If you or a loved one struggles with alcohol abuse, you understand how challenging it is to find the services and treatment needed to overcome it. Fortunately, there are many addiction facilities that offer alcohol addiction treatment.
Veteran treatment programs combines unique therapy and counseling with medication-assisted treatment for those who need it.
The Effects of Alcohol Use Disorder
When an individual abuses alcohol, they are likely suffering from alcohol use disorder. This condition increases the risk of developing a dependency or addiction to alcohol. Thus, individuals who binge drink, are chronic drinkers with a high tolerance, and those with a genetic predisposition to alcohol abuse need particular attention. Alcohol use disorder has numerous negative impacts on the body. Whether one a single occasion (binge drinking) or over time (high-function) alcohol abuse severely impacts your health.
Your liver is the organ that usually receives most of the damage from alcohol abuse. This is because it is responsible for filtering toxins like alcohol out of the body’s system. For instance, drinking increases the fat in the liver, raising your risk of hepatic steatosis as well as inflammation (alcoholic hepatitis) and the irreversible scarring of the living called cirrhosis. Individuals who suffer from alcohol use disorder experience digestive issues. The stomach lining can become inflamed (gastritis), and the pancreas can be damaged (pancreatitis).
Some individuals may believe because they only drink occasionally, alcohol use disorder doesn’t affect them. However, binge drinking is a form of alcohol abuse. It can cause heart arrhythmia and raises the risk of heart failure and stroke. These are just some of the issues brought about by alcohol use disorder. Treatment centers understand the effects of alcohol use disorder. Alcohol addiction treatment can help veterans get their drinking under control and heal from alcohol abuse.
Alcohol Addiction Treatment
Alcohol addiction treatment offers several therapeutic services to address the root causes of alcohol use disorder. For example, we use a variety of talk therapies and innovative approaches, such as:
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy: Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), and it’s cousin dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) is common and useful forms of talk therapy. CBT focuses on reducing negative self-image and thinking while DBT deals with how to manage emotions and identify appropriate and healthy expressions of feeling.
- Mindfulness: Using practices like mediation and breathing exercises, mindfulness therapy teaches patients how to break away from negative thought patterns before they lead to mental health issues. Also, it raises an individual’s awareness of themselves and others in their current moment and environment.
Find the Right Veteran Alcohol Addiction Treatment Center
When a veteran abuses alcohol, it doesn’t just affect their life but the lives of all those around them. Thus, it’s important all those touched by alcohol abuse do what they can to help an individual struggling with alcohol use disorder. Whether from friends, family, loved ones, co-workers, or peers, when an individual struggling with the disease of addiction gets support, they can heal. Veteran treatment centers understand the impact of alcohol abuse. One way veterans can get the help they need is through an outpatient alcohol addiction treatment program. Healing comes through our various therapies, which include dual diagnosis treatment for veterans struggling with both alcohol addiction and an underlying mental health issue like depression or PTSD. Our focus is on healing the whole person and returning them to their community.
