Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get Started
About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Treatments and drugs
By Mayo Clinic staffMany people with alcoholism or those who abuse alcohol enter treatment reluctantly because they deny that they have a problem. Health problems or legal difficulties may prompt treatment. Intervention helps some people recognize and accept the need for treatment. If you're concerned about a friend or family member, discuss intervention with a professional.
Various treatments are available to help people with alcohol problems. Depending on the circumstances, treatment may involve an evaluation, a brief intervention, an outpatient program or counseling, or a residential inpatient stay.
Determining your level of dependence
The first step in treatment is to determine whether you're alcohol dependent. If you haven't lost control over your use of alcohol, treatment may involve reducing your drinking. If you're dependent on alcohol, simply cutting back is ineffective. Abstinence must be part of your treatment goal.
If you aren't dependent on alcohol but are experiencing the adverse effects of drinking, the goal of treatment is to reduce alcohol-related problems — often through counseling or a brief intervention, which usually involves alcohol-abuse specialists who can establish a specific treatment plan. Interventions may include goal setting, behavior modification techniques, use of self-help manuals, counseling and follow-up care at a treatment center.
Counseling may take many forms. With cognitive behavioral therapy, you and your therapist identify distorted thoughts and beliefs that trigger psychological stress. You learn new ways to view and cope with traumatic events. Emphasis is placed on developing a sense of mastery and control of your thoughts and feelings.
Another option may be aversion therapy, in which drinking alcohol is paired with a strong aversive response — such as nausea or vomiting induced by a medication. After repeated pairing, the alcohol itself causes the aversive response, which decreases the likelihood of relapse.
Residential treatment programs
Many residential alcoholism treatment programs in the United States include abstinence, individual and group therapy, participation in alcoholism support groups, such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), educational lectures, family involvement, work assignments, activity therapy, and the use of counselors and professional staff experienced in treating alcoholism.
Here's what you might expect from a typical residential treatment program:
- Detoxification and withdrawal. Treatment for alcoholism may begin with a program of detoxification, usually taking about four to seven days. You may need to take sedating medications to prevent delirium tremens or other withdrawal seizures.
- Medical assessment and treatment. Common medical problems related to alcoholism are high blood pressure, increased blood sugar, and liver and heart disease.
- Psychological support and psychiatric treatment. Group and individual counseling and therapy support recovery from the psychological aspects of alcoholism. Many treatment programs also offer couples and family therapy because family support can be an important part of the recovery process. In fact, involving a spouse in the treatment process may increase the chances of successful recovery.
- Emphasis on acceptance and abstinence. Effective treatment is impossible unless you accept that you're addicted and currently unable to control your drinking.
-
Drug treatments. An alcohol-sensitizing drug called disulfiram (Antabuse) may be a deterrent. Disulfiram won't cure alcoholism, nor can it remove the compulsion to drink. But if you drink alcohol, the drug produces a severe physical reaction that includes flushing, nausea, vomiting and headaches. Naltrexone (ReVia), a drug long known to block the narcotic high, also reduces the urge to drink. Acamprosate (Campral) is an anti-craving medication that may help you combat alcohol cravings and remain abstinent from alcohol. Unlike disulfiram, naltrexone and acamprosate don't make you feel sick soon after taking a drink.
In June 2006, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first injectable drug to treat alcohol dependence. Vivitrol, a version of the drug naltrexone, is injected in the buttocks once a month by a health care professional. It may reduce the urge to drink by blocking neurotransmitters in the brain thought to be associated with alcohol dependence. Vivitrol doesn't affect alcohol withdrawal symptoms. It's intended for people with alcoholism who are receiving counseling and who haven't had a drink for at least a week. Although similar medication can be taken in pill form, the injectable version of the drug may be easier for people recovering from alcohol dependence to use consistently.
- Continuing support. Aftercare programs and support groups help people recovering from alcoholism or alcohol abuse abstain from drinking, manage relapses and cope with necessary lifestyle changes.
