Warning Signs You Abuse Alcohol and Could Be an Alcoholic


Drinking is an integrated part of society and culture. Consuming alcohol for celebratory and ceremonial purposes has been an activity of humans for thousands of years. As long as alcohol has been part of humanity, humanity has been part of alcohol. Meaning to say that humans have also been abusing alcohol outside of its intended purpose for thousands of years.


  1. You drink for reasons other than drinking: Biblical stories of alcohol abuse indicate that the substance has been a form of escape for humans. When you drink for reasons other than to celebrate, for ceremony, or for social interaction, you abuse alcohol. Drinking for reasons like: stress, sadness, anger, fear, or other emotions from which you want to escape, you’re abusing alcohol. If you start to feel emotions and feel like you have to drink to escape them because your brain starts craving alcohol once you start feeling them, this is a sign of alcoholism.
  2. You need more alcohol than you used to: Tolerance to alcohol builds overtime, yet can seem very sudden. One day it seems as though you cannot get drunk anymore on the amount of alcohol you are used to consuming. You find that your normal amount of alcohol doesn’t make a difference anymore. In order to feel intoxicated, you have to drink much more than you have in the past. As you continue to drink more in order to get intoxicated, your tolerance continues to increase, meaning you then have to increase the amount of alcohol you’re consuming. This could happen quickly or spread out over a short period of time.
  3. You lose chunks of time when you drink: Drinking high volumes of alcohol just to obtain a “normal” level of intoxication has consequences on the brain and the body. At this point in the development of alcohol abuse or alcoholism, an individual can start to experience blackouts where they lose chunks of time or memory when they are drinking. When the brain is affected by alcohol in this way, it is the beginning of an intricate chemical process which can leave permanent damages.  
  4. You cannot control your drinking: You set limitations for yourself and you cannot obey them. You create rules but you cannot abide by them. You decide to quit, for a while, yet you always come back to drinking. You cannot control your drinking no matter how you try to regulate it. Delusional that each time will be different, you continue to come back to drinking alcohol.
  5. You cannot stop your drinking: The reason you keep coming back to alcohol is because you’ve become fully chemically dependent upon it. You can no longer manage your alcohol consumption because you’ve developed the disease of alcoholism. ALcohol has become a problem in your life beyond your control or manageability.

If you identify with any of these warning signs, it is time to ask for help. Cottonwood Tucson offers an integrative approach to treatment, providing world renown dual diagnosis programs for alcoholism and co-occurring disorders. Call us today for information on our residential treatment programs: (888) 727-0441

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