Alcoholism Recovery & Treatment

Marissa; please know how thoughtful you are to ask this questions about someone you obviously care about. Also, I think it sad that you have to explain that it is not pertaining to you because you do not want people to believe you are an alcoholic. Alcoholism, as with any substance abuse is a disease. Is is a chronic brain disease that is not curable but can be treated and managed as long as the person is able to discontinue use of their substance! There is nothing to be ashamed about alcoholism or any substance abuse for it is a disease. It is often mistaken as an issue of willpower or lack thereof. Would you be ashamed to admit you were a diabetic? Please, don’t get me wrong, I am just trying to get your in the right frame of mind when you approach the disease and the complications that accompany it if treatment is not sought.

Now, with that being said, stomach ulcers can be very severe. They may or may not have been brought on due to the over usage of alcohol. They are often hereditary and can be managed effectively with healthy diet and lifestyle habits. I am not sure how much the consumption of alcohol has to do with how severe the ulcer may become. I unfortunately have several friends with substance abuse, mainly alcoholics; non of them have ever had issues with stomach ulcers and their biggest concerns are always checking their liver counts. I am not certain about this, but I believe most of our digestion occurs in the large intestine that is why alcohol moves through your body and is processed through the liver and kidneys where it happens to cause the most damage. However, I cannot imagine that large amounts of alcohol are good for anything especially ulcers. If you friend is experience a lot of pain with his/her ulcers I would have them get into an urgent care and/or Dr. as soon as possible. If not and they only bother he/she from time to time, I would still encourage them to schedule a visit with their physician to discuss their condition, remaining completely open and honest about his/her alocholism. There are so many drugs now that are available to alcoholics that help reduce cravings, reduce the risk of relapse and help with restoring the chemical imbalances that are created through the over usage of any substance. Gosh, honey, I wish you well, you are dealing with a difficult disease with someone you obviously care a great deal about. There is a great resource, actually it was a series on HBO, entitled “Addiction, Why Can’t They Just Stop? New Knowledge New Treatment New Hope”. It won an Emmy for its ground breaking work in addiction and has since been published as a book there is a lot of information on their website as well. I would recommend you check that out, there you will find the resources, answers, suggestions, possible solutions, updates, etc. on the difficult disease of addiction. My heart goes out to you and if there is any other information I can provide, please do not hesitate to contact me. Please take care of yourself! Carrie