There is no cure for alcoholism. There is only treatment. As dismal as this sounds, recovery from addiction requires a concerted effort by the addict and everyone in the addict’s life to help him or her transition into an addiction treatment program.

Once the addict is placed into an addiction treatment program, it’s important to know that relapse will likely happen at some point down the road. However, the addiction recovery field has accepted that relapse is a part of the recovery process. Recovery from addiction simply means extending the periods of time between each relapse and eventually kicking the substance abuse habit all together. It takes time and patience to recover from the disease of addiction. It takes support from the addict’s family and friends to help the addict get into recovery.

In the early years of the addiction recovery field, little was known about addiction. People thought it was a morality issue. Over time though, scientists discovered that addiction is actually a brain disease. The brain changes after repeated use of substances.

The next time you meet someone who might be an addict, try not to discriminate. In sociology, one learns to be open minded to other cultures. Addiction is a culture by itself. The addict simply has a craving for a substance to satisfy a chemical imbalance in the brain. It has nothing to do with morality. The only real cure for alcoholism is a concerted effort by the addict, family and friends to transition into an addiction treatment program.