Alcohol Help

Is alcohol addiction destroying you and your family?

A July 2009 survey published by charity Action on Addiction shows that almost one-third of children under 16 in the UK live with at least one binge-drinking parent. While their parents may not be clinically dependent on alcohol, the researchers point out, excessive consumption can still lead to impaired parenting capacity.

In fact, anyone who lives with someone who won’t admit there is a drinking problem – young or old – suffers as a result. For that reason, it is often said that alcoholism is a family disease. Where there’s alcoholism, there’s dysfunction.

So what can family members of a person who is not strong enough to stop drinking do – both for themselves and the alcoholic? The first step is to stop blaming themselves, says Sue Allchurch, research director of Linwood Manor Group.

"It’s very common for the families of alcoholics to believe that if they acted differently, the drinking would stop, and to adapt their behaviour accordingly," she says. "The truth is that only the drinker can make the choice to change."

They should also stop ‘covering up’ for the family member – such as clearing away the evidence of drunken behaviour or phoning their workplace to say they’re too ill to come to work, when really, they’re hung over.

Any attempt to address the issue with the family member should be done in a non-confrontational way – preferably when their loved one is sober. They should be ready to provide practical help and support, but not force the issue until the family member is ready to admit that drink has been a problem for a long time.

When that point comes, it’s vital that the whole family enters a period of recovery, not just the problem drinker. "The likelihood is that they will be scared, confused and exhausted, too," says Sue Allchurch. A good alcohol treatment programme, she says, will actively work to ensure that the whole family receives counseling and therapy, giving them the chance to express their feelings and work through the anger and unhappiness that has become part of their day-to-day lives.

They may also wish to seek the support of organisations like Al-Anon and Alateen, who are highly experienced in helping those who really need help with alcohol. Whatever stage the drinker is at, whether they are sober or still struggling, the group offers support and understanding for those who are in the supporting role.

And once the drinker has entered a period of recovery, there is still much work to be done. Even though sobriety offers a new beginning and a chance to restore family life, it can also bring a new set of challenges and adjustments. At Al-Anon and Alateen, family members learn to identify and focus on their own issues, without confusing or complicating matters for the person who really needs help with their alcohol problem in their family.

Linwood Manor

Heavy drinking and why people are drinking more

A newly launched survey from Mintel this week says that British drinkers are unwittingly knocking back more alcohol units than they were nearly a decade ago because of the prevalence of extra-strong lagers and high-alcohol wines. It yet again brings into the foreground the issue of over-consumption and its impact on our general health and wellbeing.

The good news within the report is that the appeal of binge drinking among younger people is falling. In the past five years, the number drinking at least two or three times a week has decreased by 13% among 18- to 24-year-old men and 26% among 18- to 24-year-old women. In addition, there is evidence that binge drinking is becoming less socially acceptable among this group. However on the flip side, it also highlighted the fact that 22% of adults drink more at home than a year ago because it helps them to relax.

This might not sound like a shocking statistic, but the link between mood and alcohol has always been a dangerous one. Where drink has been a problem for a long time it is not only bad for your health but your mind as well. Renowned for its ability to lift mood, alcohol has also been shown to be a depressant. In fact a new study on alcoholism[2] supports the idea that many people who drink regularly to ‘up their mood’ or cope with blues are at a greater risk of alcoholism. Heavy drinking and attitude shifts are strongly linked and these new findings, published following clinical trials, indicate that depression is primarily related to binge drinking.

The researchers who conducted the study, Young-Wolff and co-investigator Dr. Carol Prescott, are quoted as saying: "We would suggest that occasional use of alcohol to relax or unwind is not necessarily a bad idea. What should be avoided is heavy drinking as a regular coping strategy, since this can lead to alcohol misuse and is often a means of avoiding dealing with the issues that are contributing to the negative emotions."

Sue Allchurch, director of Linwood Group, explains further: "The research by Young-Wolff and Prescott only underlines what we see here at the Linwood Group treatment centres; that there is a strong link between alcoholism and depression. A person who is drinking too much is likely to think that the drink is helping them to cope with and relieve the symptoms of depression. However, it is in fact prolonging and exacerbating the negative feelings. Yet, when they begin to feel depressed, they increasingly need alcohol to get them through the day. This is why we would strongly recommend that anyone who does not have the strength to stop drinking to seek professional help. Just withdrawing from alcohol will not deal with the underlying issues that began the drinking pattern in the first place, and medical supervision and counselling will be needed to help deal with these issues in a constructive and healthy way".

We have already seen in the research above that higher alcohol levels are linked to depression, but how do we know when that the drink has been a problem for a long time for our mind as well as our health? How do we know when is it time to sit up and take notice for ourselves, or a loved one? The Royal College of Psychiatrists lists the following as warning signs that show when alcohol is becoming a problem to a person’s mental health:

* The person does not feel right without a drink, or need a drink to start the day
* They get very shaky, sweaty, and anxious/tense a few hours after their last drink
* They can drink a lot without becoming drunk
* They need to drink more and more to get the same effect
* They try to stop, but find they can’t
* They carry on drinking even though they can see it is interfering with their work, family and relationships
* They get "memory blanks" where they can’t remember what happened for a period of hours or days.

If you recognise any of these warning signs in yourself or a family member, it is probably time to seek help and advice from qualified experts.

Linwood Manor

Commenting on the report from the British Medical Association Board of Science, ‘Under the influence – the damaging effect of alcohol marketing on young people’, Alcohol Concern Chief Executive Don Shenker said:

“Alcohol Concern welcomes the launch of this report from the British Medical Association. It recognises that we need to make tough decisions to tackle our country’s growing alcohol problem.

“There’s no longer any doubt – the heavy marketing and promotion of alcohol, combined with low prices – are encouraging young people to drink at a level our health services are struggling to cope with.

“It’s high time the Government listened to the medical profession – alcohol is a major public health problem and it’s time for action to reduce the harm it causes.

Alcohol Concern

Rates of binge drinking were 37 percent lower among eighth-grade students in communities in seven states that used a prevention system designed to reduce drug use and delinquent behavior compared to teenagers in communities that did not use the system.

Eighth graders in the towns that offered the Communities That Care prevention system also had significantly lower levels of alcohol and smokeless tobacco use and engaged in fewer delinquent behaviors, according to a new University of Washington paper being published Monday (Sept. 7) in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

The findings come from the ongoing Community Youth Development Study that compares teenagers living in 12 pairs of small- to moderate-size towns in Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Oregon, Utah and Washington. It is tracking the behavior of more than 4,400 students for five years. The study is the first community-randomized trial of Communities That Care, a system developed by J. David Hawkins and Richard Catalano of the UW’s Social Development Research Group to lower rates of delinquency and drug use and to promote healthy behaviors.

"This study shows we can prevent adolescent risk behaviors community wide by using this system," said Hawkins, lead author of the paper and founding director of the research group, a part of the UW’s School of Social Work.

"The most dramatic finding concerned binge drinking. We asked youngsters if they had consumed five or more drinks of alcohol in one sitting in the past two weeks. We know kids who drink that way are at risk for developing alcohol abuse and dependence later. This binge drinking is occurring when children are 13 and 14 years of age, so we are actually preventing the likelihood of later alcohol problems. This is very important from a public health standpoint."

The study found that 5.7 percent of the eighth-grade students in the intervention towns engaged in binge drinking in the past two weeks compared to 9 percent of the eighth graders in the communities not using the system. The findings are based on data collected four years after each of the intervention towns began using the system.

The researchers also asked the participants about their use of seven types of drugs – cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, inhalants, marijuana, alcohol, prescription drugs and other illicit drugs – during the past month. Teenagers in the intervention towns reported lower levels of use of all seven substances and the differences were statistically significant for alcohol and smokeless tobacco. There was a 48 percent reduction in the use of smokeless tobacco and a 23 percent reduction in the number of teens drinking alcohol.

Data also showed a significant difference in the number of delinquent behaviors the students engaged in over the past year. Teenagers from the intervention towns committed 31 percent fewer acts such as stealing something worth more than $5, purposely damaging or destroying property that didn’t belong to them or attacking someone with the intent of causing serious harm.

The study also found that young people in the communities using the Communities That Care system were significantly less likely to begin smoking tobacco, drinking alcohol or committing delinquent acts between the fifth and eighth grades.

The researchers recruited and matched 12 pairs of cities by population, racial and ethnic diversity, crime rates and other factors. One city in each pair was randomly chosen to test the Communities That Care system and received training during the first year on how to implement it and build a supportive community coalition.

The training included a process for each town to assess the levels of the risk factors that contribute to local drug use and delinquency. After these were identified, the communities were asked to select two to five of them as their top priorities. After that they were given information about scientifically tested programs that addressed each of their priority risk factors, then they selected programs they would use and were trained in implementation. The other cities were given no assistance.

"What makes this system different from other prevention efforts is that it provides community coalitions with scientifically based tools with which to make decisions based on what is important to each town," said Hawkins. "The key is empowering each community to make scientifically grounded decisions about what program they need. That builds ownership.

"Communities That Care provides a menu of tested policies and programs and offers a system for reassessment every two years so a community can change or modify its program to achieve the outcomes it wants."

University of Washington

Alcohol charity Drinkaware is today (1st September) unveiling a £100 million campaign to encourage 18-24 year olds to evaluate their drinking habits and in the long term, change the social acceptability of drunkenness. The campaign is launched alongside new research from Drinkaware which shows that one in three young adults (32%) claims they don’t need advice about alcohol(1). This is despite the fact that in the last twelve months, almost one in four (23%) have been ashamed of their appearance when drunk, 25% have not known how they got home, nearly one third (31%) have blacked out, one in 10 (9%) have been in a fight and just under half (48%) have vomited due to drinking too much.

In a new approach to tackling alcohol misuse, pubs, bars, phoneboxes, supermarkets and off licences around the country will carry campaign posters, drink mats, stickers and shelf strips presenting tips for smarter drinking. The campaign’s ‘Why let good times go bad?’ logo and strapline will also be featured on 13 million products including neck labels on bottles, cans and multi-packs. Free pints of water from pubs, bars and clubs to encourage young adult drinkers to pace their drinking is one of four creative executions people will see linked with the campaign.

The Campaign for Smarter Drinking* is funded by the drinks industry and run in partnership with Government. The biggest ever responsible drinking campaign will present young adults with practical tips to help them curb the ill effects of their drinking: eating a meal; drinking water or soft drinks between alcoholic drinks; looking after mates and planning your journey home. Other campaign features include:

• One in two UK phone boxes showing one of four campaign posters
• Staff in pubs, off licences and supermarkets up and down the country educated in alcohol awareness.

Chris Sorek, Chief Executive of Drinkaware, says: “When people are drinking and having fun it can be easy to get carried away and not recognise the point when a good night can take a turn for the worse. Changing the drinking culture in Britain won’t happen overnight, but with the right support, information and advice, young adults can change their own drinking patterns.

“Some young adults think they know all there is to know about alcohol, but simple tips like eating before going out drinking, pacing yourself with water or soft drinks, looking after your mates and planning your journey home, can help them stay safe and prevent their good times going bad.

“The financial and social impact of alcohol misuse affects everyone. Parents, teachers, health professionals, charities, the drinks industry and central and local governments all have a part to play in reducing the harm caused to young people by alcohol misuse.”

Each year, alcohol misuse for all ages costs society the NHS around £2.7 billion, although the wider cost to society including crime and disorder, social and family breakdown and sickness absence is estimated at closer to £25.1 billion(2). Binge drinking among adults under 25 is of particular concern with nearly 50,000 16-24 year olds admitted to hospital in England and Wales in 2007/08 due to alcohol related causes(3). New research from Drinkaware shows three in 10 18-24 year olds (30%) drinks to get drunk when they go out.

Alan Johnson, Secretary of State for the Home Office, says: “Alcohol-related violent crime has fallen by a third since 1997, but no-one is suggesting the job is done. We must educate our young people that binge drinking is socially unacceptable and can have grave consequences. This is not just the responsibility of the Government, but for us all, and that is why I am pleased the drinks industry is making this commitment.

“We are determined to tackle alcohol fuelled crime and disorder which damages our communities, ruins lives and costs the UK economy billions each year in police and hospital resources.

“Police now have more tools and powers to tackle disruptive drinkers and we are consulting on new rules to ensure businesses that sell alcohol are doing so responsibly.”

Andy Burnham, Secretary of State for Health, said: "The majority of people drink responsibly but for too many alcohol has become a serious health problem.

"The alcohol industry has a big responsibility to tackle excessive drinking and there are many things we can do, by working together, to promote a healthy attitude to alcohol. This campaign is a good step forward – I hope it will help to change attitudes."

A Drinkaware report, ‘Why let good times go bad? Tackling binge drinking among British 18-24 year olds’, also shows that:

• 55% don’t keep track of how much they’re drinking when they’re out;
• 46% don’t drink water or soft drinks to pace themselves when they’re out drinking;
• Over a third (34%) drink nine or more units when drinking socially – for both men and women this is more than double the daily unit guidelines. 18-24 year olds drink more units in an average session compared to any other age group(4);
• More than three quarters (77%) don’t like it when their friends get too drunk and end up being a burden.

Throughout the campaign, Drinkaware will work with major employers, social networks, clubs and colleges to deliver messages to young people.

Drinkaware

‘Message on a Bottle’ a new report published by Alcohol Concern has found that the majority of alcohol sold by supermarkets is poorly labelled, leaving customers in the dark when it comes to vital health information. The report found that only 4% of products reviewed carried all five elements that make up the industry best practice label. Only 18% of products carried information about sensible drinking levels and 56% carried unit information.

In 1998 a voluntary agreement was reached between the drinks industry and the government to introduce unit labelling on all products. In 2008 the drinks industry made further promises to improve alcohol labelling but this research shows that many producers are falling short of their corporate social responsibility pledges. In the light of this poor progress Alcohol Concern is calling on government to take decisive action to introduce mandatory health labelling on alcohol products and for supermarkets to only promote products that are clearly labelled.

Knowing how many units are in alcoholic products and what sensible drinking levels are is part of the Government’s alcohol strategy to help consumers make informed decisions about their drinking similar to consumers being informed about calories and recommended daily allowances (RDAs) in food products.

The charity says that with regular alcohol consumption being linked to 47 different conditions or illnesses it is in the public interest that the government introduces mandatory labels which display, unit information, sensible drinking levels and health warnings.

Commenting on the release of ‘Message on a Bottle’ Don Shenker, Chief Executive of Alcohol Concern said:

“There is a huge disparity between the drinks industry’s enthusiasm to promote and advertise alcohol to the public and their willingness to give consumers the facts about what they are drinking. Supermarkets promote alcohol at irresponsibly low prices and do very little to ensure that consumers have sufficient information to make healthy choices about their consumption. Profit is clearly being put above public health and it is time for government to act.

“Supermarkets claim they act responsibly in addressing alcohol misuse and yet they consistently fail to live up to their corporate responsibility statements. They have a unique opportunity to only sell and promote products that are clearly labelled and we call on them to do so from now on.”

Alcohol Concern looked at 10 promoted products in branches of five supermarkets, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Waitrose. It tested the packaging and labels of these products against five criteria set out by the Department of Health as the ideal components of an alcohol label: unit information, sensible drinking guidelines, information about drinking whilst pregnant, the Drinkaware website address and the ‘know your limits’ slogan. Alcohol Concern also looked at supermarket own brand labelled products for comparison.

With supermarket own label products almost always being better labelled, it is clear supermarkets are aware of good practice in terms of alcohol labelling yet continue to let customers down by promoting products which have poor labels.

Alcohol Concern

Commenting on the introduction of Drinking Banning Orders from Monday 31 August, Alcohol Concern Chief Executive Don Shenker said:

‘Used as part of a package of measures to reduce alcohol harms these initiatives can make a real difference to safety on our streets.

‘Policing of alcohol-related crime must go hand in hand with more robust measures to curb irresponsible and illegal sales and improved treatment pathways for dependent drinkers.

‘We welcome the idea of positive behaviour courses to educate people about alcohol harm ‘ these courses should be available for everyone who has been given a Drinking Banning Order.

Alcohol Concern

The Priory Lodge, London
Total abstinence from alcohol, achieved through group experience.

About us:

Details of alcohol detox programme; Initial medical examination by consultant or SHO, when appropriate medication is decided.

The Priory Lodge believes in total abstinence from alcohol, achieved through group experience, specialist workshops, attendance at 12-step fellowship meetings and alternative activity e.g. yoga, gym. The service aims to help the patient achieve greater self-awareness with an ability to better cope with emotional disturbance.

The Priory Lodge will exclude clients with: A history of violence and/or arson. An active forensic history.

Free alcohol assessments are carried out by Priory Lodge to include some history and investigation of substance misuse with a joint decision made about suitability and appropriateness. Other admissions to the programme may be made through the consultant psychiatrist.

The Priory Lodge will discharge clients who:
*repeatedly break the rules
*use substances prohibited by the Priory
*are violent
*use abusive language.

Harm reduction policies for clients leaving the programme early; Clients are referred back to the consultant, GP or referring agent. They are encouraged to continue 12-step fellowship meetings.

Resettlement / after-care services; Aftercare of one night per week for one year is included in the initial package. If a patient is going on to secondary care, then costs, such as transport, are borne by the patient or hospital.

Contact Details:

The Priory Lodge
Priory Lane
London
SW15 5JJ

Telephone: 0208 392 4250