Understanding yourself
Alcohol use disorder
“Just two pegs at the club. Then four.”
Drinking that has quietly become a need. Stopping heavy drinking safely can need medical care, and recovery is common.
Iqbal produces films that win awards. The drinking began as part of the business: dinners, premieres, two pegs at the club after a shoot. Now there are four most nights, and a bottle in the car. His hands shake in the morning until the first drink. His wife has stopped going to the parties with him.
An illustration drawn from common experience. The person is invented; the pattern is not.
Understanding alcohol use disorder
Alcohol use disorder is a pattern of drinking that a person finds hard to control and that continues despite harm: to health, work, family or safety. Tolerance builds, so more is needed for the same effect, and stopping can bring withdrawal: shaking, sweating, anxiety, poor sleep, and in severe cases seizures or confusion. Stigma and secrecy around alcohol can delay help.
How common is alcohol use disorder?
About 400 million people worldwide live with alcohol use disorders, WHO reported in 2024, and alcohol caused some 2.6 million deaths in 2019.
Signs and symptoms of alcohol use disorder
- Drinking more, or more often, than you intend
- Needing a drink to start the day, or to steady your hands
- Hiding drinking, or drinking alone
- Problems at work, at home, or with your health
Treatment for alcohol use disorder
Stopping heavy drinking suddenly can be dangerous, so withdrawal is managed medically. Treatment then combines psychological therapy, including motivational approaches, medication that can reduce craving or relapse for some people, treatment of any depression or anxiety underneath, and family support. Care is confidential.
What getting better can look like
Iqbal’s next premiere might come with a glass of lime soda, steady hands on the microphone, and his wife beside him again.
Common questions about alcohol use disorder
Is it dangerous to stop drinking alcohol suddenly?
For someone who has been drinking heavily, stopping suddenly can be dangerous. Withdrawal can bring shaking, sweating, anxiety and poor sleep, and in severe cases seizures or confusion. That is why withdrawal from heavy drinking is best planned and managed with a doctor.
How do I know if my drinking has become a problem?
Drinking becomes a problem when it is hard to control and carries on despite harm to health, work, family or safety. Needing more for the same effect, needing a drink in the morning to steady your hands, and hiding how much you drink are common signs. A doctor can talk it through with you in confidence.
When to see a psychiatrist
If drinking has become something you need rather than choose, please do not stop suddenly on your own. Talk to a doctor first.
Care here is personal: built around your history, your health and what you want to change, and reviewed with you as it goes.
If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 999 or go to the nearest hospital emergency department.
If some of this sounds familiar, a first conversation is a good place to start. You do not need the right words, or to be certain.
Dr. Tajreen is consulting in Uttar Badda now, until 8:00 pm. Call +880 1847-331010Every address and its hours
Sources
- World Health Organization, Global status report on alcohol and health and treatment of substance use disorders, June 2024
You do not need to have everything figured out before you begin.
