Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for Alcoholism

Over the past few decades, cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) has been extensively researched for use in the treatment of substance abuse and other mental disorders. But is CBT right for you or your loved one? Cognitive behaviour therapy for alcoholism can be quite effective when implemented correctly.

Alcoholism Defined: Alcohol Use Disorder

First things first, what is an alcohol use disorder (AUD)? There are different criteria for defining and diagnosing AUD. And these criteria have changed and developed over many years. You or a loved one may be suffering from alcoholism if one or more of the following criteria is met:

• Physical dependence on alcohol (including withdrawal symptoms after consumption)
• Trouble managing the amount of alcohol intake (includes binge drinking)
• Preoccupation with alcohol or relying on it for certain times/events
• Alcohol tolerance
• An increased amount of alcohol use over time
• Efforts to reduce alcohol use are ineffective
• Interference with personal or professional life
• Spends a significant amount of time trying to obtain, use, and/or recover from alcohol
• Continued use despite harmful effects on the individual

These symptoms may present themselves as mild, moderate, or severe. Mild does not mean that the substance abuse should not be addressed. Alcoholism can lead to major health issues, physiologically, as well as emotional issues and interpersonal struggles.

It may still be difficult to really determine on your own if you or a loved one meets these criteria. It is not uncommon to ignore or excuse certain behaviours.

One way to help know if you might be struggling with alcohol-related substance abuse is if your drinking impacts or hinders any aspect of your life – whether that be personal responsibilities, interpersonal relationships, overall mood, etc.

If you think you or a loved one may be struggling with alcoholism, please consult a doctor or mental health professional as soon as possible.

Conditioning and Learning With CBT

There are three main components of learning or conditioning with cognitive behaviour therapy for alcoholism. Understanding these basic psychological principles are very beneficial to the recovering alcoholic. Therapists will work on these fundamental components with clients during CBT:

Combining all three of these basic psychological principles can help the individual to recognise, avoid, and cope with life’s daily triggers and stressors that have led to alcohol use in the past.

This has been shown to effectively help those struggling with substance abuse with alcohol. These are the three most basic skills for managing these triggers:

• Recognise: Identifying events, circumstances, or even self-defeating feelings and beliefs that lead to alcohol use and abuse (could include social events, triggering environments, or even internal triggers like a reaction to stress or anxiety)
• Avoid: Avoiding these trigger situations by removing one’s self from these places, events, or moods
• Cope: Utilising the tools and techniques learned through CBT therapy to alleviate/address harmful thoughts and emotions that lead to alcohol use and abuse

What are the Benefits of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for Alcoholism?

The basic principle of using cognitive behaviour therapy for alcoholism is that substance abuse and other related behaviours stem from learned beliefs and improper coping skills.

The basic goals of CBT in the treatment of substance abuse are to:

• Identify these thoughts and their subsequent behaviours
• Change these thoughts and beliefs to help create healthy coping behaviours

While there is much more to it than that, those are the basics of CBT. When you look at it from its most basic elements, it can feel less overwhelming.

There are so many benefits of utilising CBT techniques in achieving sobriety including:

• Identifying automatic thoughts and personal beliefs that may lead to alcohol use
• Helping to end false and destructive beliefs/insecurities
• Enacting self-help tools to improve thought patterns and emotional state
• Improving communication skills
• Replacing cognitive distortions with healthy critical thinking patterns
• Finding healthy coping mechanisms to replace maladaptive behaviours

CBT has also been found to be effective in therapy for other mental disorders including:

• Attention deficit disorder (ADD)
• Anxiety
• Bipolar disorder
• Depression
• Eating disorders
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

In Conclusion

CBT can be a healthy and effective treatment method for those in recovery. Again, it can not be stressed enough to speak with a licenced medical or mental health professional if you think you or a loved one could benefit from cognitive behaviour therapy for alcoholism.

It’s never too late to start and get life back on track with sobriety, health, and happiness.