High functioning alcoholic: Signs, risks, and more

If you recognize signs of alcoholism in yourself, you should seek help from medical professionals such as a psychiatrist, primary care doctor or therapist. Be honest about how much you’re drinking and what symptoms you’re experiencing. “For people with alcohol use disorder, it is not possible to drink moderately. American Addiction Centers offers a range of treatment services in facilities across the country to help treat alcohol use disorders.

What Are the Signs?

While they may seem OK to the outside world, it’s likely that warning signs and symptoms are appearing elsewhere. Acknowledging that there is a problem is the first step towards recovery. If you have an addiction to alcohol and are tired of its negative impacts on your life, contact https://ecosoberhouse.com/ a treatment provider today to explore your treatment options. Unfortunately, as they are so good at masking their struggles and covering their tracks in their efforts to “keep it together,” high-functioning alcoholics are less likely to seek treatment for their addiction.

How Does an Alcoholic or Other Substance Abuse Affect the Household?

With our help, patients don’t only appear to function normally, but feel and experience life to its greatest potential as a sober and recovering individual. Many high-functioning high functioning alcoholic alcoholics will tell you they don’t drink heavily. They may lie about how many drinks they had and become defensive when you say they have a drinking problem.

• When a loved one has a drinking problem, it’s hard to know how to help, especially if they are in denial.
• Express an openness to talk about their drinking, provide support and establish boundaries.
• This can result in deception and mistrust within personal relationships, as personality changes due to alcohol use disorder (AUD) make individuals unrecognizable from their former selves.
• Therefore, they continue to drink to keep the withdrawals at bay, and the cycle continues.
• Furthermore, the immune system is compromised, leading to a reduced ability to fight infections and diseases.
• These people have jobs, active social lives, or happy families at home.

Signs your loved one is in denial

Furthermore, high-functioning alcoholics may deny the negative consequences of their drinking, which can delay the recognition of the problem and the seeking of help. The presence of early exposure to alcohol and high levels of stress without effective coping mechanisms are additional risk factors that professionals consider when identifying high-functioning alcoholism. It is crucial to recognize that high-functioning alcoholism is a serious condition that requires attention and treatment. With high-functioning alcoholics, the negative consequences of their drinking may be obscured by their outward successes. In many cases, their addiction is taking a gradual toll, but because they have good jobs, perform the expected tasks of daily life, and avoid legal problems, the problematic effects are not yet observable. A high functioning alcoholic is an informal term that refers to someone who appears to maintain a successful professional and personal life while drinking excessive amounts of alcohol.

If you suffer from alcohol use disorder, hiding alcohol and lying about how much you’ve had to drink are classic signs of a problem. This sign of high-functioning alcoholism can be seen in everyone with a heavy drinking issue, not just those who function well. Moreover, executive dysfunction, a decline in cognitive abilities due to chronic alcohol consumption, can impair the individual’s decision-making and problem-solving skills, complicating the recovery process. Research has shown that chronic alcoholics often suffer from such impairments, which can be a hurdle in recognizing the problem and seeking appropriate treatment. Ultimately, high-functioning alcoholism can compromise an individual’s pursuit of goals and dreams, as maintaining an addiction is incompatible with achieving higher levels of personal and professional success.

• Unfortunately, this is sometimes the first sign that heavy or moderate drinking has become a serious problem.
• As such, they may justify their drinking as a normal part of life—even though it isn’t.
• In addition to the health effects of having an alcohol use disorder, it can also take a toll on relationships.
• The journey to recovery is a continuous process of recommitment and adaptation, with each individual’s experience offering valuable insights into the resilience and transformative power of sobriety.
• In fact, their families and friends might not even know they are alcoholics if they show no signs of having a substance use disorder.

Although you might not hit all the criteria for the condition, and the impact on your life may appear minimal, AUD is a chronic and progressive condition. This means the negative impact on your life will likely grow, and the condition will not get better on its own without treatment. ” self-assessment below if you think you or someone you love might be struggling with an alcohol use disorder (AUD). The evaluation consists of 11 yes or no questions that are intended to be used as an informational tool to assess the severity and probability of an AUD.

Warning Signs of Alcoholism

We publish material that is researched, cited, edited and reviewed by licensed medical professionals. The information we provide is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. It should not be used in place of the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare providers. No matter how well high-functioning alcoholics conceal their addiction or maintain their careers and relationships, they are still alcoholics. Therefore, they are living with the risks and effects of alcoholism.

What are the complications of AUD?

• You may hear them called “functional” or “high-functioning” alcoholics. But those aren’t official medical terms.
• So, to achieve the same effects you received when first drinking alcohol, you have to consume more of it.
• The COVID-19 pandemic saw an increase in alcohol-attributable deaths, potentially linked to stress, loneliness, and social isolation, factors that could also affect the prevalence of high-functioning alcoholism.