When many people think of the effects of alcohol, they think about the physical effects alcohol has on the body, such as liver damage. But there are many psychological effects of alcohol on the body that you may not have thought of. In many cases, the psychological effects of alcohol are much more damaging and painful to you than the effects that you already know about. Here's a look at some of the psychological effects ofalcohol on your body: Depression Alcohol is a depressant. This means that once it begins circulating in the system,it will decrease the activity within the nervous system ofyour brain. For this reason as you drink alcohol... ...you may notice that you start to have more feelings of depression or become entrenched in a depression as a result of the drinking. Many make the mistake of thinking they can 'drown theirsorrows' by drinking more, and make the feelings of sadness and uselessness go away. If this describes you, what you don't realize is you are just making the situation worse and causing your depression to become deeper and last longer. Anxiety: If you are like a lot of people, as you consume large amounts of alcohol you will become stressed from the impact of the drug. While you may find the buzz from the alcohol enjoyable for awhile, it will give way to a series of stresses on your system that will manifest psychologically. From a general feeling of discontent to restlessness,nightmares and even overwhelming fear... ...there are a number of feelings of anxiety that can come of your alcohol usage. Personality Changes: Have you noticed your family members are treating you differently? It may be because you have changed in how you interactwith them. Alcohol can make massive personality that you may not evensee. Once you become intoxicated, what were your usual personality traits may change dramatically. You may become selfish, egotistical or even angry about yourl ife and everything in it. Aggression and mood swings are some of the most common traits. These changes are brought on by the alcohol's effect on serotonin in your body. Serotonin is a chemical in your body that transmits signals relating to mood to your brain. When its job is weakened by alcohol, moods and emotions can get out of control. Another common personality change brought on by alcohol is adeterioration of morals. As alcohol affects the body, it acts to slow the responses of the synapses in the brain. This slowing down of the brain's circuitry decreases thinking and reasoning. For this reason, when you are intoxicated, you may be willing to do and say things you would not usually do or say if you were thinking clearly. Obsession: Once you become dependent on alcohol (whether you realize it or not)... ...you will start to become obsessed with drinking. While many think a few drinks are not dangerous, to someonewho is alcohol dependent or becoming alcohol dependent,there is no difference between getting those next few drinks, and a drug addict who is looking fortheir next hit. Your obsession can lead to a loss of other interests in your life and a focus only on how you are going to get another drink, while all along denying there is a problem with your desire for alcohol. Generally, you will not realize you are being pulled in toan obsession until it is too late. Denial: Just as you would expect in any other type ofaddict, those who drink a lot of alcohol go through a number of denial issues. If you have heard from those who you love that you may be drinking too much, you really should listen to them. Often, you will not even notice you are becoming more andmore intoxicated on a regular basis, because you are too close to the problem. Alcohol dependency is a progressive illness... ...and you may not be able to see what it is doing to you in the same way someone else can. Just like any other disease, alcohol dependency is a progressive disease. The longer and more you drink, the more pronounced the effects will be on your system. Additionally, these psychological effects of alcohol are not just felt while you are drinking, or the morning after. They can continue for a number of days or weeks after you have consumed the alcohol, so people log in here daily and share your thoughts and feelings,we have been there and we can help.
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