My uncle s age is 55 years old. and his liver has damage. He is addicted of alcohol. I want to know which treatment is the best for him. Please tell me.

Question

To completely stop consumption of alcohol.

(Major) Sriniwas Gupta · Accepted Answer

To completely stop consumption of alcohol.

Saul Pereira · Answer

If he has no control in spite of the liver problem, then he needs to be admitted for rehabilitation. If you think that he will find it very difficult, then admit him to a hospital and go for de-addiction first: which normally lasts for about two weeks. Then follow that up with addiction counseling from a professional for at least three years to completely get rid of the habit. If this is also not enough, then admit him into a de-addiction center and let him stay there for at least 6 months and after that attend counseling with a professional. There are medicines that help with the drinking just to ease the initial craving. Ultimately, it is his will power and the support that he receives from the medical fraternity and his close and dear ones. He must also learn to substitute and deal with the oral need, a rigid value system, the script issue, and of course look at all the genetic factors to plan a strategy not to get into what is called ?cross addictions? i.e. Another form of addiction that may appear alright but is in fact as bad as the primary addiction. The center or hospital and the counselor will advise and guide him on several measures and precautions he will need to take to stay with his resolve. Even after the rehabilitation he must attend AA meetings and continue this support for a long time. His family will also need to attend some sessions and go for Al-anon meetings for their co-dependency issues. He cannot be treated in isolation because the family has gotten used to his drinking and have made some unhealthy adaptations to somehow cope. His children will also have to attend meetings to work out their issues because of the father?s habit. In fact, they are all suffering from the Adult Children Of Alcoholics Syndrome (ACOAs), which in effect means that they are genetically predisposed to alcoholism or can have cross addiction problems and they will have similar traits of the abusing alcoholic but in a milder form. There are special support groups for them all over the world. Should they touch or indulge in alcohol or any addictive substances or behaviors, they could also become full-fledged addicts themselves. If your uncle refuses to go for rehabilitation, then some centers have a method of picking him up when he is totally sloshed and is not able to fight back effectively. They will need the family?s written consent before willing to take him in this manner. Make a serious plan with the wife and children and whoever else?s support he can get and act on it fast.