Alcoholism is a lonely disease. There are actually many forms of alcohol abuse that you may come across. Some don’t sit and drink all day every day, some alcoholics only drink on the weekends but still need help. Try as they may, there always comes a time when the individual’s binge drinking addiction becomes apparent. If you have experienced exposure to someone’s drinking problem, you might want to know how to stop binge drinking.
Government Definition of Binge Drinking
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism offers a more scientific definition. The timeframe experts look at spans two hours. For example, if you’re a man and consume five drinks during this time, you’re binge drinking. For women, the number of drinks reduces to four in the two-hour window.
Narrowing down the definition even more, experts suggest that this behavior takes place at least once a month. If the binge drinking takes place on at least five days in a month, you may be falling under the heavy-use category. On the other side, drinking one drink per day (for women), or two (for men), indicates light drinking. As such, it points to a lower risk of developing an alcohol use disorder.
The binge drinking definition gives you an unbiased measuring stick for your behavior. You can tally your drinking at home, in private, and realize whether you graduated from binging to alcohol abuse. Binging doesn’t always mean that you’re dealing with an alcohol use disorder. However, almost everyone who suffers from the disease binge-drinks. What the numbers don’t tell you is there’s hope. If you’ve tried to stop the behavior but found that you can’t, addiction treatment is the answer. At our rehab center, you undergo addiction therapy services, such as:
- Men’s alcohol rehab or women’s alcohol rehab
- One-on-one psychotherapy
- Recreational therapy
- Trauma treatment
- Nutritional counseling
Dangers of Binge Drinking
Increased Risk of Car Accidents
Car accidents pose one of the biggest short-term dangers of binge drinking due to intoxicated driving. Binge drinking affects coordination, decision-making, and reaction time. Poor decision-making often leads people to drive while drunk. Their impaired reaction and coordination means they are more likely to get into a car accident.
Alcohol Poisoning
Alcohol poisoning happens when you drink so much that your body can’t metabolize the alcohol. The buildup of alcohol in your system starts to impair essential bodily functions, like breathing and your heartbeat. In severe cases, alcohol poisoning can cause coma and even death.
Alcohol Use Disorder
Regular binge drinking puts you at risk for alcohol use disorder or even full-blown alcoholism. If this happens, the dangers of binge drinking become manifold. It can damage your memory, family life, and job prospects.
For example, you might withdraw from normal social activities like helping your kids with their homework or playing sports with your friends. Your work performance can drop off or become erratic, which can lead to demotions or getting fired.
Physical Damage
The long-term physical dangers of binge drinking are quite severe. For example, you risk a number of health problems, including:
- Brain damage
- Liver damage
- Liver failure
- Compromised immune system
- Heart disease
- Several types of cancer
Signs of Binge Drinking and Alcoholism
You never want to guess about a loved one’s binge drinking problem. Given enough time, the issue will eventually reveal itself. If there’s any doubt about what signs you can expect to see from a binge drinker, here’s a few symptoms to guide your way:
- They may not drink every day but drink heavily when they do
- They often drink far past the point of intoxication
- Their levels of alcohol consumption are on the rise
- Their drinking often leads them to black out
- They cause personal harm to themselves or others when drunk
If any combination of these symptoms appears, then it might be time for you to suggest alcohol abuse treatment. Binge drinking often appears as socially acceptable. Many of the people who drink only on the weekends, but to excess, can be classified as binge drinkers. Common as it may be, these people need help.
How to Stop Binge Drinking
Keeping an intervention as a last resort, here’s an idea of how to stop binge drinking. At all times, you will want to keep communication from becoming too negative. It’s okay to point out you believe the individual has a drinking problem but avoid accusations. They only serve to make the individual defensive.
If you will take the time to learn about alcoholism, your knowledge will guide you. Prior to the initial confrontation, practice your approach. When you finally deliver your concerns, do so with honesty, compassion and the intention to listen. Once all the cards are on the table, you can broach the idea of them seeking help. Offering your support along the way could help. If this approach is successful, an intervention might not be necessary.
Treatment for Binge Drinking in Asheville, NC
Our Crest View Recovery Center facility in North Carolina is a progressive treatment center with a rock-solid reputation. We offer a wide range of treatment options built around modern treatment modalities in conjunction with holistic treatments. We focus not on race, age, sex or religion. Instead, we focus on treating the whole individual. Here’s some useful information about our facility and services:
- Intensive Outpatient Program
- Dual diagnosis treatment
- Holistic therapy options
- Trauma therapy
- 12-Step program
Now knowing how to stop binge drinking, it might be the right time to step forward and do just that. If you can get your loved one interested in getting treatment, that’s when Crest View Recovery Center will be able to step in and help. For more information about our facility and approach to treatment, please call us at 8663272505.
