What is a Functional Alcoholic ?

When you think of an alcoholic, you probably imagine someone who sits alone all day and drinks himself or herself half to death. You may think they are incapable of even the most basic tasks. This is not the case, however. The vast majority of alcoholics have no clue that they have a problem with alcohol. They come across as entirely normal people who can carry out their daily routines with no problems. These are known as functional alcoholics. In this article, we are going to work with Alcohol Helper and discuss some of the chief characteristics of the functional alcoholic.

Normality : A functional alcoholic will have a job, have a family, and have friends. They will have a social life and they will come across as someone who does not have any problems. Instead, they will likely drink only when with others and they will usually have a high tolerance to alcohol. Someone like this will not fit the stereotype of the standard alcoholic, and that arguably makes them the most difficult to treat of all.

Denial is the Key Threat : It is especially difficult to convince functioning alcoholics to attend drug rehab clinics and rehab centres because they do not believe they have a problem. The truth is the people around them likely do not think they have a problem either. If you try to tell someone like this that he or shehas a problem, you are likely going to run into resistance from those around him or her, as well. The signs of serious alcoholism will not kick-in until they are much older for this reason. By the time they finally seek help, there is a good chance they have already sustained irreparable internal damage.

Alcohol Tolerance : As we briefly mentioned above, alcohol tolerance is a hallmark of the functioning alcoholic. In this case, the alcoholic has developed almost a complete immunity to the side effects of heavy drinking. They drink the same amounts as any other alcoholic, however. Even when they drink heavily, they will not display any outward signs that they are drunk. Furthermore, they will rarely, if ever, experience hangovers. This can lead people to believe that they are not drinking as much as they actually are. This is part of the reason why it is tough to get them to believe that they’re an alcoholic and require help.

What about Withdrawal Symptoms? : Functioning alcoholics may not experience the symptoms of being drunk, but they can and do experience withdrawal symptoms. If they fail to drink for a certain period, they will start to shake and sweat. They may also become irritable. Due to the fact nobody assumes they have a problem with alcohol, they wrongly attribute many of these symptoms to high levels of stress.

This is why you have to demonstrate to them somehow that they have a problem. It is the only way they are going to seek help. The vast majority of functioning alcoholics will never go out of their way to find help for their addictions. Overall, it will take time to get them the help they need, but it will be worth it in the end. They will be able to cure themselves and get sober.

What are the Main Signs of an Alcoholic Co Worker ?

Alcoholism in the workplace is more common than you might think. If you open your eyes and become more aware of who you are working with, you may discover an alcoholic in your place of work. These are known as functioning alcoholics, but no matter how hard they try, they will exhibit some signs of their hidden condition. If you are worried about a co-worker and you want to get them to rehab, look for some of the signs. We have worked with the experts at alcoholhelper.co.uk to help compile the following list.

Regular Hangovers : Some functioning alcoholics never suffer from hangovers. Some do. Everyone has the hangover on occasion due to a hard night’s drinking, but it should never become a habit. If you are regularly finding someone is walking in with red eyes and complaining that they feel unwell, this could be a sign that they are still hungover from last night.

Alcohol Withdrawal Symptoms : The longer someone has being an alcoholic for the more likely he or she is to exhibit withdrawal symptoms. This will often happen towards the end of a workday when they are so close to having a drink yet it has been so long since they last had a drink. Common withdrawal symptoms to look out for include shaking, sweating, and irritability.

Unkempt Appearance : When someone allows alcohol to take over their life, they tend to stop paying attention to personal hygiene and grooming. If you notice that someone has started to come in with wrinkled clothes and non-designer stubble, it could be a sign that alcohol has taken over their lives. A tell-tale sign is also that they have begun to stink of booze.

Alcohol Mentions : If an alcoholic is not drinking alcohol,they are either talking about alcohol or thinking about alcohol. Someone who does nothing but talk about alcohol could be experiencing problems because they find it is the only way to get over their cravings. Someone who is a functioning alcoholic will often talk about various drunken escapades. They will appear to have few other outside interests. Furthermore, they will do nothing but mention alcohol. It will not come as the occasional mention. It will be a constant slew of stories.

Bad Temper and Irrational Emotions : Alcoholics often have trouble keeping their emotions in check. This is why they need the care and patience of drug rehab clinics to cure themselves. Extreme and radical emotions often happen due to withdrawal symptoms. They are craving alcohol so much that they can no longer control themselves. They will also have trouble with stress, which is another contributing factor towards bad temperedness.

If someone suddenly becomes less likeable than before, this could represent a sign that alcohol has started to get on top of him or her. Overall, you need to notice the signs early if you are going to help someone beat an addiction. Be attentive and be aware that many of these symptoms may actually come from other conditions. You should monitor someone over a period and act only when the person really starts to deteriorate. Making a mistake on your part could lead to a lot of pain and frustration.

Should You Report an Alcoholic Co-Worker to Management?

Dealing with an alcoholic in the workplace can make dealing with the actual work extremely difficult. With regular mood swings and constant irritability, an alcoholic can drag the team down. You know they need help and alcohol rehab clinics could help them, but should you report the person to management so someone can force them to get help?. It is a difficult debate and one that thousands of people around the world go through each day. In this article, we are going to discuss this issue.

The Health Factor : From a health point of view, it is vital that you get someone to jump in and help. This would make sense because they are not going to seek help from rehab clinics by themselves. You do have to consider whether this is really going to work, though. One of the problems is that you could heap more stress upon the person if you start to intervene. This is why it is such a difficult decision to make. You have to decide on a case-by-case basis.

Friendship : As you know, someone who has an addiction to alcohol does not act like himself or herself. The big issue is the withdrawal symptoms make them irritable and it does not take much to put them in a bad mood. If you are friends with the person, you don’t want to compromise that by saying the wrong things. However, in the long-term it is best to report the person because they need help and they need it now. They may not thank you. In fact, there is a good chance they will hate you for it. In the future, they will come to realise it was the best decision for you.

What about Danger? : More advanced alcoholics may have reached a stage where they are actively putting your co-workers at risk. This is where you do have to step in no matter what. If it gets to this point, it means that the person is now putting others in harm’s way. You cannot allow this to happen and you have to report it immediately. Naturally, you are worried about whether the person may lose their job and spiral out of control. This is why you have to provide support instead of criticism. Bring the issue to management, but do not do it as if the person is a negligent worker. Make it clear that they need some time off to sort their life out.

Many drug rehab clinics take in people who have jobs where they have become a danger in the workplace. It is not always a case that the person is fired because they have asked for help. Employers are more understanding than ever before.

Making a Snap Judgement : The vast majority of alcoholics will not put everyone in immediate danger. Rather than making a snap judgement, monitor someone over the course of a few weeks or a few months. Do not report them straight away because you could be making a terrible mistake. The last thing you want to do is create unnecessary friction because of not taking the time to properly assess the situation.

How Can You Tell if Someone is a Functioning Alcoholic ?

A functioning alcoholic is someone who can go about their daily routines without exhibiting outward signs of alcoholism. They have extremely high alcohol tolerance levels and will rarely, if ever, raise any suspicious about their drinking habits. With this in mind, it is difficult to convince someone like this that they need to seek any help at all. We have worked with http://www.alcoholhelper.co.uk/ to come up with a profile of someone who is likely to be suffering from functioning alcoholism.

Drinking Like a Student Most students will consume high levels of alcohol during the course of their studies. The majority of people would agree this is a perfectly normal part of growing up. You can notice when someone has a problem after they continue to drink like a student even after leaving university and getting a normal job. When most of their friends have moved on, they have continued to live the ‘party lifestyle'.

An Ability to Hold Alcohol Functioning alcoholics can easily consume high levels of alcohol whilst exhibiting few signs of being drunk. They will most often come across as the ‘happy' drunk. The chances are they do not suffer from hangovers and can spend a whole night drinking whilst still attending the work the next day. Of course, some people are naturally resistant to the effects of alcohol, so do combine this characteristic with other items in this list before coming to any conclusions.

First One in the Bar Someone who is suffering from alcoholism will always be the first one to suggest visiting a bar after work. If they are for any reason delayed, they will become angry and/or irritable. When they get to the bar, they will usually consume the first few drinks quickly. Someone who gets angry about the fact they have to stay late at work because they cannot drink is suffering from the withdrawal symptoms of spending too long without a drink.

Jokes and Light-Heartedness It is not uncommon to see people mentioning the drinking habits of functioning alcoholics. You can notice a problem through how the person responds. They will often joke about the amounts of alcohol they are taking in. Furthermore, it's not uncommon to see them always talking about their drinking at the same time. Drinking jokes will become a regular part of their humour.

This is an example of drinking becoming the focal point of their lives. Someone who spends a lot of time with them will likely notice gradual changes in how they talk about alcohol over time.

Declining Health Even the most tolerant alcoholic will begin to suffer in the long-term. If you are starting to notice that the person has gradually become more ragged, this is a sign that their resistance is beginning to collapse and they need the help of rehab clinics more than ever. Functioning alcoholics cannot keep up their habits forever. This is why this type of alcoholism is so dangerous. Get the help of alcohol rehab clinics as soon as possible. Act now if you want to limit the effects of alcoholism!

5 Tips for Reporting an Alcoholic Co-Worker to Management

Alcoholics are a danger to themselves and others. If you work in an environment full of potential dangers, you cannot have someone like this going about their business. They could seriously hurt something if they are allowed to continue unchecked. This is why it is your duty to act as soon as you can. There is a right way to report an alcoholic co-worker to management without burning bridges, though. Together with http://www.alcoholhelper.co.uk/, we are going to give you some smart tips for reporting an alcoholic co-worker to management.

1.Talk to the Person First
 

Before you go over the person's head, try to engage them first. Do not immediately accuse them of being an alcoholic. Say something like they are looking stressed. Ask about if everything is okay at home. Little questions like this may encourage the person to open up and talk about their alcoholism. Of course, sometimes you may get nothing from them.

2.Raise Concerns Not Accusations
 

The goal of reporting someone to management is to get them help not get them sacked. You want to speak to a manager face-to-face and raise your concerns about any potential signs they are exhibiting of alcoholism. Make it clear that you want to get them help. Do not say anything about him or her putting anyone else in danger. They could construe this as negligent and sack them.

3.Choose the Right Manager
 

It is important that you choose the right person to speak to. Someone who is not receptive to the idea of alcohol rehab is no good. Find a manager you can trust and let them handle the problem. Get someone who is understanding and sympathetic to someone in this situation.

4.Bring a Friend
 

Messages like this are more powerful when they come from friends. If you need someone else to backup what you are saying, bring someone with you. It should be obvious to practically everyone if someone is having problems with alcohol, especially if it has reached a stage where you have to report them to the company's management.

5.Consider Staging an Intervention
 

Interventions in preparation for someone who is about to start looking at rehab clinics are normally characterised by family members and friends. If you are working as part of a close-knit team, it may be worth staging an intervention with the help of management. Make it clear to the person that you want to help them as a group. Of course, this is only going to work within certain workplace environments.

Don't Hesitate or Dither
 

 If you do decide to report an alcoholic co-worker, you need to do it as soon as you notice a problem. Hesitating and dithering will not make the problem go away. Alcoholics get worse over time. You do not want it to reach a point where they do risk losing their jobs. The earlier you jump in to help someone the more likely he or sheis to succeed in rehab. It may lead to conflict in the short-term, but when it is all said and done, the person will thank you for your help.

Why is a Solid Support Network so Important for the Recovering Alcoholic ?

The recovering alcoholic is in an extremely vulnerable position in life. They have recently come back into the real world and they are ready to take on their addictions where it matters. Unfortunately, too many alcoholics descend into their old ways by forgetting about the importance of a support network. Alcohol rehab will frequently drill into you how essential having the right people around you is. Let uslook at some of the main reasons why you should surround yourself with the right people today.

Accountability : The act of finding someone you can become directly accountable to is a powerful anchor point. When we disappoint ourselves, there are no consequences. We cannot really beat ourselves up in the same way as someone else can. Disappointing someone we care about is far more crushing than merely failing a personal goal. If you have someone you are accountable to in your support network, the chances are you will work twice as hard to avoid disappointing them. For some, this can be a life partner, or it can simply be a best friend.

A Point of Help : Sometimes we need some extra help and we do not know where to go about getting that help. By having a professional in your network who you can turn to, you can get the emergency aid required to defeat your cravings. For most people, this immediate point of help comes in the form of an alcohol helpline.

Emotional Trauma : Recovering from alcoholism is a highly traumatic experience. Nobody who has never been through it can truly understand what it is like to deal with an addiction like this. No matter how good the alcohol help clinic is, you are never going to get to a point where you can walk back into your old life and stay sober without any problems.

Everyone hits a wall. You will encounter a situation where you are on the verge of having a drink. It is the equivalent of the wall that a marathon runner might face. To deal with this emotional trauma, a sounding board who is willing to take on-board what you say is crucial. If you know someone like this is only a phone call away, you will reach for the phone instead of reaching for the bottle.

The Proper Support : It is a proven fact that athletes perform better in competition than they do in training. Part of the reason for this is they have hundreds of people cheering them on. They do not want to let themselves down or the people watching them. It is natural to want to make other people feel good about themselves.

Surround yourself with a range of people. Do not feel embarrassed about the fact you are seeking help. There is no need to tackle the problem alone. People are more understanding than you think and they will all play a part in helping you get back on your feet again. Even if they just send the occasional greeting every now and then, little acts of kindness can get you through the darkest days of your recovery.

Whom Should You Avoid as a Recovering Alcoholic?

Leaving rehab and re-entering the real world is a big moment for anyone who is trying to recover from the shadow of an addiction. The problem is now you have to surround yourself with the right people. A strong support network will play a pivotal role in your eventual recovery long-term. Whilst a lot of guides and drug rehab clinics talk about who you need to surround yourself with, we are going to talk about whom you should not have in your social circle. Read on to find out more about the potential demons in your life.

The Alcoholic : Many people who found themselves drinking too much did so because they drank with friends. Drinking friends are not real friends. They are people who you happen to share a love of consuming alcohol with. Understand that the vast majority of these people will promptly disappear when you tell them you are not drinking any longer. Even if they do not, they are a destructive force. You are not strong enough to sit in a bar whilst everyone around you drinks copious amount of alcohol. Moreover, even if you think you can handle it, why put yourself in such a situation in the first place?

The Negative Nancy : You will notice that rehab centres all express positivity. There is no room for negativity in counselling sessions. Everyone is talking to you as if you are going to breeze through your recovery. Whilst this is not necessarily true, the goal is to delude yourself and to repair your shattered confidence. Stay away from people who try to compromise this. Some family members and friends may doubt your ability to recover. They might also refuse to acknowledge that you are addicted to alcohol. It is not uncommon to see family members rationalising with lines like "What's wrong with only a few drinks?"

The Stress Inducer : Stress is a big problem for recovering alcoholics. The act of recovering from an addiction puts a lot of physical and mental stress on the body. Adding stress through external factors will only compromise your ability to put your cravings to one side. Many alcoholics became alcoholics because they lived a high-stress lifestyle. You need to relax yourself and stay away from as many sources of stress as possible.

You need to identify sources of stress and disconnect from them. The way to do this is to write down a list of the people who cause you to feel stressed. For example, if you have a manager at work who constantly puts you down you need to figure out how to deal with them. It may mean finding another job.

It does not mean you have to eliminate these people from your life. However, making sure they do not spend too much time with you at this stage is a must. Later on, you can gradually reintroduce them to your social circle. We cannot underline enough how crucial a support network filled with sober and positive people is. If you cannot find someone who fits the bill, do not compromise by adding people who won't bring you any benefits. It is nearly always better to have nobody instead of someone who can potentially cause real damage to your recovery.