Alcohol is also a drug

Drinking alcohol is considered as fashion in the world. Many people drink once or twice only in
their life and for some people it becomes an addiction which is similar to the addiction of a
drug. Although there are very less number of drinkers for whom it becomes a drug which may
be around 10% in all but, for them, life become miserably. They become good for nothing for
their family and for their own self as well.

Drinking can be classified into two following types in which the second one ruins the drinkers.

1. Normal Drinking
2. Heavy Drinking

Normal Drinking:-

If the drinkers takes alcohol lightly and in a normal way, his tendency of work improves and
gives him energy and confidence and he becomes relax. The normal doses of alcohol taken do
not harm the drinkers.

Heavy Drinking:-

When the number of doses increases, the relaxation is gone and the drinkers feel annoyed and
intoxicated and lose the control over their behavior and activities. This situation makes the
drinkers and their family to feel embarrassed.

We will be seeing the changes are occurred with the increment of doses.

“If you have any friend who is in the addiction of heavy drinking, record the activities he
performs while in the influence of this drug and then show him when he is out of the
influence. It may give him a worthy lesson.”

If a person is a drinker, even a heavy drinker, it does not mean that he is faulty by his character.
Anything taken in excessive quantity can harm us even if it is food. The quantity makes the
drinkers feel shame on them.

The places and people who are with you can also affect on your drinking. Some places increase
the doses and some people’s companionship can make the drinkers more happy or sad causing
increment in the doses. Anyone who increases the amount of doses faces difficulties.
“Alcoholism or heavy drinking is a worldwide drug addiction disease and it ruins the life of
the drinkers. It directly affects the mind, psycho and social elements. “

In biochemistry, there are arguments on drinking. Some of us have a liver enzyme malfunction
that warns us to beware from drinking. Acetaldehyde has been always a hot topic in the
biochemistry whenever there is any discussion about drinking alcoholism. It is a toxic that
accumulates in the blood. It is affects our mood and behavior.

Some people are habitual of taking a glass of drink just after the dinner in front of the others.
Although there is no issue in it but when the glasses or doses are increased, the drinker has to
be ashamed to the others. And remember:

“If a finger has been raised on you drinking, it is obvious that you have drunk heavily.”

Now how a normal drinker becomes a heavy or terrible drinker will be explained with an
example of a drinker whose name is Akram who has been a drinker for the last the ten years.
The 10% addicts of drinking are depressed when they start drinking.

Example:-

Phase 1

One day Akram is offered for drinking by his boss who’s offered Akram cannot refuse. As he is
tired because of the all day work, the drink makes him relax and makes his mood pleasant.
Now, whenever his mind is in depression or tiredness, he takes a glass of drink and makes his
mood pleasant and this has become his habit.

Phase 2

Phase two starts when he thinks that if one glass makes his mood pleasant and reduces his
depression, two or more glasses will do the work more effectively. This becomes the first stage
of converting into a heavy drinker from a normal one. Now he is in love with the alcohol.

Phase 3

Now after ten years, Akram has become a heavy drinker but he has got some diseases as well.
In a morning he faces sickening hang-over and his physical conditions goes bad. But, it is found
temporary and he recovers himself as he was before. This continues for years and he faces
many attacks like this and survives from them. He does not know what actually it is but he
thinks that the alcohol will save him all the time.
“Now he will create so many rules and regulations for his drinking but all of them will broken
by him. His emotions and feelings will start to be dependent on alcohol.”

Phase 4

Now drinking is not in control of Akram. Whenever his mood gets off, he starts drinking. He is
not aware of the fact that his relation with his family facing problems because of his habit of
heavy drinking. He is getting far from the reality and real world. His health is also decreasing
day by day.

“Alcoholism is a quite horrible decease. It can convert a happy person into a sad one and a
kind one into an angry one. A heavy drinker loses his decision making power and steadiness
as well. When he faces any difficulty or problem, he starts drinking rather facing them or try
to solve it.”

Phase 5

Now this is the last stage of him. At this stage, Akram can have so many thoughts. He may think
that he should change his wife, job, city, country to escape from the problems. He may also
have an idea of committing suicide. In short, his life is completely ruined and he remains under
the influence of alcohol to remain normal and to escape from the real world.

The World of Drinkers

The world of heavy drinkers is completely unreal. They do not realize the reality of their
surroundings. Even the people who try to highlight them the reality are considered as liars and
culprits. The heavy drinkers don’t see what is happening to them as their dimensions of seeing
are wrong. They look from the wrong direction. There is a famous Chinese proverb:

“First the man takes a drink, and then the drink takes a drink, and finally the drink takes the
man.”

Now the Akram believes that everyone from his family; mother, wife, kids, all are against him
and don’t want to see him happy as they oppose his habit of drinking all the time. His marriage,
his job, and the family are near to be ruined.

The Drinkers closed ones

It is really hard to be a close one of the person who is a heavy drinker. But you cannot leave him
in the lurch. You may have some thoughts like “This man is crazy”, “Why am I wasting time for
him?” or “I will go mad if I stay with him”. But you really have to become his protector by
making excuses to his boss, friends, and the others who face problems because of him. You
have to remain kind and cooperative to him all the time which can reduce his habit of heavy
drinking to the some extend.

Dealing Alcoholic Persons

The drinkers are not able to realize the problems they are going to face because of this bad
habit. They are also not given some good guidance that can be beneficial in getting rid from this
habit.

You have deal with the heavy drinkers by suspecting the alcohol again and again rather blaming
the persons. Ask him some questions like:

 What change do you feel after drinking?

 How had been your life before you started drinking?
 Do you have any idea about the cons of drinking?

You just have to make him feel that alcohol is bad for him. These types of activities can be
beneficial for curing a heavy drinking patient.

Around 10 million people are related to drinking in Pakistan and 1 million can be taken as the
heavy drinkers

Conclusion:-

You may face difficulties in dealing and handling the victims of alcoholism. But you have to do
it; they really need your support and you can do a lot for them. It is just similar to the diabetes
in which you have to have an eye on the patient making sure that he does not take sweets.
Same is the case with alcoholism; you have to look after the person.

Note:- Never try to resist or argue with the patient when he or she is under the influence of
alcohol. Dealing politely is the better option.

Although in past people used to get really worried for someone who becomes a heavy drinker
and they would think that hitting on his bottom is the only solution. But, today, so many
interventions have been developed to handle the patients of alcoholism. Family, friends,
relatives, bosses; they all get knowledge of these interventions and try to handle the drinkers
using different techniques.