Top Myths and Misconceptions of Alcohol Drinking Revealed

Alcoholics struggle to understand their addictions and how they should treat them. The same applies to people on the outside. If you are coping with someone who needs the help of alcohol rehab centres, you need to know about some of the myths and misconceptions of drinking alcohol. They are extremely damaging and they often form part of the conventional range of excuses and lies brought out by addicts who are still in denial about their addictions.

In this article, we are going to explore the top three myths and misconceptions of drinking alcohol. The chances are you already believe in many of these yourself.

Sobering Up with Hot Coffee and Cold Showers

Someone who is drunk may resort to drinking hot coffee or taking a cold shower. These are common tricks used by functioning alcoholics –typically, after a hard night’s drinking before work. Many people in rehab clinics report these tactics make them feel more alert and awake. Whilst they may do this, they do nothing to reduce the concentration of alcohol in the blood.

The alcohol remains in your system and your reaction times will not have changed. It is still dangerous to drive or go to work even after trying out these tactics. In a standard drink, it will always take about an hour for your body to process the alcohol within. This does not change no matter how many external treatments you attempt to bring in.

Beer is Better than Hard Liquor

There is absolutely no difference between the alcohol in whisky and the alcohol in a beer. This misconception does have some truth to it, though. It has some truth because someone who drinks whisky is more likely to consume more alcohol units than someone who has a few beers.

However, you can only measure alcohol in terms of units. This is what alcohol rehab clinics drill into their patients. Someone who drinks twelve units of alcohol will consume twelve units of alcohol whether it comes from vodka or wine.

Someone is drunk based on their blood alcohol content not on the type of drink they consumed.

Eating Before Drinking Helps with Sobriety

This is perhaps the biggest myth of all. Some people believe that if you eat before you drink the food will help to soak up all the alcohol. A full stomach does have an effect, just not in the way you think. Instead of removing the alcohol, it delays its absorption into the bloodstream. In other words, it slows down the absorption of alcohol, as opposed to preventing it.

When you think about it, this makes complete sense. The alcohol does not leave your body. Even if we assumed food did absorb alcohol, the alcohol would reach your blood after the food was broken down regardless. Once it goes in it cannot just disappear. It has to be processed by the body in the same way as before.

In fact, if you need to absorb the alcohol and process it quickly in time for an engagement the next day it can be better to drink on an empty stomach.

Middlegate understands many of the myths and misconceptions surrounding drinking and alcohol rehab clinics. They specialise in providing aid to people who need the help of rehab clinics to get sober.

Source : Apsense

How to Handle Low Days During Recovery

Living in the grip of addiction can be devastating for all involved. Those who suffer from addiction can find it hard to break the habit, and those who love them suffer the heartbreak of seeing their loved one in such despair.

Getting help for addiction is important but many addicts are reluctant to accept that they either have a problem or that they need external help. Many are unwilling to try rehab because they are afraid that it will be too painful or that they might not succeed. Others believe it is better to not try than to try and fail.

However, there are some who get to a point when they know they need help. They have reached their low point, and they are ready to make a positive change to their lives. These individuals may be prepared to accept help and are optimistic about their future sober life. This positive attitude can be hugely important in terms of a successful recovery, but it is common for these feelings of positivity to subside once the person is living their new sober life.

Ups and Downs

Those in recovery tend to have great days and then have days when they are feeling low. During these low periods, it is easy to feel disheartened but it is important to realise that these feelings are normal. However, if you notice that the low periods are lasting longer than the good periods, you may be in danger of relapse. It is vital that you learn how to get past these bad times by focusing on the good things in your life.

Learn to Love Your Life
One of the reasons you may feel down is because you are unable to appreciate the good things in your life. It is important to learn how to be grateful for the things you do have rather than focusing on those you don’t. It is easy to take things for granted, so learning how to appreciate your blessings may help you get your life back on track when you are feeling down.

Spend More Time with Those Who Inspire You

There are no doubt people in your life who inspire you, or maybe you have met someone in recovery who motivated you to get through your rehabilitation. If this is the case then spending time with these individuals is an excellent way to keep you on the straight and narrow. Try to avoid spending time with negative individuals as this can make you feel even more down and prevent you from enjoying the fact that you are proof that successful recovery is possible.

Read about Other People’s Recovery Journeys

Inspirational stories of other recovering addicts can be immensely powerful and can help you to remember why you wanted to be sober in the first place. There are many books available that document people’s stories but there are also plenty of options online including blogs, YouTube videos, and podcasts. Take the time to read about other people’s journeys as this can motivate you and inspire you to stay healthy and sober.

Think About What You Want from Life

You may have set yourself the goal of getting sober and, now you have reached that goal, you may be wondering what to do next. Think about the plans you had for yourself before you became addicted and maybe you can achieve those once-forgotten goals. Alternatively, set a new goal for yourself and put your energy into achieving your aims. This can be a great way for you to rekindle your positive energy and to focus on something else.

Speak to Someone Who Can Help

If you are still feeling low, talking to a professional can help. Middlegate has a team of experienced advisors and counsellors who can help by providing you with a listening ear. Call today to speak to one of our dedicated members of staff.

This article originally published at Middlegate Blog here

Factors Rehab Centres Take into Account When Deciding if a Programme is Right for a Client

Alcohol rehab clinics are all different because they often specialise. They deal with a range of different patient types. It is impossible to take every sort of alcoholic and put them in together. You cannot have a binge drinking college student together with someone who has been drinking for thirty years. Both these individuals require radically different treatment programmes. To give you some more information on the right rehab clinics for you, we have listed some of the main factors rehab centres take into account when deciding if someone is right for one of their programmes.

How Severe Is The Condition? : Some centres are designed exclusively for people with extremely mild conditions. These people are here voluntarily and decided to come because they wanted to stop an addiction before it really took hold. In most cases, these will be outpatient centres. Someone who has had an addiction for a number of years will have far more complex needs than someone who is simply worrying about a few too many binge-drinking sessions with friends.

The Age : Age is crucial because it will mean the difference between someone who can go cold turkey and someone who requires alcohol tapering. Furthermore, rehab centres want to match you with people of your own age. It is easier for some to recover when they are with people who understand them. A retiree will not be able to provide mutual support as well to someone who is in his or her twenties.

Rehab Intensity : Some programmes are more intense than others are. This is in accordance with the speed of the recovery programme. It also depends on how quickly someone needs to lose his or her alcohol addiction to preserve his or her health. There are drug rehab clinics that are considered ‘last chance saloon’. In these situations, this would warrant an extremely intense rehab programme regulating every hour of the day. Not everyone needs this level of treatment. Some people need a couple of hours of counselling daily and nothing more.

Medical History : Medical history is crucial when considering the right centre for someone to recover in. What many forget is that people rarely come into treatment with alcoholism and alcoholism alone. It is not uncommon for alcohol addictions to be paired with drug addictions. Furthermore, there are often serious medical side effects of alcoholism that have to be taken into account. Treatment centres are essentially like hospitals. They have to monitor other conditions and provide tailored programmes to help manage any other conditions alongside the steady removal of alcohol from the system.

A rehab centre has to be properly equipped to give you the best possible treatment. For example, someone with serious cirrhosis of the liver will need a course of antibiotics and drugs to coincide with their rehabilitation programme. If the centre does not have access to these drugs and medical professionals, it will not be suitable for them. Overall, remember it is not just about whether you are right for a specific centre. It is whether the centre is right for you. Make sure you do your research before making your initial enquiries.

5 Alcohol Rehab Tips for Success

Alcohol rehab is never an easy proposition. It involves breaking down barriers that have been built up over the course of many years. The chances are you have looked at alcohol and drug rehab clinics in the past. Whilst you will always get the help of qualified professionals at these locations, you still have to play your part in your rehabilitation. In this article, we are going to provide you with five useful tips for success in rehab clinics. Read on to find out more!

1.Set Little Goals : If your goal is to wake up one morning and stay sober, this is never going to happen. You will only overwhelm yourself with the enormity of the task. No, you have to set yourself smaller goals and accomplish them over an extended period. These little goals could simply involve not visiting the local shop that day, or purposely staying away from the alcohol section. Little things like this can lead to big changes throughout your life.

2.Consolidate Your Support Network : Few alcoholics have ever managed to beat their addictions without outside help. There is nothing wrong with this. It is not a sign of weakness and it is not a burden on others. They are there to help you. They want to see you come out of your addiction as a new person. Your support network should be a circle of friends and family members, along with professionals who have experience in beating addictions. Always make sure you have someone available to see both in-person and over the phone.

3.Find a Source of Inspiration : Inspire yourself and change your mind-set by finding some source of inspiration. This could be a picture of someone you look up to or something from your childhood. It is designed as an anchor point. Anchor yourself to a place where drugs and alcohol do not exist. It is about knowing where you are going during your darkest moments. A source of inspiration will always help you to combat negative thoughts.

4.You Don't Want It : Get used to the idea that you will not succeed all the time. Sometimes you will relapse emotionally. You will want to go back to your old ways again. Alcohol rehab clinics deal with this all the time. They may be relapses, but these relapses are also an emotional relapse. You will not always pick up the bottle again, but you will start to question whether this is right for you. Prepare for it now to increase your chances of success.

5.Rehab isn't the End : Do not make the mistake of seeing rehabilitation as the end of the process. Alcoholism is a lifelong struggle that you will always have to deal with. There will always be the risk of you relapsing again. Moreover, this is not something to be afraid about. Make sure you get local referrals to support groups that can step in when you need it. You can get a list of these from your GP. Even if you do not need them, the knowledge that they are there if you run into trouble is an extremely powerful recovery technique.