There is a school of thought which suggests that people who are mentally ill are prone to alcohol addictions. However, research is still being conducted in this area and there is no sound proof for this theory. One of the main reasons for people with mental illnesses developing addictions is due to self-medication.
Certain conditions such as depression and bipolar disorders can lead to cases of addiction. The percentage of women who suffer from depression is far higher than men and they tend to medicate themselves to combat this problem.
Such medication can lead to addiction and abuse of pills. This can be highly dangerous and escalate into a bad situation.
People who suffer from mood swings sometimes try to counteract this problem with alcohol. Initially it might seem like a solace but in the long run alcohol makes the entire situation worse.
The consumption of alcohol will steadily increase and lead to addiction in a matter of weeks. Anxiety disorders are another important cause of addiction. Both men and women suffer from anxiety attacks and some of them use alcohol as a means of fighting this craving.
Schizophrenia is a serious mental condition which can lead to delusions and severe hallucinations. Patients suffering from this are often not aware of where they are and in many cases this leads to abuse of alcohol.
How Mental Illness and Alcohol are linked with Each Other?
Dual diagnosis is term that is used to refer to major mental disorders and alcohol addictions. According to Alcohol, Drug, Abuse and Mental Administration more than 2 million Americans suffer from this mental illness due to alcoholism. There is complex relationship between mental illness and alcohol. Any treatment needs to be focused on these two conditions so that right diagnosis can be carried out.
Mental illness has lot of complexities and is often compounded with the help of drug and alcohol abuse. Many people have a misconception that alcohol is stimulant but actually this depresses the brain. Small amounts of alcohol can temporary help to improve your mood but on the other side excessive drinking can have opposite effects.
According to a poll eight out of ten people said that drink made them feel more relaxed. While other common reasons for drinking was to feel happy, confident and relaxed. These were some expected findings but one fact that was less understood that people that drank heavily are more likely to suffer from mental illness.
Research has shown that alcohol can provoke depression and heighten existing mental condition. Since alcohol alters the chemistry of brain, it can temporary bring some relief. Therefore some use it as prop which helps them to cope with any kind of stress. In the long run, drinking heavily can help to add to more problems and make life difficult.
There are several examples where mental illness and alcohol dependency can add to complex scenario. Alcohol symptoms can worsen when people experience mental stress and consume alcohol to get relief. This is known as self-medicating and in some cases it will be difficult to know when the problem started. Therefore it is concluded that there is some link between mental illness and alcohol.
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