Alcohol Abuse Advice

Alcohol in the Workplace and Alcohol Workplace Training for Supervisors or Employees

If you drink alcoholic beverages, even occasionally, you need to know the facts about alcoholism. Alcohol in the workplace and you ability to confront it will be determined by your own myths and misconceptions. So, let’s dive into the facts.

The American Medical Association and the World Health Organization declared alcoholism a disease over 50 years ago. Alcoholism is not a psychiatric illness and it is not a psychological problem.

Alcoholism is also not a willpower problem. It is not a character issue. And it isn’t “learned.”

Alcoholism is a recognized medical illness acquired by those susceptible to it, who begin drinking for the same reasons as most people do. Alcohol is a drug, and susceptibility to alcohol addiction has strong hereditary factors that have been extensively researched. Employees who use alcohol in the workplace regularly are nearly all diagnoseable alcoholics.

If you have alcoholism in your family and you drink alcohol, your risk of acquiring alcoholism is significantly higher than that of other people who have no family history of alcoholism. Not everyone who drinks alcohol becomes an alcoholic. It affects approximately one in ten drinkers.

Hundreds of studies have demonstrated a family/biological link and susceptibility for alcoholism. Many studies have shown that the child of an alcoholic parent, even if adopted into a nondrinking home, will later in life have a dramatically increased risk of acquiring alcoholism if he or she drinks.

Understanding alcoholism, who becomes alcoholic and why, and how to best treat it, have been the subject of political, religious, psychological, and medical debate for centuries. This has contributed to significant confusion about alcoholism. This confusion continues with issues associated with alcohol in the workplace.

Although it isn’t possible to predict who will become an alcoholic, understanding the illness provides a better chance of spotting symptoms earlier, and as with most chronic illnesses, increases the likelihood of the person accepting treatment earlier. It is a myth that rock bottom must come first. Indeed an alcoholic’s fear of rock bottom is a powerful motivating factor in admissions, although many come close to it.

As the disease of alcoholism progresses, self-diagnosis—the ability to see that you have symptoms of it—becomes more difficult. Misinformation and social stigma contribute to denial, the hallmark of the disease. And denial interferes with this self-diagnostic process. Natural coworkers are just as confused so almost never will any employee confront their fellow workers about alcohol in the workplace.

Definition of Alcoholism

According to the leading medical authority on alcoholism, the American Society of Addiction Medicine, alcoholism is a primary, chronic disease with genetic, psychosocial, and environmental factors influencing its development and manifestations.

“The disease is chronic, progressive, and often fatal.” Chronic means incurable, but the illness can be arrested or halted by ceasing the consumption of alcohol and the use of drugs that are similar to alcohol. These other drugs are primarily central nervous system depressants; but any drug with psychoactive or mood-altering effects pose a risk for accelerating the illness or causing the alcoholic relapse.

“Alcoholism is characterized by continual or periodic impaired control over drinking, preoccupation with alcohol, use of alcohol despite adverse consequences, and distortions in thinking, most notably denial.” (American Society of Addiction Medicine). Employee who use alcohol in the workplace, especially in the morning or before coming to work, are vending off withdrawal symptoms so they can feel normal.

It is a falsehood to believe that calling alcoholism a disease eliminates the responsibility alcoholics have for their problems. Alcoholics are responsible for the consequences of their behavior, and as with any disease, are responsible for seeking treatment when symptoms of the illness become evident. This is the focus of intervention in helping alcoholics; responsibility for accepting help, not bearing guilt or shame for the illness.

Did You See Any of Your Symptoms in the Definition?

When you begin training employees in workplace substance abuse be sure to include information as shown about. If you do,  you will make a significant impact on alcohol in the workplace related problems, and even better, motivate supervisors to not cover it up.

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