My brother is an alcoholic. I want to know how to go about finding the best course of action for finding a solution to this problem. Thank you.
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Alcohol dependence is associated with significant physical, mental and social problems. Physically, there can be liver failure, jaundice, vomiting of blood, passing blood in stools, stomach ulcers, damage to nerves of the body, swelling of legs, fluid collection in abdomen, and many more. Mentally, there is irreversible brain damage, worsening of anxiety or depression, triggering of psychosis and mood disorders, dementia, etc. From a social point of view, there may be isolation from neighbors or family, increased abusive behavior to children or spouses, legal problems, accidents, etc. Nowadays a lot of 'ayurvedic' medication (which is advertised as 'cure for alcoholism without patient's knowledge') actually contains disulfiram. Patients on disulfiram have to discontinue alcohol strictly; they cannot take even a small amount as it causes a severe reaction. The best thing is to consult a psychiatrist with experience in deaddiction.
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I am very concerned that your brother has not reached what we call, ‘Hitting Rock Bottom’ as yet. To me, his Rock Bottom seems to be death if he is a heavy drinker and is completely sloshed everyday i.e. Only death can stop his addiction! Anyway do not despair as yet and you may attempt the following and see how it works: you may have tried a de-addiction center but he should not have been released if he was not ready. So in this attempt, he may be taken to another de-addiction center that is stricter and will also have follow up treatment and AA meetings for him to compulsorily attend. Ideally, your brother should want to give up alcohol himself to begin with. If not, it is going to be an uphill task and to the most part impossible. However, you should not be in want of trying. If he is unwilling to seek help, he needs to be admitted to a rehabilitation center for at least 6 months by force. If not, there are centers who will come and pick him up when he is drunk, when his resistance will be ineffective. This will require his wife's permission and written consent. After your brother returns from therapy, there will be a lot of follow-ups, both in the house and in his daily activities that must be meticulously adhered to. There is a medicine called Disulfiram, which only the doctor can prescribe, and it is very powerful that even if he attempts to drink a small quantity, he can have serious reactions that may sometimes entail hospitalization. You have to monitor his intake of the medicine and keep a close watch on him. He also has to go for regular counseling for at least three years! Apart from his health, he will also affect the family and all his children will carry genetic factors for alcoholism. If he is into business or working, he will soon not be able to continue and he will go into financial ruin. He will lose all his friends and become ostracized by his society. He will lose his dignity, self-esteem, self-confidence, and become a misfit. He will also lose his sexual capacity, liver function, heart function, kidney etc. These are all elements of the Rock Bottom concept. T will be difficult since he has become addicted to alcohol for some time and has a lot to do. The consumption of Antabuse has to be carefully monitored to see that he not only consumes the medication but is also avoiding alcohol. Ultimately, it is his will power and the support that he receives from the medical fraternity and his close and dear ones. He must also learn to substitute and deal with the oral need, a rigid value system, the script issue, and of course take a look at all the genetic factors to plan a strategy not to get into what is called ‘cross addictions’ i.e. Another form of addiction that may appear alright but is in fact as bad as the primary addiction. The center or hospital and the counselor will advise and guide him on several measures and precautions he will need to take to stay with his resolve. Even after the rehabilitation he must attend AA meetings and continue this support for a long time. The family will also need to attend some sessions and go for Al-anon meetings for their co-dependency issues. He cannot be treated in isolation because the family has gotten used to his drinking and have made some unhealthy adaptations to somehow cope. The children, and whoever else is there, will also have to attend meetings to work out their issues because of the father’s habit. In fact, they are all suffering from the Adult Children Of Alcoholics Syndrome (ACOAs), which in effect means that people are genetically predisposed to alcoholism or can have cross addiction problems and that you will have similar traits of the abusing alcoholic but in a milder form. There are special support groups for them all over the world. Should they touch or indulge in alcohol or any addictive substances or behaviors, they could also become full-fledged addicts themselves. Now you should not give up on him but neither should you harass him. Be continuously after him and in the end, you will succeed. His medical condition warrants a very strict course of action. He needs to identify why you needs to drink, and go back into his childhood to find out other influences on his personality that makes him prone to addiction. Meet with an addiction counselor and work with them to sort out this drive. The simplest thing to do is to do some other interesting activity during the evening times. Meet his oral needs with some other non-intoxicating drink like soups, juices, and sodas with lime, etc. If you think that he will find it very difficult, then admit yourself to a hospital and go for de-addiction: which normally lasts for about two weeks. Then follow that up with addiction counseling from a professional for at least three years to completely get rid of the habit. If this is also not enough, then admit yourself into a de-addiction center and stay there for at least 6 months and after that attend counseling with a professional.
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