Since the early 1930’s with the dawn of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), treatment for alcoholism has existed mostly as counseling and peer support. Yet, while some people have been able to rehabilitate through this process, many people are not successful and find themselves relapsing over and over again.

While Alcoholics Anonymous is well intentioned, and indeed has helped many people recover from alcoholism, it does not address the underlying cause of alcoholism for an individual. It does not address the physical, psychological, or neurological reason or reasons why an individual is abusing alcohol.

Most people require advanced treatment for alcoholism. Advancing medical science and new technology now allows doctors to look at the brain and brain functions to help determine an individual’s unique cause for alcohol abuse. Neuroscience technology can look at the central limbic system of brain functions. The limbic system is the emotional center of the brain and is located beneath the cerebral cortex. The limbic system is responsible for controlling many behaviors. When a doctor looks at the limbic system he can tell, for instance, if there are any chemical imbalances, driven by physical or emotional traumas that may be causing a person’s alcohol abuse.  

Advanced treatment for alcoholism may include any number of neuroscience techniques. Brainwave mapping allows a doctor to track abnormal brainwaves to specific areas of the brain to determine if symptoms are neurologically caused. With neuro and biofeedback, technicians are able to monitor neurological and physiological reactions during treatment. This helps measure volatile emotions, trauma attacks, anxiety, and depression disorders related to alcoholism. SPECT scanning helps diagnose the impact of the alcohol abuse on the individual’s brain along with any atypical aggressive behavior related to the alcohol abuse.

With these advanced techniques, doctors are able to see brain functions and determine chemical levels of serotonin and dopamine. Together, these help the doctor understand how an individual’s brain is controlling his behavior and ultimately the reason or reasons he is abusing alcohol. Yet, advanced treatment for alcoholism is not only about all of the sophisticated technology,  but also the holistic component of nurturing and rehabilitating the psyche.

It is important for the individual to know and understand why he began abusing alcohol and how he can empower himself to leave alcohol behind and move on his life. Therapy sessions and counseling are an important part of the process. Counseling may include individual sessions, family sessions, and group sessions if desired. Support, responsibility, and balance are key to an individual’s success. The mind, body, and spirit must work in harmony to achieve a complete and successful recovery.

In an advanced treatment program for alcoholism, individuals receive the tools necessary to achieve a full recovery. Unlike the traditional 12 step program which labels an individual an alcoholic for life, with a disease they must battle every day to stay clean, an advanced treatment program can make alcoholism a thing of the past for an individual, giving him a clean start to a new future.

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