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Driving away addiction blues

Addiction to alcohol can be tackled by involving the family and using right medicines for the withdrawal symptoms

KILL THE KICK Beat alcohol addiction PHOTO: K. K. MUSTAFAH

If intake of alcohol is stretched to the extent where it transcends over health, personal, financial and work limitations, it is termed as addiction. Alcohol is a drug which acts on the nervous system by exciting, at the same time limiting, the impulsiveness. Dopamine is another substance released more at the junction of two nerve cells that increase the pleasurable aspects encouraging one to go for another drink. Soon, one drink which used to give the "kick" takes more than three to four, and then in search of the elusive pleasure one goes on and in a few years finds oneself getting addicted.

If one is compelled to have a drink, he would get irritated if unable to find one, drinks alone, keeps increasing the amount of alcohol every time and finds himself unable to enjoy regular hobbies and interests as the intoxication leads one to legal and relationship problems till he finds himself in need of de-addiction therapy.

Bad effects of alcohol

The first effect of alcohol is on the nervous system causing sedation and leading to errors in emotion and judgement. As it progresses, it could lead to speech and muscular disturbances. Numbness of hands and feet is common. Disordered thinking and dementia or loss of memory is bound to happen.

It leads to depression of vital centres of the brain.

The liver, which produces bile and helps in digestion of fat is affected by the destruction of tissue and there is loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting and jaundice, and finally cirrhosis of liver which could be irreversible.

The stomach is so preoccupied by the alcohol that vital nutrients are barred from absorption leading to various deficiencies even while pancreas gets depressed thereby affecting the metabolism and digestion of carbohydrates and proteins. It can lead to hypertension and thereby decreased function of the cardiac muscles. Coupled with diabetes, it can lead to various complications in the vital organs of the body.

If there is any stress due to which the addiction has occurred, the sufferer's family would be of great help and the situations can be better explained to the person through counselling.

One should be motivated to maintain abstinence from the drug.

Any supposed ill effects of abstinence like nausea, and trembling can be easily taken care of with the help of medicines. Where there is a will, there is a way.

Homoeopathic medicine has good remedies to antidote bad effects of alcohol. It also has remedies, which can get rid of any effects during abstinence. More importantly, as long as the person has the will, the craving of alcohol also can be drastically reduced. Chelidonium, Lycopodium, Berberis vulgaris are a few remedies which can prevent further degenerative changes in the liver and relieve gastritis like symptoms while Iris vers, Chionanthus help the pancreas. The circulatory disturbances can be helped with remedies like Hamamellis, Phosphorus, and Arsenic. While Acid sulph, Quercus, Nux vomica and Cinchona are a few remedies, which help in reducing the craving once the patient has the will to overcome it.

DR. VENUGOPAL GOURI

drvenugopal@gmail.com

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