People with severe liver problems should not take this medicine. Tell your doctor if you have ever had liver disease or hepatitis. People with severe heart disease or serious mental illness should not take this medicine. People with alcohol use disorder are three to four times more likely to die early than those without alcohol use disorder. The risk of alcohol use disorder may run in some families. Other things, such as having low self-esteem or being impulsive, may raise the risk of alcohol use disorder. Alcohol use disorder can be mild to severe, depending on the number of symptoms a person has.

As much as you may want to, and as hard as it is to watch, you cannot make someone stop drinking. Witnessing your loved one’s drinking and the deterioration of your relationship can trigger many distressing emotions, including shame, fear, anger, and self-blame. Your loved one’s addiction may even be so overwhelming that it seems easier to ignore it and pretend that nothing is wrong. But in the long run denying it will only bring more harm to you, your loved one with the problem, and the rest of your family.

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It’s common to drink to lighten tension on a first date or before a difficult conversation. Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial https://ecosoberhouse.com/ process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Al-Anon is one of the best-known support groups that helps people who are affected by their loved one’s alcohol use.

Your teen should understand that drinking alcohol comes with specific consequences. But don’t make hollow threats or set rules that you cannot enforce. As a parent or guardian, it’s normal to feel scared, angry, or confused if you discover your child is drinking. But it’s important to remember that you still have a major impact on the choices that your child makes, especially during their preteen and early teen years.

How to Help Someone Stop Drinking

You may benefit from couples or family therapy — family support can be an important part of the recovery process. Individuals often hide their drinking or deny they have a problem. How can you tell if you or someone you know is in trouble? If you don’t control codependency, it can lead into more serious complications such as obsessive behavior, blame, and mental health issues. Treating alcoholism isn’t easy, and it doesn’t always work the first time around. Often a person has been contemplating abstinence for some time, yet couldn’t get sober on their own. Don’t blame yourself if the first intervention isn’t successful.

While it may be difficult to practice tough love, it will be beneficial for the addict in the end. The longer people allow their use to continue, the longer they will take advantage of that fact. Enabling can also mean doing things for an addict that they are plenty capable of doing how to overcome alcoholism themselves. Part of recovery and sobriety is learning how to be self-sufficient, a skill that will never be refined if someone continues taking on an addict’s responsibilities. Citing specific examples of the effects of someone’s drinking are more effective than giving an ultimatum.