Alcoholism is a serious disease, which not only affects the body, but is also responsible for disturbing the mental balance of a person. Alcohol treatment centers are an efficient and effective medium for treating the menace of Alcoholism.
Alcohol abuse is one of the biggest problems in the world today. A person addicted to alcohol may suffer from liver cirrhosis. Alcoholism also has negative effects on fertility in both men and women. Along with physiological problems, the alcoholic and his family undergoes serious mental trauma. The social life too is affected due to alcoholism.
The alcohol treatment centers treat the disease of alcoholism. These centers make the process of overcoming alcohol addiction easier for the patients. The prime responsibility that lies with these centers is to ensure that the alcoholic person doesn’t relapse to the original state of alcoholism. The treatment centers follow some important steps to help the patient recover from alcoholism.
- Detoxification: Alcohol detoxification or ‘detox’ is the process of cleansing the patient’s body by removing the toxins. It is the first step in treating alcoholism. The process is conducted under medical supervision, since the patient may face withdrawal symptoms like convulsions, tremors and seizures during the process. Depending upon the degree of addiction, the detox can be an easy or even an extremely painful process for the patient to follow. Without detoxifying the body of the patient, it is not possible to treat his mind.
- Withdrawal: These are the symptoms that follow the process of detoxification. Since the patient’s system (body, mind) is used to the presence of alcohol, suddenly stopping the intake of alcohol creates a kind of ‘vacuum’. The patient may face symptoms such as seizures, tremors, hallucination and high fever. The withdrawal symptoms often force the patient to go back to the original state of alcoholism. Thus, dealing with these symptoms can be a painful task for the patient even under strict supervision.
- Understanding the Root Cause: Along with medical treatment, the treatment centers also focus on the mentality of the patient. Many factors are involved behind the person resorting to addiction. Treating the body of an alcoholic is just the beginning. The actual treatment starts after that. Understanding and resolving the behavioral and mental problems of the patient is the key to keep the person away from any kind of addiction.
Types of Alcohol Treatment Centers
There are many centers working in the area of alcohol rehabilitation. With the rise in alcohol abuse among people and especially teenagers, efforts are being taken to treat alcoholics.
- In Patient Treatment Centers: In these centers, the patient has to stay under the supervision of doctors.
- Out Patient Treatment Centers: The patients have to attend regular meetings at the centers apart from following a strict routine to give up alcoholism. The system is, however, not suitable for patients suffering from chronic alcoholism. Such treatments demand tremendous willpower on the part of the addict. If the addiction is not severe, the patient can be cured in a short span of time
- Teenage Alcohol Treatment Centers: Teenagers undergo tremendous physiological and psychological changes. Thus, treatment centers for teenagers ought to be different from those for adults. These centers not only help in detoxifying the body, but also help the adolescents in overcoming various emotional problems. The treatment may help develop self-esteem and altogether change the outlook of the patient towards life.
- Christian Alcohol Treatment Centers: A relatively new and innovative idea in dealing with alcohol abuse, the Christian alcohol treatment is also referred to as a ‘faith based system’.
Alcohol treatment centers play an important role in rehabilitation of addicts. It is observed that patients who complete the treatment programs have rarely relapsed to alcoholism. Finally, it would be appropriate to say that, no matter how effectively a treatment program is formulated, recovery from alcohol addiction is possible only if the patient takes requisite efforts to keep the habit of alcohol consumption at bay.