The causes of alcoholism in terms of psychology: in men, women, children

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"The wine destroys the bodily health of people, destroys mental abilities, destroys the well-being of families and, worst of all, destroys the soul of people and their offspring," said Leo Tolstoy. Who else can believe, no matter how great the classics and connoisseurs of the Russian soul? In order not to ruin oneself completely, the alcoholic must necessarily seek help. Question - to whom? Drug support will only help to prolong the period of sobriety, hypnosis does not always contribute to long-term remission, so who to contact? The answer is simple - the reason for striving to escape from reality is to look for the patient in the depths of the subconscious, that is, it is necessary to apply to a psychologist.

The psychology of alcoholism

The constant use of alcohol kills the body physically and forms a certain psychological portrait of the alcoholic. Initially absolutely different by social status, temperament, age and sex, people with the development of the disease become similar to each other. The process of leveling the personality is started.

Alcoholics in general have the following psychological characteristics:

• Denial of the disease. Never alcoholic does not recognize that he is sick. Even drunken patients believe that they have no problems with alcohol, no dependence.
• Selfishness and sometimes egocentrism. Here the psychology of the alcoholic is similar to the portrait of the baby: I do what I want and no one to me decree. Drunk drunkards do not perceive close people as companions, they react aggressively to the constant requests of family members to stop libations. As a result - total loneliness.
• Consistency of judgments. Alcoholics are extremely inconsistent in their decisions - today firmly decided to quit drinking, and tomorrow again typed.
• Complete passivity and inaction. As a rule, drunkards swim with the flow, they are inactive, they are not interested in anything, except for the opportunity to drink again. From the moment of making any decision to its implementation, weeks and months pass. All life values ​​are reduced only to the receipt of the treasured bottle.

A psychologist can help an alcoholic recognize himself as such, identify the motives that pushed him onto the path of alcoholism, find new life guides and values, and help learn how to enjoy a sober life. To help the patient find spiritual comfort and the joy of life, it is necessary to identify the prerequisites of the disease.
Video lecture of a specialist on the psychology of alcoholism:

Reasons for

There are four groups of factors that make a moderately drunk person quickly become a chronic alcoholic:

• Physiological. These include the inadequate production of the pleasure hormone - dopamine. The development of dopamine when drinking alcohol makes the alcoholic take up again and again to bottle, in order to experience pleasant feelings of relaxation, euphoria and pleasure. Age also plays a role: the earlier a person began to use alcohol, the higher his chances of becoming a drunken alcoholic.
• Important in the formation of bad habits and various craniocerebral injuries.
• Genetic factors. Scientists have proved that in a family where both parents used alcohol regularly, the child's risk of becoming an alcoholic increases five-fold compared to families where parents lead a healthy lifestyle. Undoubtedly, the socio-psychological factor plays a role here too: the children do not know of any other life and believe that the actions of the mother and father are normal.
• Social reasons. Perhaps the most common group, especially in our country. This includes rather aggressive advertising of alcoholic beverages, in particular beer, and the widespread step-by-step accessibility of alcohol, and traditional drunken feasts, even on insignificant occasions.
  Psychological aspects. Let us consider them in more detail.

Male

According to statistics, men drink much more often than women and children. There are several reasons for this:

• Hard work with a lot of stress. Alcohol is initially perceived as a way to relieve tension after a hard day. Accustoming comes quickly and unnoticed, afterwards a person does not get the opportunity to relax and relieve stress without a corresponding dose of alcohol.
• Lack of work, opportunities to support family, poverty. Lack of support from the wife, parents leads the man to spiritual decline, the desire not to solve existing problems, but to get away from them. The easiest way is to drink alcohol. Smoothly and imperceptibly the man is asleep.
• Shyness, zazhachnost, zakompleksovannost in combination with parental attitudes "to be a real man", that is strong, strong-willed and courageous. In this version, a young man begins to drink from an early age, in order to conform to the rules and principles that are driven in firmly. Alcohol helps to get rid of complexes, increases self-esteem, unleashes language. Gradually develops dependence on alcohol, which develops into chronic alcoholism.
• Psychological trauma. Men are less adapted to life shocks than women. Loss of a loved one, dismissal can be a reason for another escape from reality into alcohol fog.
• dominant behavior of the spouse in family relations. In such a family, the man does not have a living space for self-realization as the head of the family. Depression begins, there is an inner anger and aggression that a man tries to drown in a bottle.

Feminine

And again, look at the statistics. Women, although less likely to become alcoholics, but drink much faster. The causes of female alcoholism from the point of view of psychology lie in an entirely different sphere - in the field of emotions.

The main psychological causes of female drunkenness can serve as:

• Treason of a loved one, divorce with a spouse;
• Lack of female attractiveness;
• Depression of any genesis - postpartum, premenstrual, climacteric;
• Physical loss of a significant person - husband, parents, child;
• Circle of communication - a woman drinks "for the company" with friends, with her husband, with her parents;
• Loneliness, a sense of needlessness, a lack of purpose in life.

By the way, women rarely get drunk, starting with vodka or alcohol. As a rule, these are more noble drinks - wines, cocktails, champagne, which does not change the general picture at all - a woman is rapidly drunk and degrades as a person. Usually women hide their drunkenness and turn to a specialist when the stage of the disease is very neglected. If physically alcoholics can still be helped, then psychologists with female alcoholism work much harder.
Video about female alcoholism:

Child

Reasons that from an early age, children and adolescents begin to consume alcohol in many ways social and psychological.

These include:

• lack of proper supervision by parents;
• drinking family;
• excessive pressure from parents. Through drunkenness and deviant behavior, the teenager tries to protect himself from excessive hyper-care;
• self-assertion attempt. The use of alcohol in the eyes of a teenager adds to him "adulthood";
  is an inept attempt to hide from teenage problems: conflicts with teachers and parents, misunderstanding among peers, loss of a significant person or pet can push the child to the first glass.

Psychological features of alcoholics

And yet, why do some people rarely drink strong drinks until the end of their life, and others almost instantly become chronic alcoholics?

Psychologists have identified some personality traits inherent in people who are addicted to addiction:

• Irresponsibility. The desire not to answer for one's actions and escape from problems is the way to prolonged drunkenness.
• Inability to withstand difficulties. In psychology, this is called a low capacity for frustration. In the life of any person there are difficulties that have to be overcome. People who are addicted to addiction can not and do not want to endure pain, failure, and experiencing difficult moments. It's easier to get drunk and get away from difficulties.
• Low self-esteem, inability to express one's feelings.
• Perfectionism. The desire to always be on top, everything to do ideally in combination with a low ability to frustration will necessarily lead the patient to an admission to the narcologist.

Treatment of

Along with medicamental treatment, an alcoholic necessarily needs psychological help, otherwise after removing from the binge and the end of the coding period the patient is relieved of the disease.

Psychological assistance to the patient consists of several stages:

• Identification of the reason that pushed the person to the path of drunkenness.
• Increase self-esteem.
• Help in self-setting goals and life ideals that are not compatible with alcohol.
• Building relationships with loved ones, restoring trust in the family.

Psychological treatment takes a lot of time and effort, but in general it always gives an excellent result.