ALCOHOL AWARENESS What is your pattern of drinking?

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1 ALCOHOL AWARENESS 1 What is your pattern of drinking?

2 DRINKING PATTERN Do you drink only on special occasions? Do you drink only on weekends? Are you binge drinking? Age Started Type of How much? How often? Drinking Drink How long did it take for your tolerance to build up? When did you have to drink more to get the usual high? 2

3 SEPTEMBER 19, JACQUI Jacqui is a student from Peru and came to Texas to attend the University of Texas. Her goal was to learn English and to return to her country to teach. But a drunk driver hit the car she was riding in and the car burn causing physical damage to her and killed her two friends. 3

4 IF YOU DRINK, IT DOES NOT BOTHER ME. WRONG! The American Journal on Addictions 10(suppl.):1-2, 2001 Approximately 14 million adults either abuse alcohol or are alcoholics. In addition, several million more adults have unsafe drinking habits that could lead to problems with alcohol. These numbers translate into enormous monetary costs: alcohol misuse costs society approximately $185 billion annually in terms of lost productivity, medical and legal costs and property damage. Dissemination of research on alcoholism is thus critical for improving the health of the nation. 4

5 Advertising and the Alcohol Industry Ads appealing to youth. Belonging Appeal Athletics Leisure activities focus on alcohol 5 C-6 54

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9 OBJECTIVE To have people carry out responsible drinking driving decisions which will prevent future DWI/DUI 9 behavior.

10 WHAT IS THE PATTERN OF YOUR DRINKING? Do you drink only on weekends or after work? Was the situation which led to your arrest unique or had similar situations previously occurred? 10

11 AT WHAT AGE DO YOU BEGIN USING ALCOHOL AND DRUGS? Alcohol Social Drugs Age/Amount used/how often Age/Amount Used/ Name of Drug/how often 11

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14 DEFINITION OF INTOXICATION IN TEXAS Alcohol concentration of.08 or more. Not having normal use of mental or physical faculties because of alcohol or other drugs. 14 A-6 9

15 METABOLISM AND EXCRETION Alcohol is removed from the bloodstream by a combination of metabolism, excretion, and evaporation. The relative proportion disposed of it in each way varies from person to person, but typically about 92 to 98% is metabolized by the liver, 1 to 3% is excreted in urine, and 1 to 5% evaporates through the breath. A very small proportion (less than 0.5%) is also excreted in the sweat, tears, etc. 15

16 FAMILY CULTURES There are three family cultures. The first family culture views drinking as not acceptable. The second family culture views drinking as okay but do not get drunk. The third family culture views drinking as it is okay to drink until you pass out. These are points of beliefs that will set your attitude about drinking and using drugs. 16

17 EPISODES It will be necessary to Cut loose from certain situations that may require you to find a new job. If you are exposed to a work situation where clients require you to drink to get contracts or your boss requires you to drink socially to keep your job, these situations are toxic for you. DO NOT GET HOOKED IN. Cut yourself FREE from toxic people, places and things. Having a romantic dinner with your significant partner may lead to the desire for drinking or using. Change the activity that you are doing to avoid that desire. Have a picnic in the park. 17

18 OLD HABITS Meeting with the boys on the 3 rd Saturday night of each month for a boys night out will increase your impulse for binge drinking. Many habits in your life will now have to change. How do you handle conflicts? Before you would ease the pain with drugs or alcohol. Do you plan to use arguing as a way to get to the beer? I m not an alcoholic, but my nagging wife drives me to drink. 18

19 THREE SIMPLE CRITERIA CAN GUIDE US IN RECOGNIZING THREATS TO OUR SOBRIETY. 1. Any person, place, or situation connected with using drugs or alcohol. 2. Any time we are around alcohol or drugs. 3. Any place or situation that is associated with high stress. Relapse to chemical use is especially common in early recovery. We lack a lifestyle that supports abstinence. We have had little experience at remaining sober. We have not developed activities or coping skills to help us through situations that could threaten our sobriety. 19

20 SOBRIETY Learning to live life without drugs or alcohol is a process for many people. There are stages of change. Precontemplation is the first stage. An individual does not recognize that he/she has a problem. Contemplation is the second stage. At some point, the individual has been made aware that a problem exist. Planning is the third stage. An individual makes goals to change their life. Action is the fourth stage. An individual starts working the goals. 20

21 WILL POWER AND RECOVERY We know that using friends or using situations can bring on urges, some of which can be severe. This phenomenon is unpredictable. If we are in A place where we have used before, we can never be sure that we won t be Overwhelmed by sudden urges. Old thoughts and emotions can come back in a moment. Our brains have many automatic, unhealthy responses just waiting to be triggered. Jon had finished an outpatient substance abuse program. In the past, he spent his leisure time in a sports bar with his friends. He understood that this could be a problem now. But he thought that he was strong enough to hangout with them. Besides, his friends knew that he had quit drinking and drugging. The smell, the noise, the people, the atmosphere were all the same. He found that only one thing was missing a drink. One of his friends offered to buy him a beer, saying, Just have one, man, you re not an alcoholic. The next morning, John called in sick to work. He had gotten back into his addiction. 21

22 ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS (THE BIG BOOK) We know that while the alcoholic keeps away from drink, as he may do for months or years, he reacts much like me. We are equally positive that once he takes any alcohol whatever into his system, something happens, both in the bodily and mental sense, which makes it virtually impossible for him to stop. 22

23 C ONT And the truth, strange to say, is usually that he has no more idea why he took that first drink than you have. Some drinkers have excuses with which they are satisfied part of the time. But in their hearts they really do not know why they do it. Once this malady has a real hold, they are a baffled lot. 23

24 WILLPOWER When we rely on logic and willpower to handle our chemical use, we dismiss the power and unpredictability of our addiction. We can not depend on a nonrecovering person to understand or support our life without drugs or alcohol. They do not understand addiction or the lengths that you have to go in order to remain sober. If there is drugs or alcohol around, there is always A chance that we could use them even if we firmly Believe we won t. We can t predict how we will react In the presence of chemicals. 24

25 ALL THAT I NEED TO CONTROL A DRINKING OR DRUG PROBLEM IS WILLPOWER. You are buying a myth to avoid facing Or studying your POWERLESSNESS. Another Barrier certain social ideals.. We try to be a macho man or sophisticated lady. We try to avoid the labels dope fiend or drug addict. Many in our society still think of drug addicts as the lowest forms of chemically dependent people. We often hear the families of dependent people say: Thank God it s only a drinking problem and not drug addiction. 25

26 BIG BOOK.PAGE 20 Lay off the hard stuff.: Why don t you try beer and wine? His willpower must be weak. He could stop if he wanted to. These ideas make it harder for people to get help. They only seek help when mandated by the courts, after causing family discord, job difficulties, loss of self-respect, or some other crisis. 26

27 The Pleasure Highway Most of the good feelings come from an area in the brain know as the pleasure highway. When something good happens to you, your brain makes chemicals that make you feel happy. Your brain cannot Know whether it Is ice cream or Cocaine. Ice Sex cream Drugs 27

28 ALCOHOL IS A DEPRESSANT. Depressants or downers are drugs that slow down your brain activity. The entire body slows down. Alcohol is the most often abused drug in the United States and it is the most dangerous drug of abuse because it affects every organ of the body. No body part is safe from its harmful effects. Alcohol poisons all of your body s organs and systems. It irritates the lining of the stomach and intestines, causing nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. 28

29 EFFECTS OF ALCOHOL Alcohol destroys your liver. It becomes swollen and stops working right. If you drink long enough, scars form in your liver and cause the liver to fail completely. Alcohol has major effects on your heart and blood vessels. Drinking three or more drinks a day can raise your blood pressure and increase your risk of heart attack or heart failure. Drinking alcohol causes the air tubes in our lungs to become narrower, making it difficult to breathe. Nearly all alcoholics suffer some brain damage as the result of drinking. Alcohol affects your memory and your ability to think. 29

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