Symptoms of Alcohol abuse

General information about symptoms of Alcohol abuse: The symptom information on this page attempts to provide a list of some possible symptoms of Alcohol abuse. This symptom information has been gathered from various sources, may not be fully accurate, and may not be the full list of symptoms of Alcohol abuse. Furthermore, symptoms of Alcohol abuse may vary on an individual basis for each patient. Only your doctor can provide adequate diagnosis of symptoms and whether they are indeed symptoms of Alcohol abuse.

List of symptoms of Alcohol abuse: The list of symptoms mentioned in various sources for Alcohol abuse includes:

• Symptoms of alcohol intoxication include:
  • Drunkenness
  • Drowsiness
  • Behavioral changes
  • Poor judgement
  • Coordination difficulty
  • Difficulty standing
  • Slurred speech
  • Aggression
  • Inappropriate sexual behavior
  • Nystagmus
  • Poor attention span
  • Memory problems
  • Stupor
  • Coma

Symptoms of Alcohol abuse: The four known symptoms are:

Craving: A strong need, or compulsion, to drink.

Impaired control: The inability to limit one’s drinking.

Physical dependence: Withdrawal symptoms (nausea, sweating, shakiness, anxiety) when alcohol is stopped after a period of heavy drinking.

Tolerance: The need for increasing amounts of alcohol in order to feel its effects.¹

An alcoholic is dependent upon alcohol. This dependence grows as the disease progresses. A person who abuses alcohol may not be dependent upon it but still drinks excessively. Even if you are not an alcoholic, abusing alcohol has negative results. This includes failure to meet major work, school, or family responsibilities; alcohol-related legal trouble; automobile crashes due to drinking; as well as a variety of medical problems. Under some circumstances, problems can result from even moderate drinking--for example, when driving, during pregnancy, or when taking certain medicines. ¹

Menstrual disorders (e.g. painful menstruation, heavy flow, premenstrual discomfort, and irregular or absent cycles) have been associated with chronic heavy drinking. These disorders can have adverse effects on fertility. Further, continued drinking may lead to early menopause.¹

Not everyone who drinks regularly has a drinking problem. You might want to get help if you:

• Drink to calm your nerves, forget your worries, or reduce depression
• Lose interest in food
• Gulp your drinks down fast
• Lie to try to hide your drinking habits
• Drink alone more often
• Hurt yourself, or someone else, while drinking
• Were drunk more than three or four times last year
• Need more alcohol to get "high"
• Feel irritable, resentful, or unreasonable when you are not drinking
• Have medical, social, or financial problems caused by drinking

Not everyone who drinks regularly has a drinking problem. You might want to get help if you:

• Drink to calm your nerves, forget your worries, or reduce depression
• Lose interest in food
• Gulp your drinks down fast
• Lie or try to hide your drinking habits
• Drink alone more often
• Hurt yourself, or someone else, while drinking
• Were drunk more than three or four times last year
• Need more alcohol to get "high"
• Feel irritable, resentful, or unreasonable when you are not drinking
• Have medical, social, or financial problems caused by drinking

Alcohol abuse is defined as a pattern of drinking that results in one or more of the following situations within a 12-month period:

• Failure to fulfill major work, school, or home responsibilities;

• Drinking in situations that are physically dangerous, such as while driving a car or operating machinery;

• Having recurring alcohol-related legal problems, such as being arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or for physically hurting someone while drunk; and

• Continued drinking despite having ongoing relationship problems that are caused or worsened by the drinking.

Although alcohol abuse is basically different from alcoholism, many effects of alcohol abuse are also experienced by alcoholics.⁴

How can you tell whether you may have a drinking problem? Answering the following four questions can help you find out:

• Have you ever felt you should cut down on your drinking?

• Have people annoyed you by criticizing your drinking?

• Have you ever felt bad or guilty about your drinking?

• Have you ever had a drink first thing in the morning (as an “eye opener”) to steady your nerves or get rid of a hangover?

One “yes” answer suggests a possible alcohol problem. If you answered “yes” to more than one question, it is highly likely that a problem exists. In either case, it is important that you see your doctor or other health care provider right away to discuss your answers to these questions. He or she can help you determine whether you have a drinking problem and, if so, recommend the best course of action.⁴

If you are drinking too much, you can improve your life and health by cutting down. How do you know if you drink too much? Read these questions and answer "yes" or "no":

• Do you drink alone when you feel angry or sad?
  
• Does your drinking ever make you late for work?
  
• Does your drinking worry your family?
  
• Do you ever drink after telling yourself you won't?
  
• Do you ever forget what you did while you were drinking?
  
• Do you get headaches or have a hang-over after you have been drinking?
  

If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, you may have a drinking problem. Check with your doctor to be sure. Your doctor will be able to tell you whether you should cut down or abstain.⁵

More symptoms of Alcohol abuse: In addition to the above information, to get a full picture of the possible symptoms of this condition and its related conditions, it may be necessary to examine symptoms that may be caused by complications of Alcohol abuse, underlying causes of Alcohol abuse, associated conditions for Alcohol abuse, risk factors for Alcohol abuse, or other related conditions.

Medical articles on symptoms: These general reference articles may be of interest:

• Symptoms of the Silent Killer Diseases
• Symptoms and Medical Malpractice

Medical Tools & Articles:

Next articles:

• Risk Factor Center
• Medical Statistics Center
• Medical Treatment Center
• Prevention Center
• Medical Tests Center

• Disease & Treatments Search
• Online Diagnosis
• Misdiagnosis Center
• Full list of interesting articles