Caught By The Social Cycle Of Alcohol Abuse? Rehab May Be Necessary To Manage Triggers

Posted on: 20 April 2020

Most people who drink alcohol do so in at least a semi-social environment. Unfortunately, this factor often makes alcohol one of the hardest drugs to quit abusing because the relapse triggers are often socialization. Thankfully, specific alcohol addiction treatment programs can help in this situation.

Alcohol Abuse Has a Heavy Social Element

Teenagers who start drinking young often do so in a social environment. And as they grow up, this social aspect of drinking remains a very troubling one for their abuse cycle. That's because people can often feel left out if they try to quit drinking or get triggered by certain situations. For example, many people fall off the wagon during Super Bowl parties due to the intense emotions they may experience.

As a result, a person trying to quit may find that they keep falling off the wagon because all of their friends drink and they are often surrounded by abuse triggers. This issue is one that can make recovery seem impossible and may make a person believe that they were "born" to be addicted to alcohol. That is not the case at all — anybody can quit drinking if they use rehab to focus themselves on trigger management.

Why Rehab is Critical to Avoid Triggers

Alcohol addiction recovery therapy often focuses quite heavily on teaching a person how to identify their abuse triggers. These triggers can include factors such as certain people who cause an individual to drink. Maybe they bring over a 12-pack or ask them to go out fishing with a lot of beer. Whatever the case, a person in recovery learns how to spot these individuals and how to manage their adverse impact.

This approach often includes teaching a person to either ignore that friend or learn how to stand up to them and state that they no longer use alcohol. Accomplishing these goals is by no means an easy task because it requires a person to risk alienating others. And they must also know what kinds of emotional situations trigger alcohol abuse, such as sadness or even happiness since many people drink alcohol to celebrate.

Critically, a person going through this type of treatment needs to talk to a specialist about other elements that may impact their health. For example, those who smoke cigarettes or use other drugs — such as cocaine — when drinking may need more specialized help. Co-occurring disorders like these are often at the heart of most addictions and require very fine care to manage.

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