Substance Abuse Persuasive Speech

How many times have you heard someone say, “Let’s just grab a few drinks”? Only to wake up hours later in a strange place not knowing what took place the night before. Just one more drink can quickly spiral into five, 10, or even 15 and that’s when trouble starts.

Overcoming alcohol dependency is an uphill battle and can be a long tiresome bumpy road. At times, the journey itself may even seem impossible, but it’s not. If you’re ready to put an end to your habit and willing to receive help, you can recover from alcoholism and alcohol abuse - no matter how bad the addiction is. Don’t wait until you hit rock bottom; you can make a change at any time. To get started on the process, just read ahead.

So “why do people still drink until they black out?” and “what can be done to overcome this addiction?” you ask.

To
begin with, people battle with alcohol addiction for various reasons. The most common reasons people drink, however, consist of peer pressure, stress, to feel good, and of course, social gatherings with friends and family.

Some other common reasons people decide to drive while impaired include:
A false sense of relaxation which increases their confidence level.
Forgetting how many drinks they had.
Inability to make rational decisions.
Feeling too embarrassed to ask or call someone for a ride home.

Although you might say to yourself, “I would never drink and drive,” it’s not uncommon for individuals to find themselves in this situation at some point and time. The best way to ensure your safety if you are faced with this decision is by planning ahead. In other words, before heading out to the party make sure you have a ride home in case you drink too much. If you attend a gathering with a large group, make sure someone in the group is able to drive and hasn’t had anything to drink.

If you’re feeling an urgent sense of confidence and think you can get away with driving under the influence, just remember; every year, approximately 1.5 million people are arrested annually for driving under the influence of alcohol and marijuana. The chances of you making it home without being pulled over or wrecking your vehicle are slim to none. A life shouldn’t be gambled with!

How Can I Overcome This Addiction?

Set Goals. Once you’ve made the decision to change, the next step is establishing clear drinking goals. The more specific and clear the goals are, the better. Answering the basic questions, for example, will help individuals struggling with this addiction narrow down their scope. If your goals are to reduce your drinking, decide which days you will drink alcohol and how many drinks you will allow yourself throughout the week.

Fight the Temptation. A good way to ensure you don’t abuse alcohol is by removing all liquor bottles, and other drinking reminders from your home, work environment, and vehicle.

Tell the World.
Brag about it. In other words, let friends, family members, co-workers, and other associates know that you’re trying to stop drinking. If these individuals drink, just ask them if they cannot do so in front of you.

Find a Support Group. Despite what the media has to say about addicts when we think about the impact of substance abuse, we often place the majority of our focus on how addiction affects the physical, mental and spiritual health of the addict. But we don’t, however, think about the family and friends enduring this problem with the addict. The stress level families endure while watching a loved one battle against addiction is draining, that’s for sure.

Although we might view this process as tiresome, the addict, on the other hand, will start to realize just how much support they really have. A support group is everything for someone battling an addiction. Yoga, for instance, can be a great way to create a support group. Along with lowering stress levels, yoga may help reduce cravings themselves. In other words, yoga provides a safe spiritual environment that does not focus on religion.

Sobering Up the Safe
Way

As most of us know, when you drink heavily and frequently, your body subsequently becomes physically dependent on the alcohol in order to function properly. This causes the body to experience withdrawal symptoms that range from mild to severe, and may include:

Shaking
Headaches
Vomiting
Sweating
Anxiety
Tremors
Trouble sleeping and concentrating

Withdrawal symptoms typically start within the first couple hours after you made the decision to stop drinking. A successful treatment of alcohol withdrawal syndrome doesn’t address the overall underlying disease of addiction, it should also be followed by treatment for alcohol abuse or alcohol dependency.

As a final point, alcohol withdrawal should not be attempted without professional help of a detox center, as symptoms can pop up and magnify quickly.