If you’re regularly drinking a lot of alcohol in a brief amount of time, you’re not partying. You’re engaging in a practice that health experts refer to as binge drinking. The dangers of binge drinking may not be as apparent as you might think. For many individuals, binge drinking is one way that they abuse alcohol. It can lead to lasting damage to your health, finances, and relationships, and can be difficult to overcome without professional help.
Discover the dangers of binge drinking and reach out for help today if you are struggling.
Do You Fit the Profile?
Government health officials see bingeing on alcohol as a pattern. It elevates your blood alcohol concentration to 0.08g/dL in a two-hour period. For men, this typically means having five alcoholic drinks. Women may reach it after only four drinks at a time. If you regularly consume this much, you’ll want to think about cutting back and about seeking help for alcohol abuse.
Understanding the Dangers of Binge Drinking
Most people don’t stop their binges after four or five drinks. Moreover, they typically don’t just do it once a month, which is another government marker for the habit. In fact, it’s safe to say that the pattern is a frequent occurrence. Medical professionals at centers for addiction treatment have seen a broad range of unwelcome consequences.
For starters, there’s the risk of alcohol poisoning. It refers to overwhelming your body with the substance to the point that the liver can’t filter it out. The alcohol now goes into your bloodstream and results in rapid intoxication. Your body may try to purge the drug by vomiting, which can endanger you when the gag reflex doesn’t function.
Binge drinking is typically also the precursor to the development of an alcohol use disorder. Your body starts to crave the substance, and it’s tempting to continue to drink. Moreover, there’s the risk of organ damage after persistent binges. Alcoholic hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver that experts trace back to this condition. The same’s true for the development of an irregular heartbeat, which can lead to heart failure or stroke.
Help is at San Antonio Recovery Center
The easiest way to eliminate these dangers is to stop binging on alcohol. However, for many, quitting alcohol without help is challenging, if not impossible. When they try to stop drinking, they might experience painful or uncomfortable withdrawal symptoms. These can be the norm when you don’t give your body the alcohol it craves.
Expert alcohol counseling in San Antonio can be a solution to your problem drinking. You work with therapists who help you to overcome the addiction. You typically start with an intake interview. At that time, a counselor will conduct a dual diagnosis assessment.
Many people are surprised to find out that they’re struggling with a co-occurring mental health condition as well as addiction. Receiving treatment for both betters your opportunity for healing. Next, you and the counselor decide on treatment delivery.
Examples include:
- Residential care, which is an excellent option for people with severe alcohol use disorder
- Extended care that lets you stay past the initial 30 days when you need more time to heal
- Partial hospitalization care that enables you to live at home but spend the day at the center
- An intensive outpatient program, which works well for people with a moderate addiction.
- Aftercare that helps you live sober by focusing on relapse prevention
Now that you know about the dangers of binge drinking and how to counteract them, get the help you need. Reach the therapists at the San Antonio Recovery Center by calling 866.957.7885.
