How Drinking Alcohol in Excess Affects Relationships & How To Find Help

Many couples are both surprised and disappointed that they continue to have many fights and arguments after the substance abuse has stopped. It’s clear that drinking hurts relationships, and there are numerous ways it can damage marriages and other intimate partnerships. Alcohol abuse can lead to personality changes and negative behaviors, and studies3 have linked that alcohol addiction to aggression and violence within marriages. Earlier research3 linked heavy drinking to reduced marital satisfaction, and more specifically, the stress related to alcohol misuse created problems within marriages. What can be concluded from the available statistics on alcohol and relationships is that alcohol addiction takes its toll on intimate relationships, increasing the risk of breakup and divorce.

Have options available for how to change drinking habits or stop drinking. If the problem is severe, this may mean having a list of treatment options. Having a spouse, especially when there are children, leave to attend treatment in a residential facility certainly poses additional problems. But these are worth the positive outcomes that come with therapy and dedicated treatment to help a partner stop drinking. Start by reading up on alcohol use disorder to know the signs that someone has a problem with drinking. This will help make a stronger case that a spouse’s behaviors and actions are not healthy.

How Drinking Affects Relationships

Alcohol and Relationships are two topics that often intersect, and the consequences of this intersection can be devastating. For individuals struggling with alcohol addiction, maintaining healthy relationships can be challenging, as alcohol can become the focus of their lives, and their loved ones may feel neglected or hurt. If you think alcohol may be affecting your relationships, it might be a good idea to consider speaking with a healthcare or mental health professional. They can help determine whether what you’re experiencing is alcohol use disorder and recommend further evaluation or treatment if necessary. This blog is for informational purposes only and should not be a substitute for medical advice. We understand that everyone’s situation is unique, and this content is to provide an overall understanding of mental health disorders.

Fortunately, there are several ways to address or prevent alcohol problems in your relationship. The University at Buffalo is a premier research-intensive public university, a flagship institution in the State University of New York system and its largest and most comprehensive campus. UB’s more than 28,000 students pursue their academic interests through more than 300 undergraduate, graduate and professional degree programs.

Alcohol and Romantic Relationships: A Good or Bad Mix?

Learning more about how alcohol can affect your relationship is already an incredible step to be proud of. While alcohol can negatively impact your relationship, it’s important to remember that we are not our drinking habits. With time and support, relationships can heal and grow authentically without alcohol.

• They can help determine whether what you’re experiencing is alcohol use disorder and recommend further evaluation or treatment if necessary.
• In addition to self-care, partners of those affected by alcohol addiction can intervene by helping them find rehabilitation services.
• If your partner has a problem with drugs or alcohol, getting him or her to enter treatment may be one of the best things you can do for him and your relationship.
• Although severe alcohol problems get the most public attention, even mild to moderate problems cause substantial damage to individuals, their families and the community.
• Those suffering from alcohol use disorder face the same impulses and urges as drug addiction.
• Studies show that depression and anxiety are more common among those who grow up with a parent who has a drinking problem.

Alcohol can affect relationships in various ways, and this can look different for each person. These groups allow members to speak in a safe environment about the impact alcohol has on their lives. Peers can provide advice and comfort to help one another through tough times. Support settings often provide several therapeutic benefits for attendees. When you increasingly choose to drink rather than doing previously enjoyed activities with your significant other or friends, you may need to examine your motives for these choices.

Alcohol and children

According to the AACAP, children may notice changes in behavior from family members under the influence and falsely believe that they are the cause of these mood swings. The National Council on Alcoholism https://ecosoberhouse.com/ and Drug Dependence notes several ways drinking and drug use affect family members. Give us a call and we can help find the right treatment program for you or your loved one – even if it’s not ours!

Alcohol slows your brain’s synapses and chemically alters your body by affecting levels of serotonin—the chemical transmitting mood signals within the brain. These physical changes cause your emotions to get out of control and cause people to do or say things out of the norm. Here’s a snapshot of just a few organizations that may offer valuable support for families dealing with the effects of alcoholism. If you feel like alcohol has been affecting your relationships, consider reaching out for help so that you can be your best self for the people around you. If you’ve noticed that you’re only doing activities with your partner that involve alcohol, try to find other ways to spend time together without drinking.

For this reason, it can be difficult to understand if and when your drinking has become unhealthy, especially if alcohol has played a role in your relationship for a long time. This uncertainty is sometimes described as a phenomenon known as “gray area drinking“. Below we discuss how alcohol can disrupt your most important relationships. We also draw attention to some red flags that your drinking may have become unhealthy, and provide next steps for making a change. Someone who displays codependent behavior may be frustrated by the needs and actions of their addicted loved one but may also feel a compulsive need to take care of that person.

• As drinking or drug use gets worse, it starts to take more and more time away from the couple, taking its toll by creating an emotional distance between the partners that is difficult to overcome.
• This includes both financial and emotional support, which alcoholism can erode over time.
• Your significant other fell in love with a certain person, but you might become someone else entirely when you drink alcohol.
• Psychologists who are trained and experienced in treating alcohol problems can be helpful in many ways.

Each person has a different response to alcohol, but yours may not make your partner comfortable. Your significant other fell in love with a certain person, but you might become someone else entirely when you drink alcohol. Maybe alcohol is a social lubricant for you, but its effects have been magnified in the recent past. At Renaissance how alcoholism affects relationships Recovery our goal is to provide evidence-based treatment to as many individuals as possible. Give us a call today to verify your insurance coverage or to learn more about paying for addiction treatment. When alcoholism is a secret to the individual partaking in it, it can feel like just one more secret once infidelity starts.

Effects of Alcoholism on Families and Close Friends

Peaks Recovery is licensed to provide the highest level of inpatient and residential programming in Colorado. In addition to satisfying state criteria, we have further received the highest recognition from the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) for our 3.7 and 3.5 levels of care. Interventions such as these would need to involve community figureheads and other key stakeholders in order to make them workable solutions. One of the primary characteristics of addiction is that it becomes the most important thing in one’s life and everything else gets pushed to the side.