Alcohol addiction treatment in Surat

Alcohol addiction — called alcohol use disorder or alcohol dependence by doctors — is a condition in which drinking takes control. Repeated heavy drinking changes the brain’s reward and stress systems, so the body starts to need alcohol to feel normal and the mind keeps returning to it even when it is causing serious problems.

It is common. India’s national survey on the extent of substance use (2019) estimated that about 5.7 crore people needed help for harmful or dependent alcohol use — and very few receive treatment. Addiction is not a lack of willpower or a moral failure; it is a health condition that responds to treatment.

• Strong cravings or urges to drink
• Drinking more or for longer than you planned
• Failed attempts to cut down or stop
• Needing more alcohol to get the same effect
• Shaking, sweating, anxiety or poor sleep when you don’t drink
• Drinking in the morning to steady yourself
• Problems at work, home or with money because of drinking
• Continuing despite liver, health or family problems

Long-term heavy drinking can damage the liver (fatty liver, hepatitis, cirrhosis), pancreas, heart, stomach and brain, and is linked to depression, anxiety, accidents and violence at home.

After long-term heavy drinking, the brain adapts to alcohol. Stopping suddenly can cause withdrawal, which usually begins within 6–24 hours of the last drink:

• Mild to moderate: tremors, sweating, anxiety, restlessness, nausea, fast heartbeat, poor sleep.
• Severe: seizures (fits), usually within 12–48 hours.
• Delirium tremens (DTs): confusion, seeing or hearing things, high fever and agitation, usually 2–3 days after stopping. This is a medical emergency.

1. 1

   Assessment

   How much and how long you have been drinking, past withdrawal or fits, physical health (liver tests and others), mental health, and family situation.

2. 2

   Safe detoxification

   Medicines to prevent withdrawal symptoms and seizures, given in tapering doses for about a week, along with vitamins such as thiamine to protect the brain. Mild cases can be managed at home with daily monitoring; severe cases may need admission.

3. 3

   Relapse prevention medicines

   Anti-craving medicines such as naltrexone or acamprosate reduce urges to drink. Disulfiram may be used only with the person’s full knowledge and consent.

4. 4

   Counselling

   Motivational counselling and relapse-prevention therapy help you understand your triggers, handle cravings and stressful situations, and rebuild routine.

5. 5

   Family support and follow-up

   Family sessions, treatment of any depression or anxiety, regular follow-ups and support groups keep recovery on track.

Alcohol often goes together with tobacco, cannabis or other substances. See our de-addiction treatment page for help with all addictions.

Most people who seek help for someone else’s drinking in India are wives and mothers. You cannot force someone to stop, but you can change the situation:

• Talk when he is sober, calmly, using specific examples of how drinking affects the family.
• Avoid covering up — paying debts, making excuses — which protects the drinking.
• Meet a psychiatrist yourself first; you will get a plan for how to approach him.
• Look after your own safety. If there is violence, call 112 or the women’s helpline 181.

More guidance: how to help a loved one get mental health care.