Literally, one in three families in our country knows firsthand how terrible alcoholism is when a near and dear husband becomes addicted. Thousands of women wonder how to get their husbands to stop drinking, especially when a person is unaware of the problem and is not trying to cope with the disease on their own. Let's talk about techniques you can use to stand a chance of saving yourself and your spouse from alcoholism.
What is alcoholism?
There is an opinion that alcoholism can be cured by a simple voluntary decision, and if a person is a drinker, then he just does not want to change anything. First of all, we will question this theory, since alcoholism is the most real disease. Drug addiction can be characterized both physical and psychological.
From a physiological point of view, the body is exposed to toxic substances, which disturbs the metabolism, and all internal organs suffer. Degrades the brain, and with it the central nervous system. An alcoholic suffers from poor health between two alcoholic drinks, does not perceive reality correctly, suffers from memory loss.
From a psychological point of view, the alcoholic "swamp" is no less dangerous - the alcoholic who drinks every day gets used to the state of recklessness and euphoria he feels when taking alcohol. ethanol, his sense of responsibility fades. Often dependent people lose face and moral character, after which those around them turn away from them. The plight of drunkards who couldn't be healed or saved - dirt, the same alcoholics around and death in the future.
Obviously, no man willingly wants his life to become such a nightmare. So alcoholism is a disease! If your husband is an alcoholic and you love him, be patient and help him cope with the illness.
The inner strength to stop alcohol
Let us return to the theory that any alcoholic, alone and without assistance, can stop drinking forever, because only willpower and strength of character are needed. The claim is only partially true, in cases where the addiction is exclusively psychological and has not yet triggered physiological changes in the body.
It is possible to wean a husband from alcohol and drunkenness at home only when alcohol consumption has not turned into an uncontrolled and systematic binge, without which a person feels bad, andshe is ready to sell her soul for a strong drink. If alcoholism has turned into a physical attachment, people, as a rule, do not want to fight it. Alcohol gives them a feeling of euphoria and moral satisfaction, erases poor health, and falsely normalizes blood pressure, heart rate, and mental clarity. As soon as ethanol begins to be excreted from the body, the discomfort returns, and the drunkard again seeks the cherished liquid and drinks alcohol. In such cases, in order for a person to stop drinking, the intervention of specialists is necessary.
So, can an alcoholic stop drinking on his own?
No, if the alcohol consumption has taken the form of alcoholism and does not consist of frequent and habitual home use of alcohol.
What psychological help can be effective
If you decide to save your husband from drunkenness, first think about what caused him to get drunk. Typically, only people who enter the binge are deeply unhappy and experience their fears and problems in silence, inside. To convince your husband to stop drinking in the future, you need to understand the root of the problem and try to eradicate it:
- Try to spend more time with your loved one and not hide how much they mean to you. Suggest activities together and think about what your husband was addicted to before the addiction.
- In no case do not blame your husband, blackmail, threaten or shout - you will only get the opposite effect, and the person will become even more closed in on himself. Don't think about how to teach your husband a lesson about drunkenness, but think about how to help your spouse.
- Try to have an open-hearted conversation and say how happy you would be if your partner chose a sober lifestyle again.
A person who feels important and useful is more likely to want to give up alcohol.
If we are talking about the need for professional help, to begin with, you still have to figure out how to persuade your husband to stop drinking, because it is almost impossible to force a person to change without his consent. In rare cases, the alcoholic himself accepts the treatment, as it means that the disease is obvious and completely dominates the drunkard. Your success will become more real if you are patient and fill up with kind words and support for your husband.
Let's say you convinced your husband to seek professional help. Let's talk about the methods considered effective and practiced in the fight against alcoholism.
Hypnotherapy
Surely everyone has heard of alcoholics coding using hypnosis. The essence of the procedure is to bring an addicted person into a state of trance and further suggest certain programs. With the help of real hypnosis, an experienced and qualified doctor can do a lot of things: get rid of fears and insecurities, block depression, get to the bottom of the causes of alcoholism.
If you have chosen hypnotherapy, be sure to find a good qualified specialist who has made a name for himself in this field. Remember that among the doctors there are also crooks who will not only help, but can also harm your husband.
Read more about this direction in the article "Coding with Alcoholism Hypnosis".
Consider the most effective and popular hypnosis techniques:
- Autogenic training.
- Hypnosuggestion therapy.
- Anchoring method.
Each of them deserves attention and is renowned for its effectiveness.
Autogenic training
This type of training is based on the processes of self-hypnosis, because within each personality is enormous potential and powerful energetic force. The method involves minimal intervention of the psychotherapist - the doctor teaches the alcoholic only the basics of self-hypnosis. Its task is to give impetus and guide the patient's thinking in the right direction.
After learning the basic techniques, the outcome of treatment depends only on the alcoholic himself and his desire for recovery. Autogenic intervention is only productive in the early stages of alcoholism, or after more serious psychological and medical assistance has already been provided.
Hypnosuggestion therapy
The following technique is based on the treatment performed during a hypnotic trance or the so-called hypnotic sleep. In this case, it is very important that the alcoholic is aware of the problem, sincerely wants to get rid of it and trust the specialist.
The session consists of several stages.
- First of all, it is important to establish a relationship of trust between an alcoholic and a specialist, because in order to enter a trance a person must be relaxed and must not resist.
- After the usual conversation, the specialist resorts to psychological techniques aimed at diffusing the patient's attention. At the same time, it is essential to keep the conversation going. One or two techniques are enough to put a person to sleep.
- After the alcoholic goes into a trance, the doctor begins to instill certain programs aimed at stopping alcoholism.
The effectiveness of this method is individual and depends on the professionalism of the doctor and the degree of suggestibility of the patient. Some parents of alcoholics noted that the effect began to show after the first session, while others needed a course of 3-6 visits.
Anchoring method
This technique differs in that a person does not need to be put into hypnotic sleep.
The goal of the therapist is to find and program the consciousness of the alcoholic for certain unconscious "cause and effect" actions. Simply put, we can give a simple example: An anchor is programmed for a word or memory, during the "collision" with which an alcoholic experiences certain emotions. Positive sensations prompt the patient to perform certain actions, negative anchors cause negative sensations and act as a kind of stop signal.
The method of anchoring is effective in combination with drug therapy and only when the alcoholic interacts and trusts the specialist.
Group psychotherapy
Another way to stop a husband from drinking alcohol is to send him to group psychotherapy sessions, known around the world as the Society for Alcoholics Anonymous.
The principle of operation of these groups is simple - the classes of a group of patients with a disease show the alcoholic that he is not alone and that many people have the same problem. "If they get away with it, then so can I, " the addict thinks and the ice begins to move. Alcoholics communicate with each other, share their experiences and problems, support each other. Being in such a society is beneficial for introspection and maintaining self-esteem.
The therapist uses play techniques to help alcoholics feel like part of a team, which is also an important part of recovery.
The course of psychotherapy lasts for several years, the optimal number of people in a group is 5-10. The method is long, but very effective.
Family therapy
Family groups are considered no less effective, the purpose of which is to wean from drunkenness with the help of care and attention, as well as to teach wives of drinking husbands to support and understand their soul mates.
Families of drug addicts and alcoholics get together in small groups and spend time together, which is especially valuable in the period when a person has just completed drug treatment and it is very difficult for him or her to "reintegrate" into it. the society. At first, the therapy is accompanied by the constant presence of a specialist who teaches women to support and respect their husbands, and also performs various trainings aimed at reducing anxiety. It is important to clearly remember the advice of a psychologist and to be understanding. Another advantage of this method is the interaction with other families having the same problem: both the alcoholic husband and his wife see that they are not alone in their abyss, feel their belonging to society, become more relaxed, determined and friendly.
All the techniques that we have listed relate to psychological assistance, but often the therapy cannot completely eradicate the problem of alcoholism and is practiced exclusively in combination with medication.
Drug treatment of alcoholism
Let's talk about how to deal with her husband's drunkenness, if he doesn't want it and isn't ready to voluntarily turn to "brainwashers".
Often wives of alcoholics complain that their drinking husbands categorically do not want to be treated and do not think that they are sick at all. In such cases, there can be no question of professional psychological assistance, because although it is possible to come to an agreement with an alcoholic husband to go to a psychotherapist, he will do so as a favor and will not reinforce the efforts of the person. specialist with feedback and a desire to recover.
The solution to such situations is medication and hospital treatment.
Let us consider in more detail the common methods of such treatment:
- Coding. The principle of coding is to instill in the alcoholic the information that alcohol consumption will lead to ill health and even death. For this, injections, tablets and alcohol blockers are used, as well as electric pulse therapy. The method is effective at any stage of alcoholism, even the most severe. Wives have a new lever - they try to scare the husband, constantly reminding them that ethanol will lead to torture and death. Some even try to cure their husbands of alcoholism without knowing it by adding medicine to their food. This absolutely cannot be done, since allergic reactions are possible. For more information, see the article "Coding Alcoholism".
- Vitamin therapy. The fact is that during a binge the body suffers from intoxication, losing useful substances and enzymes. If you give the body what it needs again, the pangs of alcohol withdrawal are significantly weakened and the person has new strength to fight the addiction. The drugs offered to the alcoholic contain a large amount of vitamins B1, B2, B6, B12, C, PP - they have a tonic effect and improve the well-being of the alcoholic.
- Acupuncture is another effective treatment for alcoholism. After diagnosing the stage of the disease, the specialist acts on different points of the body with acupuncture needles. Thus, the process of cleansing the body is activated, psychological dependence is weakened. Detailed information is presented in the article "Acupuncture for alcoholism".
- Plasmapheresis is a device therapy that works by purifying the blood plasma. The blood passes through a special filter and returns to the alcoholic's body. The method is not in great demand, because many are afraid to fight the disease so drastically.
All these methods are suitable for compulsory treatment, which is agreed and planned without the knowledge of the husband. It is important that the alcoholic is constantly supervised by specialists, and the treatment is carried out exclusively by professionals.
Alternative treatment of alcoholism with non-traditional methods
It is essential to mention the fight against alcoholism with folk remedies. These include all kinds of tinctures and decoctions of a variety of plants. Here are a few :
- Knapweed
- Lovage root.
- Lavrushka.
- Apple.
- Darling.
- Split hoof root.
- A soda.
- Plants with emetic effect.
Folk remedies such as extracts and infusions of worms and insects are also popular.
Psychological counseling and literature to fight alcoholism
If your husband realizes that he is an alcoholic and is willing to make an effort to combat him, the battle can be considered won. Professionals in medicine and psychology offer books to alcoholics that help them fight against all addictions, including alcoholism in the first place.
There are also a large number of private offices that you can turn to for professional help.
We looked at what needs to be done to get a husband to stop drinking. The prognosis for recovery depends not only on the individual characteristics of the alcoholic's body and his desire for recovery, but also on your support and participation. Do not in any way try to teach your husband a lesson in drunkenness with rudeness and anger, as it will have the opposite effect and your drunkard will only make sure that he is not liked and understood.
How do you get your husband to stop drinking alcohol? Admit that he is ill, convince your husband and prove to him that you are not indifferent to his plight.