Myths About Alcohol Addiction Debunked!

The latest statistics reveal that Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) affects over 47 million adults in the Europe. Many other adults drink more than the recommended daily amount of alcohol but don’t suffer from abuse or addiction.

How do you know if you have a problem? There are many myths about addiction that muddy the waters for those needing help.

Here we’ll clear up some of those addiction myths and tell you what you need to know about alcoholism and AUD. 

1. It’s Not a Disorder If You Don’t Drink Every Day

This is a common myth to which many people fall prey. Alcoholism isn’t about how many days a week you drink.

Many people don’t drink all week but when the weekend comes, they binge drink. Binge drinking is harmful, and it’s a disordered use of alcohol.

Binge drinking is common and dangerous. What is binge drinking?

If you’re a woman who drinks four or more alcoholic drinks within two hours, you’re binge drinking. For men, it’s five or more drinks within two hours.

Driving your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) to 0.08 g/dl or higher is binge drinking. Binge drinking contributes to diseases such as high blood pressure, heart disease, strokes, and liver disease.

This type of drinking also leads to injuries such as car accidents, and even death from alcohol poisoning.

There is a simple way to find out if your drinking is at problematic levels. Ask yourself this question: ‘is my drinking making me miserable’? 

Why not join our daily FREE Online Session where we discuss how to stop drinking?

2. All You Need Is Willpower to Overcome an Addiction

Stopping alcohol takes more than sheer willpower. The brain experiences change due to alcohol use. These changes control the pleasure centre in the brain.

Alcohol also changes motivation and memory centres in the brain. A full-blown alcoholic needs alcohol for continued stimulation of the different areas of the brain. This need is a craving.

Over time, for many people, the cravings are so strong that it’s almost impossible to stop without help. The chances are good that if you are at this website you have already tried to stop drinking many times on your own. You tried and failed many times, right?

This does not mean that YOU are a failure!

Willpower has a 95% failure rate against this drug. Stopping drinking doesn’t have to be difficult, but only if you use the right tools for the job. This leads us to the next myth… 

Why not join our daily FREE Online Session where we discuss how to stop drinking?

3. You Can’t Stop Because Addiction Is a Disease

This is a common myth about addiction. Most people now recognize that alcohol addiction is a disease but that doesn’t mean you can’t stop.

Through the use of medications, therapy, and addiction treatment programs, stopping alcohol is possible. Actually, giving this problem the ‘disease’ label makes it 10x harder to beat. When you tell someone, they have a disease they go straight into ‘victim mode’. Suddenly a problem that is entirely fixable with a course like the Stop Drinking Online program, becomes an inescapable death sentence.

When it comes to binge drinking, some people can stop on their own with the right motivation and information. But why waste time and effort when you can model the route out of the alcohol maze offered by Dan Grové in his book My Life in a Bottle.

Remember, there is a difference between being a problem drinker and being an alcoholic. If someone you love has a heavy drinking problem, she may need intensive treatment to deal with the alcohol cravings. Many heavy drinkers experience withdrawal symptoms when stopping alcohol. Excessive sweating, tremors, headaches, and nausea are all symptoms of withdrawal. 

Why not join our daily FREE Online Session where we discuss how to stop drinking?

4. Drinkers Live Longer Than Non-Drinkers

Drinkers can get stope defensive when challenged about their use of alcohol. One of the most quoted defences is the old ‘it has been proven that drinkers live longer than non-drinkers’, or even ‘my doctor tells me that alcohol in moderation is good for you’.

Problem drinkers love these two weapons.

The problem is, neither is true. Watch the video above and I will explain why in detail. Think about it, how can drinking poison in moderation be good for you? Bad is bad, it doesn’t become good depending on the dose. It would be like saying murder in moderation is fine.

The whole story of drinkers living longer than sober people is actually true, but it doesn’t mean that alcohol is good for you. The research is flawed by the way it was executed. Many people who state that they do not drink are in that position not because they want to be but rather because they must be. Lots of people with serious underlying health conditions (including many created by alcohol) cannot drink.

These people tend to have a shorter lifespan as a result, but it is not because they don’t drink. Do you see how the data is misleading? But the alcoholic drinks industry never lets the truth get in the way of a good bit of pro-drinking propaganda. 

5. Alcohol Addiction Is Psychological

Psychology often plays a role in why people drink but alcoholism is a physiological addiction. The alcoholic’s body doesn’t process alcohol in a normal fashion.

The strong cravings of an alcoholic are the brain telling the body it needs alcohol for proper functioning.

Problem drinkers are also trapped in a psychological loop with alcohol, but the good news is this can be reversed with the techniques taught in our course. 

6. Alcoholism Is a Result of Irresponsible Drinking

Many people who drink responsibly end up suffering from alcoholism. Don’t think that because you always drink responsibly that you don’t have a problem. Even if you never drive drunk or engage in irresponsible behaviours while drinking, you can still have AUD or be an alcoholic.

Alcohol is like quicksand, your decent into problem drinking a painfully slow process. Most people never spot the point at which it became a problem. It is a mistake to believe that because you only drink on an evening with your meal, you can’t develop a problem. 

Why not join our daily FREE Online Session where we discuss how to stop drinking?

7. Alcoholics Are Low-Income and Poor

Alcoholism doesn’t limit itself to poor, uneducated, and criminal classes. Alcohol hits every class, gender, and race. It doesn’t matter how young or old you are. It doesn’t matter if you’re religious.

There are many high-functioning alcoholics. These are successful people with money, friends, and loved ones.

Many people hide their addiction for years until it gets out of control and unmanageable. Most alcoholics need more alcohol over time to achieve the same good feelings. Therefore, addiction can’t remain hidden forever.

Ignore the social status that the alcoholic drinks companies try to generate around their products. There is no such thing as good quality poison.

$300 bottles of champagne will kill you just as effectively as cheap supermarket plonk. 

8. Only Immoral People Are Problem Drinkers

One of the reasons the Stop Drinking Online course works so well, is we take all the judgment out of the condition. Tell someone you are addicted to alcohol and watch their face drop. There is no logical reason for this shame. Alcohol is the second most addictive substance on earth (just behind heroin). If you drink it repeatedly, guess what happens?

We need to stop this ritual of implying that problem drinkers are terrible, broken people, they are not. They have become the logical conclusion of their actions – nothing more!

Genetics plays a role in about 50% of people with AUD. Mental illness, past abuse, trauma, and family history all play a role in alcoholism. If you or a friend or family member have a problem with alcohol, don’t judge it as a moral failing. Problem drinking is a learned and conditioned behaviour. 

9. The Alcoholic Can Stop If He Loves You Enough

This is a damaging myth. An alcoholic can’t make up his mind to stop and do it.

Alcohol creates physiologic changes within the body that make it difficult for the alcoholic to stop using. Cravings for alcohol are so strong within the brain, that even love can’t overcome them.

It’s almost impossible to change other people. This course only works if you want it to.

If you are here because of your own drinking, decide now and act. If you are here because of the drinking of someone you love, understand that you can gently lead them here, but you can’t force them to change.

Look after yourself first. Protect yourself from what they are doing, otherwise, you are going to get hurt! 

Why not join our daily FREE Online Session where we discuss how to stop drinking?

Do I Have an Alcohol Problem?

The fact that you think you might have a problem is often a good indicator that you do have a problem. Is alcohol negatively impacting your life in any way?

Do you spend most of your weekend mornings recovering from a hangover from drinking the night before? That’s a sign you’re drinking too much. 

The Many Myths About Addiction

These are some of the many myths about addiction. Alcoholism is a disease and those with the disease need compassion and kindness.

Is a loved one abusing alcohol? Try a loving approach. Tell them the ways in which alcohol is harming them and the relationship.

Many alcoholics are high functioning. It’s not only the bum on the street drinking out of a paper bag that has an alcohol problem. There are lots of alcoholics who drink responsibly and don’t drink every day.

If alcohol is causing problems with your relationships, finances, or health, it’s time to get some help.

Are you looking for help with your alcohol issues? It’s time to connect with an expert. Check out our free stop drinking online session here.