19th Medical Group – ADAPT Program, Certified Alcohol
and Drug Abuse Counselor
Just open the container and drink – right? Do you really know how to drink alcohol? You know exactly how many drinks it takes to get a buzz and how many to get drunk –right? If you’re a seasoned drinker you might think you have your drinking down to a fine science, but you could be wrong. There are so many factors that can throw your plan right out the window.
SLEEP: When you‘ve had a good night’s sleep, you feel great and having a couple of drinks may be no big deal. Some people have a difficult time sleeping and, since alcohol makes them sleepy, they may try to use it to sleep. The problem is that it prevents them from getting deep, restorative sleep. They stay in the superficial levels of sleep and wake up sore and tired. What if you haven’t slept well and you drink alcohol? You’re already tired and now you’re adding a depressant to your system – be aware of what your body is telling you.
MOOD: Keep your edge. Alcohol is a depressant, or downer, because it reduces brain activity. If you are depressed before you start drinking, alcohol can make you feel worse. Here’s a bit of advice that could save your life: If you’re depressed, don’t drink. The same lack of inhibitions that can lead a drinker to wear a lampshade as a hat, can have consequences that are far more tragic for people with suicidal thoughts.
Now the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that in a large sample of suicide victims whose blood alcohol levels were measured post mortem, one in four had been legally drunk.
MEDICATION: Know the risks – alcohol is a drug. Mixing it with any other drug can be extremely dangerous. Alcohol and acetaminophen, a common ingredient in over the counter pain and fever reducers, can damage your liver. Alcohol mixed with drugs can cause nausea, vomiting, fainting, heart problems and difficulty breathing. Mixing alcohol and drugs can also lead to death.
YOUR PERSONALITY: Some people’s personality really changes when they drink. You’ve probably been around someone who was a mean drunk, a happy drunk and asloppy drunk. The bottom line is that there will be some kind of personality change. As your blood alcohol count goes up, your perceived ability to do something is increased. While in reality your actual ability is diminished. This is what causes people to get behind the wheel of a vehicle after drinking. They think they’re ok, but they’re not.
YOUR BEHAVIOR: The vast majority of people who consume alcoholic beverages do not engage in criminal behavior. However, it plays a part in domestic violence. Consider the statistics:
- Alcohol is present in more than half of all incidents of domestic violence, with women most likely to be battered when both partners have been drinking.
- About 70 percent of alcohol-related incidents of violence occur in the home and begin with the greatest frequency at 11 p.m.; 20 percent of these incidents involve the use of a weapon other than hands, fists or feet.
YOUR PLAN: DWIs/DUIs, underage drinking, public intoxication and binge drinking continue to plague Team Little Rock.
Alcohol is not going anywhere. We will never go back to the days of prohibition. You’re going to have to decide what role drinking alcohol will have in your life. Are you going to control alcohol or is alcohol going to control you? What are you doing to make sure you don’t become a statistic? What are you doing to make sure your friends and subordinates don’t become a statistic?
Always ask yourself before you drink: You + alcohol = ?
If you think you have a problem with alcohol, or need some education, please contact the ADAPT Clinic @ 987-7338.
Statistics obtained from the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc.
and Drug Abuse Counselor
Just open the container and drink – right? Do you really know how to drink alcohol? You know exactly how many drinks it takes to get a buzz and how many to get drunk –right? If you’re a seasoned drinker you might think you have your drinking down to a fine science, but you could be wrong. There are so many factors that can throw your plan right out the window.
SLEEP: When you‘ve had a good night’s sleep, you feel great and having a couple of drinks may be no big deal. Some people have a difficult time sleeping and, since alcohol makes them sleepy, they may try to use it to sleep. The problem is that it prevents them from getting deep, restorative sleep. They stay in the superficial levels of sleep and wake up sore and tired. What if you haven’t slept well and you drink alcohol? You’re already tired and now you’re adding a depressant to your system – be aware of what your body is telling you.
MOOD: Keep your edge. Alcohol is a depressant, or downer, because it reduces brain activity. If you are depressed before you start drinking, alcohol can make you feel worse. Here’s a bit of advice that could save your life: If you’re depressed, don’t drink. The same lack of inhibitions that can lead a drinker to wear a lampshade as a hat, can have consequences that are far more tragic for people with suicidal thoughts.
Now the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that in a large sample of suicide victims whose blood alcohol levels were measured post mortem, one in four had been legally drunk.
MEDICATION: Know the risks – alcohol is a drug. Mixing it with any other drug can be extremely dangerous. Alcohol and acetaminophen, a common ingredient in over the counter pain and fever reducers, can damage your liver. Alcohol mixed with drugs can cause nausea, vomiting, fainting, heart problems and difficulty breathing. Mixing alcohol and drugs can also lead to death.
YOUR PERSONALITY: Some people’s personality really changes when they drink. You’ve probably been around someone who was a mean drunk, a happy drunk and asloppy drunk. The bottom line is that there will be some kind of personality change. As your blood alcohol count goes up, your perceived ability to do something is increased. While in reality your actual ability is diminished. This is what causes people to get behind the wheel of a vehicle after drinking. They think they’re ok, but they’re not.
YOUR BEHAVIOR: The vast majority of people who consume alcoholic beverages do not engage in criminal behavior. However, it plays a part in domestic violence. Consider the statistics:
- Alcohol is present in more than half of all incidents of domestic violence, with women most likely to be battered when both partners have been drinking.
- About 70 percent of alcohol-related incidents of violence occur in the home and begin with the greatest frequency at 11 p.m.; 20 percent of these incidents involve the use of a weapon other than hands, fists or feet.
YOUR PLAN: DWIs/DUIs, underage drinking, public intoxication and binge drinking continue to plague Team Little Rock.
Alcohol is not going anywhere. We will never go back to the days of prohibition. You’re going to have to decide what role drinking alcohol will have in your life. Are you going to control alcohol or is alcohol going to control you? What are you doing to make sure you don’t become a statistic? What are you doing to make sure your friends and subordinates don’t become a statistic?
Always ask yourself before you drink: You + alcohol = ?
If you think you have a problem with alcohol, or need some education, please contact the ADAPT Clinic @ 987-7338.
Statistics obtained from the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc.
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