased so the person can prevent spiraling into the illness again in the future.