There is a danger that with the increasing attention to the current opiate epidemic alcohol addiction may be minimized. I see this trend in our treatment groups. People that are coming into treatment see drugs like heroin and meth as “hard”, and downgrade the danger of alcohol. Instead they display a belief that alcohol is “not the same as drugs”, and even propose using alcohol instead of the “hard drugs”.
People that are coming into treatment see drugs like heroin and meth as “hard”, and downgrade the danger of alcohol.
This is dangerous. Alcohol is an extremely dangerous drug that continues to cause death and great damage. Here is a short list of its dangers:
- Alcohol, along with Benzodiazepines (a family of anti anxiety medications), can cause death in people trying to get off them without medical supervision. This is not so with drugs like cocaine which is considered “hard”.
- The death toll related to alcohol continues to be extremely high, especially when you considered the deaths related to car accidents caused by alcohol.
- The extreme extent of the destruction that alcohol has on families cannot be estimated. Alcohol abuse and the behaviors that it creates destroys individuals and families for generations.
Alcohol treatment needs to continue to be highlighted as necessary and even urgent in our culture.