According to Van Wormer and Davis (2016) a lcoholism is the inability to control and manage one’s drinking behaviour. It is also referred to as alcohol use disorder. The condition is majorly divided or categorized into three; severe, moderate, and mild. Each of the groupings has different symptoms and signs and can lead to harmful health effects. Any intake of alcohol if left unattended to or uncontrolled can lead to one spiralling out of control. One struggling with the condition often has the feeling that they cannot undertake their daily chores and engagements without taking alcohol. Van Wormer and Davis (2016) argue that t he resulting situation can lead to various side effects impacting on one’s lifestyle, professional commitments, relationships, and general health status. With time, the condition can get out of hand and lead to damaging complications. With a large number of adults struggling with alcoholism, it is vital to outline possible treatment options that can be used. The paper will look at the treatment options of the condition and an insight on the best commendable treatment.
Treatment Options
The health complications often point to severe life-threatening situations; thus, the need to have in place strategic treatment options. According to Van Wormer and Davis (2016) t here are various treatment plans and options depending on the level of abuse, severity, and frequency. ( Bradley & Kivlahan, 2014) maintains that r ecovery does take a long time, and for example, in the case of rehab, recovery goes beyond the duration spent in the treatment facility. Thus, treatment takes time, commitment and by the use of various strategies.
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Support Groups
According to Bradley and Kivlahan (2014) s upport groups are an old but effective treatment strategy that involves a fellowship of addicts who share on their hopes, weaknesses, experiences, and strength to recover from alcoholism. However, this treatment is most effective if combined with other treatment plans such as rehabilitation or use of drugs ( Van Wormer & Davis (2016) . Mutual support, accountability, and fellowship often help alcoholics to share their experiences and craving to stop drinking and maintain a clean lifestyle. Depending on the arrangement, a support group comes with only the willingness to join one and has no major high cost. The main component is the group structure.
Costs may, however, be incurred in contributing towards hiring a meeting point or food during the meeting which may be low ranging in the $100 to $500 but this depends on various group factors and arrangements ( Van Wormer & Davis (2016) . Often the success rate is reasonable but mostly relies on the willingness of the addict.
Pharmaceutical Treatment
There is no apparent drug that treats alcoholism. However, some drugs are used to minimize the craving and help stop the habit. The Food and Drug Administration approved three main drugs for the treatment of the condition. They include Antabuse (Disulfiram), Naltrexone (Revia), and Acamprosate (Campral). Antabuse works by making the addict sick upon consuming alcohol. Naltrexone reduces the craving of alcohol and also prevents the impact of alcohol in the brain. Antabuse plus assessment costs approximately $250 in most private health facilities and pharmaceuticals. On the other hand, a month supply of acamprosate costs $125 ( Bradley & Kivlahan, 2014) . Combine with other treatment options such as support groups, the use of drugs is very active with a possible success rate of over 80 per cent. On the other hand, Acamprosate reduces the discomfort and distress an alcoholic undergoes upon stopping the habit ( Bradley & Kivlahan, 2014) .
The use of these drugs works best in a situation the addict is willing and ready to stop drinking. Medication is best preferred and used as extra help to control one’s addiction to alcohol. The main components are the drug prescriptions and the drugs.
Alcohol Rehab/Detoxification
The Food and Drug Administration state that detoxification from alcoholism comes into effect between three to eight days. Dependency on alcohol thus goes down. Van Wormer and Davis (2016) argue that t he primary goal of detoxification is to avoid one’s craving and desire to get back to excessive drinking. Rehabilitation facilities are the best for detoxification and the two combined offer desirable results for an alcoholic ( Bradley & Kivlahan, 2014) . Within a rehab, alcohol addicts are provided with therapy and counseling treatments further helping them to remain sober and stop the intake of alcohol. The primary components include registration in the rehab and therapy/counseling sessions.
For long term rehabilitation, the cost is approximately $3500 for admission in addition to other expenses. Short term periods can cost a total of $2500 which may range between a few weeks to several months ( Van Wormer & Davis, 2016) . The success rate for rehabilitation is high as compared to other treatment options. However, it all depends on an individual’s willingness and commitment to recover and overcome the disorder.
Recommended Treatment
Alcohol treatment is a long process to ridding the body and stopping alcohol craving. The best treatment strategy is rehabilitation and detoxification in which the addict is enrolled in a rehabilitation centre where he/she receives treatment services that are both long and short term. During the time at the rehab, the addict will be undertaken through the process of detoxification, counseling, and healing therapies. A combination of detoxification, advice, and therapy services are best poised to clean up an addict and reduce alcohol craving.
References
Bradley, K. A., & Kivlahan, D. R. (2014). Bringing patient-centered care to patients with alcohol use disorders. Jama , 311 (18), 1861-1862. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4097878/
Giorgi, I., Ottonello, M., Vittadini, G., & Bertolotti, G. (2015). Psychological changes in alcohol-dependent patients during a residential rehabilitation program. Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment , 11 , 2989. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4676624/
Van Wormer, K., & Davis, D. R. (2016). Addiction treatment . Cengage Learning. http://www.academia.edu/download/30911946/vanwormer90824_0495090824_02.01_chapter01.pdf
