It’s also a sign that you know it is not healthy or acceptable and that you might be ready to make a change. Even if high-functioning alcoholics seem to “have it together,” their drinking can strain relationships with family, friends, or colleagues. Partners may feel ignored, children may feel neglected, and friendships may suffer due to broken promises or behavioral changes.
- They may have a successful career, fulfill family obligations, maintain social connections, and appear “normal” to those around them.
- However, just because someone does not fit the traditional image of an alcoholic does not mean they are not suffering from addiction.
- The above symptoms can be true for anyone dealing with alcohol use disorder.
- High functioning alcoholics become so dependent on alcohol that it acts as a crutch for them.
What Is High-Functioning Alcoholism?
Some high-functioning alcoholics believe that alcohol helps them perform better. They might feel that it relaxes them enough to socialize effectively, fuels their creativity, or helps them “manage” the pressure of work or life. Maintaining an outwardly stable life while grappling with an inner battle against alcohol dependence is what makes high-functioning alcoholism so complex and dangerous. Without intervention, the façade of control will eventually crack, leading to consequences that affects every aspect of their lives.
Online Therapy Can Help
In most cases, you won’t know a person has a secret alcohol addiction unless something drastic happens, such as a DUI, that forces them to realize they may have a problem. They’ll maintain the appearance of having a normal life by holding a steady job. They may even be an active member in their community or have a family they care for.
Long-Term Support and Relapse Prevention
High-functioning alcoholism refers to individuals who drink excessively but still manage to carry out their daily responsibilities. They may have a successful career, fulfill family obligations, maintain social connections, and appear “normal” to those around them. Because high-functioning alcoholics can “manage” their everyday lives, the misconception is that they are somehow immune to alcohol’s negative effects.
- Their ability to maintain appearances often prevents them and those around them from recognizing the severity of the issue.
- While high-functioning alcoholics may not immediately experience these issues, the risks grow over time.
- It can strain relationships, affect job performance, and lead to emotional instability.
- While they may not suffer immediate external consequences, individuals struggling with alcohol use disorder who hide it well still face serious repercussions.
Here’s why high-functioning alcoholism is dangerous
Needing to reassure themselves, not just family, is a sign of addiction. There’s a difference between drinking as a way of socializing and drinking as a necessity. Once a person needs alcohol to function normally, they’ve become dependent. Many people won’t recognize they have a problem because having a high tolerance will make it harder to notice their addiction. Speaking about the issues you’ve been facing may seem small, but it’s an important step towards bringing your addiction under control. A support network of loved ones around you will be very important during the recovery process.
- If you’re regularly blacking out or neglecting your commitments due to drinking, then it’s a problem.
- These question and answer tests can help you to understand your relationship with alcohol.
- If a loved one disappears for long periods of time and won’t respond to your calls, this could indicate a sign of binge drinking.
- Others may be in denial about how much they’re drinking, downplaying the amount they consume on a regular basis.
- While it may not be as readily apparent as the stereotypical image of an alcoholic, high functioning alcoholism is a real and often overlooked issue.
Just because they believe they’re in control of their drinking doesn’t mean they aren’t causing damage, and they may need help realizing that before it goes too far. You might hear the term ‘currently functioning’ used to emphasise that a person’s ability to function right now is unlikely to last. Alcohol addiction can have a devastating effect on someone’s life, but functional alcoholic husband how long it takes someone’s drinking problem to affect their daily functioning will differ from person to person.
Living with a High-Functioning Alcoholic: Signs and Support
The earlier a person begins drinking, the more likely they are to develop an alcohol addiction. It can lead to liver disease, pancreatitis, some forms of cancer, brain damage, serious memory loss, and high blood pressure. It also makes someone more likely to die in a car wreck or from murder or suicide. And any alcohol abuse raises the odds of domestic violence, child abuse and neglect, and fetal alcohol syndrome.
How Does an Alcoholic or Other Substance Abuse Affect the Household?
The intention is to lessen the effects of your hangover by adding some alcohol into the mix to help your body regulate. Drinking so much that you need a morning drink or drinking at unusual times just to get through your day is a sign alcoholism symptoms of alcohol addiction. Unfortunately, not only is it possible, but it is likely happening more often than you think. Even if they seem in control, high functioning alcoholism can lead to serious long-term consequences.
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