Alcoholism is nothing new to modern society, but we have only recently begun to understand it in the past century. Alcohol has been a part of human culture for thousands of years, and alcoholism throughout history has often been portrayed as silly, stupid or even an endearing characteristic. We’ve all seen the movies or read a book where a funny drunk is stumbling about saying ridiculous things in broken speech patterns. However, we’ve come to realize it is a much more serious issue than that would suggest. Alcoholism is a chronic disease that affects 15 million people in the US alone, and 88,000 deaths are attributed to excessive alcohol use each year according to the Center for Disease Control.
What is Alcoholism?
You can get drunk or even die because of intoxication without actually being an alcoholic. After all, a drunk driver can die in an accident after only one night of drinking. So, what makes a person an alcoholic? Continue reading
For most of humankind’s journey through the ages, daily life was fraught with genuine perils and terror of the unknown. Thus, it’s only natural that we experience instinctively fearful reactions to certain stimuli in the modern world, even when such fear is irrational. Problems occur when an illogical fear becomes extreme and causes a change of general behavior. Such fears are known as phobias, and identifying their presence is the first step toward overcoming them.