Alcohol Help

Defense Department officials are assessing ways to better prepare servicemembers, particularly members of the reserve and National Guard, for the stresses of combat so they’re better able to avoid alcohol-related problems when they return home, defense officials said today.

The goal, officials said, is to beef up existing strategies to address alcohol issues before and during deployments to mitigate post-deployment drinking problems.

The effort follows release of a Defense Department study that evaluated alcohol use before and after combat deployments. The study, conducted at the Naval Health Research Center in San Diego and published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association, revealed that a troubling number of the troops began abusing alcohol after returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The study included self-reported responses from almost 50,000 participants from the active and reserve components.

Reserve and National Guard members reported higher incidents of alcohol abuse than their active-duty counterparts, even if they were not exposed to combat.

Of responders, 4.8 percent of active-duty members and 7.1 percent of reserve-component members reported the onset of alcohol-related problems after deployment. Six percent of active-duty members and 8.8 percent of reservists and Guardsmen reported that they had begun heavy weekly drinking. In addition, 26.6 percent of active-duty members and 25.6 percent in the reserve components reported post-deployment binge drinking.

The study also showed that younger servicemembers were the most likely to show continued or new problems with alcohol after deployment.

Dr. Michael Kilpatrick, the Military Health System’s deputy director for force health protection and readiness programs, said the findings appear to show servicemembers are using alcohol to self-medicate in response to psychological or physical issues experienced during their deployment.

New information provided in the study will help the Defense Department do a better job of education and referral for treatment when alcohol issues are identified on post-deployment health assessments, he said.

“We can also refocus family support and education programs to discuss alcohol misuse and to educate all on resources available in the military, in the [Department of Veterans Affairs] and in the civilian community,” Kilpatrick said.

Within the National Guard, for example, officials are exploring new and better ways to address alcohol-related issues before and after their members deploy, said Emanuel Pacheco, National Guard Bureau spokesman.

The National Guard is in the process of placing a director of psychological health in all 54 states and territories, Pachecho reported. This official, a mental health counselor licensed to practice independently, will help Guard members with a variety of readjustment and reintegration concerns, he explained.

Pacheco called the new position another way the National Guard is helping to meet the needs of its members.

“The National Guard is constantly seeking better ways to maintain and improve the behavioral health and general well-being of its warriors through synergistic programs including chaplain support, family support, employment assistance, advocacy, counseling and training, and this new position is another way of meeting those needs,” he said. “We recognize the unique needs of our citizen-soldiers and -airmen and are constantly looking for innovative ways that we can better meet those needs.”

The “That Guy” campaign is one of the most recent DoD initiatives to increase awareness of the negative effects of excessive drinking. Launched in December 2006, the campaign targets the 18-to-24-year-old population with a warning not to become “that guy” whose overdrinking causes him to become a danger, an embarrassment and the butt of ridicule.

The services are promoting the campaign widely to promote responsible alcohol use and encourage members experiencing alcohol-related problems to seek help.

American Forces Press Service

Despair can be a terrible and destructive emotion. When a person is in the grip of alcohol addiction, it’s easy for them to label themselves a ‘hopeless case’. So rather than reaching out for help, they’re more likely instead to reach for another drink.

But research shows that people who enter alcohol rehab programmes have a very good chance of beating their addiction long term. Just ask Karen Fletcher – a little over a year ago, she was so drink-dependent that she’d run her once-successful business into the ground and her house was about to be repossesed.

"I was having regular blackouts and terrifying my family and friends by going missing for days at a time. I knew I was at rock-bottom and needed help," she says. So in July 2007, she used the last of her savings to check into the Linwood Manor Group’s alcohol rehabilitation centre in Barnsley, Yorkshire.

What a difference a year makes. These days, Karen’s fighting fit and looking forward to the future. "I am teetotal, and as happy and carefree as the day I left rehab. Alcohol would have cost me my life, if not for rehab," she says.
"I’m not tempted to drink," she adds. "Even the smell of alcohol reminds me of those dark days when I was addicted to it. I also feel and look much healthier. I’m fitter, and my skin is no longer pale and pasty. I’m teaching yoga and also training to be a counsellor so I can help others like me."

Of course, a successful rehabilitation like Karen’s depends hugely on how committed to recovery a client is and how much effort they invest in pursuit of that goal. But residential alcohol facilities can be a huge help in a number of ways, offering:

• A chance to detox in privacy, with medical supervision, in a completely alcohol-free environment;

• A period to reflect on past habits and behaviours, away from the stresses of daily routine and the negative influence of drinking partners;

• 24-hour access to specialist help from alcohol treatment professionals who are always on hand to offer support through the physiological and psychological challenges involved in rehabilitation;

• A wide range of counselling and therapy options, for both clients and their families, that will help them to re-discover their ‘real’ selves and to break negative habits and behaviour patterns.

For Karen Fletcher, as for many others, entering an alcohol rehab programme was the first step on a journey to a new life – a healthy, happy and productive one. "I feel free of my old life, as if the slate has been wiped clean," she says.

Linwood Manor

At quarter to one this morning Brixham Coastguard received several 999 calls from an 18 year old teenager reporting that he was in some form of distress on a cliff.

The boy told the Coastguard in the operations room that he was epileptic and had suffered a fit. He and a friend that was with him could not tell the Coastguard where they were and communications with the two boys was difficult as it became apparent that they were under the influence of alcohol.

Teignmouth and Torbay Coastguard rescue teams were called out to search the area. The teams with the assistance of the police helicopter Oscar 99 quickly located the boys. Ambulance and police officers were also requested to attend.

Due to the recent rainfall in the area and the make up of the ground where the boys were, it was deemed too dangerous to lower a cliff man down to the boys. A rescue helicopter was scrambled from Chivenor and Teignmouth lifeboat was requested to launch.

Whilst the helicopter was making its way to the location, it was decided to pick up Coastguard, ambulance and police personnel to drop them in on the coast. As units were moved in by the boat, it was discovered that there were a further 7 teenagers on a ledge surrounded on all sides by water.

The boy suffering from epilepsy was airlifted by the helicopter to the cliff top and transported to hospital by ambulance.

It was considered by the police and Coastguard units at the incident that it was too dangerous to extract the remaining seven boys and girls who were all under the influence. A decision was made that it was safer to leave them in the location they were in, until daylight.

Zoe Boyne, Duty Watch Manager Brixham Coastguard said:

This incident has tied up many resources throughout the night. It has also highlighted the dangers of young people putting themselves at risk in locations where they lose control of their actions due to the effects of intoxicating substances.

Devon and Cornwall Police are continuing with their enquiries into this incident.

Maritime And Coastguard Agency

When the executive committee and Division I board of directors of the National Collegiate Athletic Association meet for their annual gatherings in Indianapolis on August 7, it is likely they will have to take a hard look at the organization’s policies on advertising alcoholic beverages during the “March Madness” national championship basketball tournament.

This week, 60 Division I college presidents, 240 college athletic directors, and 101 football and basketball coaches from around the nation urged the NCAA and its president, Myles Brand, to end beer advertising on NCAA sports telecasts. Since 2005, more than one-third (358) of the colleges in the NCAA have endorsed a “College Commitment” pledge to eliminate alcohol advertising in televised college sports.

“It’s refreshing to see so many college presidents, athletic directors, and coaches standing up for what’s best for their institutions, sports programs, and student athletes,” said George A. Hacker, director of the Campaign for Alcohol-Free Sports TV at the Center for Science in the Public Interest. “Even officials at many major sports powerhouses, which derive some revenue from beer advertising, recognize the hypocrisy and illogic of the NCAA’s sell-out to beer peddlers.”

Former U.S. Representative Tom Osborne, past head football coach and current Athletic Director at the University of Nebraska, has been a strong proponent to add beer advertising to the list of products that are not allowed during broadcasts of NCAA sporting events. In a letter to NCAA president Myles Brand, Dr. Osborne stated support for curtailing beer advertisements based on the “overwhelming evidence that alcohol is harmful to college students and young people in general,”

In their letters, the college officials asserted that current NCAA policy allowing beer ads is inconsistent with the mission and values of higher education and sports and undermines colleges’ effortsto prevent and reduce alcohol problems among college students and underage youth. Those problems are among the most costly and persistent issues facing college administrators today.

More than 40 percent of college students binge drink—consuming five or more drinks on at least one occasion in the past 30 days. Among college students between the ages of 18 and 24, alcohol is involved in approximately 599,000 injuries, 696,000 assaults, 97,000 sexual assaults, and 1,700 deaths from unintentional injuries, including from car crashes, each year.

The coaches’ letter to Myles Brand, which included signers from Florida State University, University of Memphis, Georgetown University, The Ohio State University, Tulane University, The Citadel, Stanford University, the United States Air Force Academy, the University of Virginia, and the University of Washington, expressed concern about the prominence of alcohol advertising in televised college sports and stated that “student athletes competing in NCAA sporting events should not be associated with the very product that causes them the most harm and is clearly not in their best interests.”

According to TNS Media Intelligence, two beer marketers—Anheuser-Busch and Miller Brewing—spent nearly $30 million to advertise during the 2007 NCAA national basketball championships. Both were among the top five advertisers, and the beer category was the second-leading advertiser behind automobiles. Nonetheless, expenditures on beer advertising account approximately for no more than five percent of total broadcast revenues to the NCAA.

The NCAA’s advertising policy on its face excludes “those advertisements and advertisers … that do not appear to be in the best interests of higher education and student athletes” and specifically prohibits ads for cigarettes, sports wagering, gambling, nightclubs, firearms and weapons, athletic recruitment services, and depictions of any student-athlete group in a degrading, demeaning or disrespectful manner. “Impermissible” ads also include NC-17-rated motion pictures, television programming or interactive games, and alcoholic beverages. But, ads for malt beverages, beer, and wine products that do not exceed six percent alcohol by volume are excepted, with limitations. CSPI says that that exception for beer makes no sense, because beer is the most popular and most problematic alcoholic drink among college students.

Center for Science in the Public Interest

The summer months can be an emotional rollercoaster ride for the UK’s student population. After the stress of exams comes the euphoria of post-exam festivities. Then there’s the anxious wait for results, culminating in a flood of celebrations or commiserations.

But those that start to rely on alcohol as a ‘crutch’ to deal with these highs and lows are putting themselves at serious risk of developing alcohol addiction problems, warn specialists at Linwood Manor Group.

"It’s no secret that there’s a strong culture of teenage binge drinking in the UK and, in student communities, that trend is often particularly pronounced," says Sue Allchurch, research director Linwood Manor Group.

As a result, young people with strong academic records and bright future prospects are throwing it all away by establishing patterns of drinking behaviour that could ultimately lead to alcohol addiction, she says.

"Many students dismiss binge drinking as part-and-parcel of the university experience. But patients of all ages regularly tell me that it was at university that their problems with alcohol began. The alcohol abuse didn’t end when they graduated, it simply got worse," she says.

In the summer months, says Allchurch, students need to be aware of how much is at stake if they abuse alcohol. In particular, they should remember:

• You can still have a good time without alcohol. When the weather’s good, the summer months offer countless opportunities for participating in fun, alcohol-free activities, from hill-walking to a simple game of football in the park. And the long summer vacations are a good time to catch up on other activities that may have fallen by the wayside while you were revising for exams: seeing that film you missed, reading that book you bought ages ago, or trips to the theatre or art gallery.

• Excessive drinking won’t make celebrations any better. A drink can make you feel more relaxed and confident in social situations, but you could quickly become reliant on alcohol as a social crutch if you don’t cultivate alcohol-free ways of dealing with shyness or insecurity. And excessive drinking that leads to slurring, stumbling, tears, aggression or vomiting doesn’t make anyone more attractive or more popular.

• Abusing alcohol means gambling with your future. Even in the short term, alcohol abuse takes it toll. Recent research into the academic performance among second-year university students from Edge Hill University showed a strong correlation between alcohol consumption and lower marks. In fact, alcohol was shown to be a far stronger predictor of academic performance than entrance qualifications and IQ. In the long term, alcohol dependency could seriously hamper or even destroy your hopes for the future, putting a fulfilling career and healthy relationships beyond your reach. "Your student years should be a positive, constructive time. Have the courage to say no to excessive drinking and make building your future the priority instead," says Allchurch.

If you would like help, contact the Alcoholism Clinic at Linwood Manor.

Linwood Manor