“Does my son need to go to support group or rehab for alcohol?”
My son is nearing thirty years old and he has issues with abusing alcohol. I'm not sure how I could help him, other than suggesting him to go to some type of therapy. Do you think treatment is better in a rehab center? Or would he be fine going to a support group? And, yes, he does want the help. He just doesn't know where or how to start.
4 Answers
Psychiatry&Neurology|AddictionMedicineAlcohol
First, kudos to your son for realizing he needs help,
As for how to start, it depends. If he develops withdrawal symptoms when he doesn't drink for more than a couple of hours (sweats, chills, nausea, increased anxiety) he may need medically managed withdrawal (what we used to call detox) and that may require being "in" somewhere, Realize, however, that detox isn't treatment- it's the first step. Medications are very helpful in helping with abstinence- less than a quarter of the folks who could benefit are ever offered medication. Support groups like AA, Smart Recovery, and Rational Recovery are all useful to the right person.
My best advice is to go on the website of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM.org) and find the "find a doctor" tab- this will help him find a board-certified addiction medicine physician who can evaluate him in person and give him the best advice. Good luck.
As for how to start, it depends. If he develops withdrawal symptoms when he doesn't drink for more than a couple of hours (sweats, chills, nausea, increased anxiety) he may need medically managed withdrawal (what we used to call detox) and that may require being "in" somewhere, Realize, however, that detox isn't treatment- it's the first step. Medications are very helpful in helping with abstinence- less than a quarter of the folks who could benefit are ever offered medication. Support groups like AA, Smart Recovery, and Rational Recovery are all useful to the right person.
My best advice is to go on the website of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM.org) and find the "find a doctor" tab- this will help him find a board-certified addiction medicine physician who can evaluate him in person and give him the best advice. Good luck.
Treatment in a residential treatment center is a very good start, of course, depending upon the individual’s addiction length and severity. Support groups, whether instead of treatment or started during treatment, in my opinion, can only help. Finding a counselor for weekly one-on-one counseling is also a good thing. One-on-one counseling gives the individual an outlet for all of those feelings and life problems and a safe place to be worked out. I hope this helps.
Don Johnson, CADC III: AOD Counselor
Preferred Pronoun: He, Him, His (What is This)<http://www2.humboldt.edu/qweerss/pronouns.html>
Open Door Community Health Centers
Fortuna Community Health Center
3750 Rohnerville rd, Fortuna, Ca. 95540<x-apple-data-detectors://1/1>
djohnson@opendoorhealth.com<mailto:djohnson@opendoorhealth.com>
707-502-7372<tel:707-502-7372>
Don Johnson, CADC III: AOD Counselor
Preferred Pronoun: He, Him, His (What is This)<http://www2.humboldt.edu/qweerss/pronouns.html>
Open Door Community Health Centers
Fortuna Community Health Center
3750 Rohnerville rd, Fortuna, Ca. 95540<x-apple-data-detectors://1/1>
djohnson@opendoorhealth.com<mailto:djohnson@opendoorhealth.com>
707-502-7372<tel:707-502-7372>
There are multiple effective paths to alcohol recovery, both inpatient and outpatient. There is no one-size fits all. One path that should be considered more often is medical treatment: https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-prescription-to-end-drinking-1418687580