alcohol abuse case study pdf

An official website of the United States government

The .gov means it’s official. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

The site is secure. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

• Publications
• Account settings

Preview improvements coming to the PMC website in October 2024. Learn More or Try it out now .

• Advanced Search
• Journal List
• Prim Care Companion J Clin Psychiatry
• v.2(3); 2000 Jun

A Case of Alcohol Abuse

The patient is a 65-year-old white woman, married for 35 years to an accountant. They have 5 grown children and 12 grandchildren. She taught elementary school for 28 years and has not worked since retiring 15 years ago. Her mother suffered with hypertension and died of a cerebrovascular accident 10 years ago at age 81. Her father died after a heart attack more than 30 years ago at age 55. She has 2 younger sisters, aged 61 and 59 years old, who are basically in good health.

She had an appendectomy at age 28, and a cholecystectomy at age 55, 1 month after her mother died. She sees her family doctor for control of asthma and high blood pressure. The same family doctor has treated the patient for nearly 20 years.

PRESENTATION OF THE PROBLEM

For much of the time he has known her, the family doctor has been aware of the patient's drinking problem. It apparently began in the early 1970s after she was involved in a lawsuit initiated by a parent of one of her pupils. Although the school backed her, and the case was eventually resolved in her favor, she remembers the 2-year period as one of constant fear and uncertainty. She recalls subsequently experiencing blackout spells. On 3 separate occasions, she was hospitalized for detoxification, and brief periods of sobriety ensued. The doctor inquires regularly about her alcohol habit and believes that the patient is mostly truthful about her bouts of drinking and times of abstinence.

One week ago, her husband and a daughter called to request time to “talk about mother.” The husband related that his wife had resumed daily drinking (about 1 pint of vodka) 3 months ago. At times, he noticed that she slurred her words. Daughter has become fearful of leaving the grandchildren with the patient. When they each spoke with her, she denied “heavy drinking” and thought they made “more of the problem than there was.”

The doctor agreed to talk with his patient, telling her that her husband and daughter had spoken with him, and she agreed to come in for an appointment. He pointed out, skillfully, that the problem was not new, that it was having marital and family consequences for her, that she had made several unsuccessful attempts to deal with it in the past, and that he felt it was time to take a definitive step to resolve the problem. He was somewhat surprised when she agreed to accept a referral to a psychiatrist for brief psychotherapy.

PSYCHOTHERAPY

The patient came to my office in late September 1997. She validated the history of her alcohol habit, as presented to me by her primary care physician. She added her several brief attempts to attend Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings, until 1 year earlier when she quit because she “was bored.” She described her mate as a “workaholic who is domineering and often makes me feel defensive.” She acknowledged drinking daily for the past 3 months. She had slept poorly for 6 months, which she attributed to “bronchitis and a chronic cough.” Her energy, appetite, and weight were all stable. She denied depressed or anxious mood.

She was kempt, cooperative, and appropriately behaved. Her mood was stable, and her affect was full in range. There were no psychotic symptoms, no suicidal ideas, and no obsessions or compulsions. She qualified for no psychiatric diagnoses save alcohol abuse. We contracted to meet every 2 weeks for up to 10 sessions to attempt to help her solve her alcohol problem.

In session 1, identifying parameters and a narrative history were achieved. In session 2, I taught her the cognitive model for understanding behavior and suggested that this was the framework we would employ. When there was a distressing feeling or an alcohol-related behavior, we would seek to identify the relevant meanings she applied to a situation. I stressed the relationship of cognitions (thoughts), feelings, and behavior. For homework, I asked her to keep a Triple Column, listing situations, feelings, and thoughts relevant to the urge to drink. In session 3, we sought to identify alternative choices to drinking and examined their consequences. During a 1-week vacation, her drinking habit sharply declined. We discussed various meanings for this. By session 4, she reported 10 days that were alcohol-free. She identified cognitions preceding earlier drinking as “to have nerve” and “to forget an insult.” Many of the meanings she offered were polarized, and we discussed this error of “black and white thinking.” Together, we sought alternatives that were “grays.” I suggested that she had successfully taken the first step toward change. In session 5, she reported nearly a month of continuing abstinence. She believed that a key to her success lay in applying the model when she anticipated a “drinking situation” and working with the identified meanings. She noted her difficulty with assertion and how a conversation with her husband seemed like “an interrogation” by him.

In session 6, she focused on a visit by her grandchildren, with its attendant demands and problems. She had remained abstinent for 6 weeks and noted how her mood was “more even” and that she angered “less easily.” We defined this phase as “successfully having stopped drinking,” but noted as well that she had achieved this before. The harder task would be maintenance. We searched together for potentially high-risk situations we could anticipate and plan for.

In session 7, she talked about 2 slip-ups. We worked to understand each situation in cognitive terms and examined alternate meanings, their consequences, and behavioral options. In session 8, she reported believing that she had achieved control over the alcohol habit, and that she felt “free” for the first time in years. We arranged a follow-up visit for 1 month later.

In our final meeting, we separated drinking alcohol as a habit from choosing to drink, in light of the consequences to her of an alcohol addiction. We utilized “shift of set,” in which she was encouraged to advise a person in a story who had a range of alcohol-related problems. We discussed the positive value of our relationship, the work we each had done, and what she had found useful in the cognitive method. I encouraged her to call if another meeting would be helpful.

We terminated psychotherapy after 9 sessions conducted over a 5-month period of time. I sent a letter summarizing the treatment to her primary care physician. Six-month follow-up indicated continued abstinence. Individual psychotherapy was appropriate in this instance since AA had been initiated and proved of little help to the patient. Group therapy would be a reasonable alternative, depending on the group's focus.

Editor's note: Dr. Schuyler is a board-certified psychiatrist at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston who works halftime in a medical clinic. As a follow-up to his article “Prescribing Brief Psychotherapy” (February issue), Dr. Schuyler and colleagues will discuss cases referred by primary care physicians. Through this column, we hope that practitioners in general medical settings will gain a more complete knowledge of the many patients who are likely to benefit from brief psychotherapeutic interventions. A close working relationship between primary care and psychiatry can serve to enhance patient outcome.

For further reading: A Practical Guide to Cognitive Therapy . 1st ed. by Dean Schuyler, New York, NY: WW Norton & Co; 1991. ISBN: 0393701050

Alcohol Abuse in Society: Case Studies

Cite this chapter.

• Adrian Bonner 3 &
• James Waterhouse 4  

34 Accesses

The last three chapters have demonstrated how routine data may be collected from the health service and forensic medicine. These data present a view of the occurrence of alcohol and drug abuse in society which is generated from a ‘medical model’. As useful as this approach is, it does not take into account the nature and needs of specific groups. To do this a more ‘socially appropriate perspective’ can be used. The following case studies illustrate some of the problems resulting from methodological issues in this area of investigation and, in particular, from studies undertaken in short-term projects undertaken by graduate students. Important discussions relating to: ‘what level of consumption constitutes abuse ’ ‘alcohol usage by the elderly’, and ‘the effectiveness of health education’ will be introduced.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Subscribe and save.

• Get 10 units per month
• Download Article/Chapter or eBook
• 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
• Cancel anytime
• Available as PDF
• Read on any device
• Instant download
• Own it forever
• Compact, lightweight edition
• Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
• Free shipping worldwide - see info
• Durable hardcover edition

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Unable to display preview.  Download preview PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

Alcohol Use

Sociological Testimony in Alcohol- and Other Drug-Associated Litigation

Alcohol Use in Sub-Saharan Africa

Anderson, P. (1984) ‘Alcohol Consumption of Undergraduates at Oxford University’, Alcohol and Alcoholism , 19:pp. 77–84.

Google Scholar  

Black, D. and Weare, K. (1989) ‘Knowledge and Attitudes about Alcohol in 17- and 18-Year-Olds’, Health Education Journal , 48 (2):pp. 69–73.

Article   Google Scholar  

Cyster, R. and McEwen, J. (1987) ‘Alcohol Education in the Workplace’, Health Education Journal , 46 (4):pp. 156–61.

Davies, J. (1991) ‘Learning to Drink’, paper presented at a national conference on ‘Alcohol and Young People’, 8 October 1991, Queen Mother Conference Centre, Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh.

Gillies, P. (1991) ‘What Can Education Achieve?’, paper presented at a national conference on ‘Alcohol and Young People’, 8 October 1991, Queen Mother Conference Centre, Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh.

Grant, M. (1981) ‘Aims, Form and Content: First Steps in Developing a Taxonomy of Preventative Education in Drug and Alcohol Abuse’, in L. R. H. Drew et al . (eds), Man, Drugs, and Society: Current Perspectives (Canberra: Australian Foundation on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence).

Haack, M. (1988) ‘Stress and Impairment among Nursing Students’, Research in Nursing and Health , 11:pp. 125–34.

Haack, M. and Harford, T. (1984) ‘Drinking Patterns among Student Nurses’, The International Journal of the Addictions , 19 (5):pp. 577–83.

Hopkins, R., Maussa, A., Kearney, K. and Weisheit, R. (1988) ‘Comprehensive Evaluation of a Model Alcohol Education Curriculum’, Journal of Studies on Alcohol , 49 (1):pp. 38–50.

Hutchison, S. (1986) ‘Chemically Dependent Nurses: The Trajectory towards Self Annihilation’, Nursing Research , 35 (July/August):pp. 196–201.

Maussa, A., Hopkins, R., Weisheit, R., and Kearney, K. (1988) The Problematic Prospects for Prevention in the Classroom: Should Alcohol Education Programmes be Expected to Reduce Drinking by Youth?’, Journal of Studies in Alcohol , 49 (1):pp. 51–61.

Plant, M. (1991) ‘Heavy Drinkers: Are They Distinctive?’, paper presented at a national conference on ‘Alcohol and Young People’, 8 October 1991, Queen Mother Conference Centre, Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh.

Plant, M. L., Plant, M. A. and Foster, J. (1991) ‘Alcohol, Tobacco and Illicit Drug Use Amongst Nurses: A Scottish Study’, Drug and Alcohol Dependence , 28:pp. 195–202.

Roberts, R. (1988) ‘Hiccups in Alcohol Education’, Health Education Journal , 47 (213):pp. 73–5.

Royal College of General Practitioners (1986) Alcohol: A Balanced View (London: Tavistock).

Saltz, R., and Elandt, D. (1986) ‘College Students Drinking Studies 1976–1985’, Contemporary Drug Problems (Spring):pp. 117–59.

Wallace, P., Brennan, P., and Haines, A. (1987) ‘Drinking Patterns in General Practice Patients’, Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners , 37:pp. 354–7.

Weichsler, H. and McFadden, M. (1979) ‘Drinking among College Students in New England; Extent, Social Correlates and Consequences of Alcohol’, Journal of Studies on Alcohol , 40:pp. 969–99.

West, R., Drummond, C., and Eames, K. (1990) ‘Alcohol Consumption, Problem Drinking and Anti-Social Behaviour in a Sample of College Students’, British Journal of Addiction , 85:pp. 479–86.

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Addictive Behaviour Centre Roehampton Institute, London, UK

Adrian Bonner ( Director )

School of Biological Sciences, School of Human Biology, University of Manchester, UK

James Waterhouse ( Senior Research Fellow, Lecturer in Physiology )

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and affiliations.

Adrian Bonner ( Director ) ( Director )

James Waterhouse ( Senior Research Fellow, Lecturer in Physiology ) ( Senior Research Fellow, Lecturer in Physiology )

Copyright information

© 1996 Adrian Bonner and James Waterhouse

About this chapter

Bonner, A., Waterhouse, J. (1996). Alcohol Abuse in Society: Case Studies. In: Bonner, A., Waterhouse, J. (eds) Addictive Behaviour: Molecules to Mankind. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-24657-1_17

Download citation

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-24657-1_17

Publisher Name : Palgrave Macmillan, London

Print ISBN : 978-0-333-64556-7

Online ISBN : 978-1-349-24657-1

eBook Packages : Palgrave Social & Cultural Studies Collection Social Sciences (R0)

Share this chapter

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Publish with us

Policies and ethics

• Find a journal
• Track your research

Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer.

To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds to  upgrade your browser .

Enter the email address you signed up with and we'll email you a reset link.

• We're Hiring!
• Help Center

Management of Alcohol Dependence Syndrome - A single Case Study

2023, International Journal of Scientific Research

Background: Alcohol addiction is a complex and dynamic process. Prolonged excessive alcohol consumption causes neuroadaptive changes in the brain's reward and stress systems. It has been directly linked to various social, economic, and health problems. : The case Aims & Objectives study aims to reduce the symptoms of person diagnosed with alcohol dependence syndrome. The attempt has been to bring out changes in motivation level and to enhance coping skills. The client was assessed, diagnosed, and a treatment plan was developed. Methodology: Implemented treatment consisted of motivational enhancement therapy, components of cognitive behavioural therapy, refusal skills, relaxation therapy, anger management and sleep hygiene. The Mini Mental Status Examination, Alcohol Use Disorders Identication Test, Alcohol Craving Questionnaire, SACK's sentence completion test & Beck Depression Inventory were used to access the severity of the symptoms. Result & Conclusion: Results indicated a signicant decline in the alcohol dependence symptoms over the course of the treatment.

Related Papers

Leister Sam S U D H E E E R Manickam

Rivista di psichiatria

Daniela Fiorentino

The development of a treatment for alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a crucial and complex moment. Indeed, the information gathered by a team of professionals (physicians, psychologists and social workers) (bio-psycho-social model of AUD) interact to choose the most appropriate cure. As for AUD psychological treatment, it is of considerable importance to avoid clinical treatments leading to drop-out for improving the patients quality of life. Psychoanalytic and behavioral techniques were early utilized as psychological treatment of AUD, however, evidence-based approaches as motivational interviewing (MI) and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) are recently used in AUD. In this work we review the more effective and appropriate AUD psychological treatments.

Effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in Treatment of Patients with Alcohol Dependence

bwalya bwembya

Global harmful alcohol use accounted for 5.9% of deaths, 5.1% disease burden in 2012 [43]. In Zambia, 15.6% drinks, where heavy consumption stands at 43.7%. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of CBT in treatment of patients (pts) with alcohol dependence. The first specific objective to determine the differences in treatment outcome between CBT and non-CBT patients with alcohol dependence, was analyzed by MANOVA. The second objective to evaluate the effect of demographic factors on CBT treatment outcome in patients with alcohol dependence was analyzed by general regression analysis. The third objective to find out whether CBT had different effect on some alcohol dependence variables and not others was analyzed by MANOVA. The study design was randomized controlled trial (RCT) having intervention and control groups. Intervention group received [8] CBT sessions on a weekly basis whereas control group received treatment as usual. All patients met the DSM V and AUDIT diagnostic criteria for alcohol dependence. Using CI 95%, 0.05 alpha and power of 1-beta (80%), the sample size was calculated at 50 and was divided into two groups. Patients were recruitment by systematic sampling every third patient. Probability sampling was used to assign patients to intervention or control group. MANOVA to determine the differences in treatment outcome between CBT and non-CBT patients with alcohol dependence was not statically significant in pretest, P > 0.05 = 0.23, but the results showed statistical significance in post test data, P < 0.05 = 0.01. Hence, the alternative hypothesis was not rejected. The general linear regression model for the second object demonstrated that demographic factors were not statistically significant neither in CBT group data nor in the control group data, that is equal to 0.29, P > 0.05 and 0.38, P > 0.05. Furthermore, MANOVA analysis showed inferential statistical significance in all the alcohol dependence variables with the overall sig. 0.001, P < 0.05. Each of the variables was represented by statistical significance of 0.001. Thus, CBT presented statistical significance on each and every variable of alcohol dependence. Therefore, CBT is more effective in treatment of patients with alcohol dependence than standard treatment.

Indo Global Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences

Priya Mishra

American Journal of Life Sciences

Amitabh Saha

Psychology and Education: A Multidisciplinary Journal

Psychology and Education , Jonathan Rey A. Indon

The researcher sought to study the level of depression, anxiety and stress of individuals working in construction industry as well as its correlation to alcohol dependence. The data was gathered using questionnaires to get a picture of the beliefs and or behaviors of the sample. The chosen participants in the research were selected to be the representative of all the individuals that the researcher wishes to know about the population, then correlating them to discover the relationships among variables. Major findings were revealed: There was a significant relationship between depression and alcohol dependence, anxiety and alcohol dependence and stress and alcohol dependence. In addition, among the 181 respondents in terms of depression from Mild to Extremely Severe 66.30% experienced depressive symptoms one way or another. In terms of anxiety, Extremely Severe got the highest percentage value, 38.67%. As to stress Normal, the highest is 46.41% and finally, for alcohol dependence, 55.80% of them are in Low Level of dependency.

Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine

Pratima Murthy

BHASWAB GOSWAMI

Background: Relapse prevention therapy propounded by Marlatt and Gordon is found to be effective in the process of prevention or delaying of relapse by persons with Alcohol use disorder. It is based on the Cognitive Behavioural approach and employs strategies to identify high risk situations. Aim: The study aims to explore the efficacy of Relapse prevention strategies in maintaining abstinence. Methods: The study is based on a single case study design done inside the Department of Deaddiction, Lokopriyo Gopinath Bordoloi Regional Institute of Mental Health, Tezpur. The case in this context is an individual diagnosed with Alcohol Dependence Syndrome as per the International Classification of Diseases-10 (ICD 10). A qualitativeassessment was done to understand the psychosocial background of the client besides exploring the risk factors for relapse (immediate determinants and covert antecedents). Following assessment Psychosocial interventions were provided inthe form of relapse prevention therapy sessions at the individual level and family Psychoeducation. Result: During the followups of 3 months, 6 months and 1 year after the Psychosocial treatment the individual was found to be abstinent with an improvement in work functioning. Conclusion: Relapse prevention therapy techniques have been effective in helping the client maintain abstinence. The client was also able to develop alternative ways of coping stressful situations.

Open Journal of Psychiatry & Allied Sciences

Harikrishnan U, PhD

This case study is an attempt to assess the impact of psychiatric social work intervention in person with alcohol dependence. Psychiatric social work intervention (brief intervention) was provided to the client focusing on building motivation for change and strengthening commitment to change. It uses a single subject design and compares pre-and post-intervention baseline data with that following intervention. Semi-structured clinical and socio-demographic data sheet, family assessment proforma, and readiness to change questionnaires were administered to the client. The brief psychiatric social work intervention was provided to the client and family members. The attempt has been to bring out changes in motivation level and to enhance coping skill. After brief psychiatric social work intervention, knowledge regarding the illness was enhanced. The client motivation level was enhanced, family members have better understanding about client's illness, and interpersonal relationship has been improved.

Indian journal of psychiatry

Loading Preview

Sorry, preview is currently unavailable. You can download the paper by clicking the button above.

RELATED PAPERS

Nick Heather

Clinics in liver disease

Anthony Albanese

George A Parks, PhD

Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research

Nassima Ait-daoud

Bengal Journal of Psychiatry

Arghya Halder 211-47-456

Editor IJSR

Journal of pharmaceutical research international

Shalini Lokhande

IOSR Journals

Samuel Pombo

IJIP Journal

Current Opinion in Internal Medicine

Sawitri Assanangkornchai

American family physician

David Goldman

Debasish Basu

Ceylon Medical Journal

Raveen Hanwella

Journal of Evidence Based Medicine and Healthcare

Srinivas Kosgi

Medicinski glasnik Specijalne bolnice za bolesti štitaste žlezde i bolesti metabolizma

Marijana Jandric - Kocic

https://www.ijhsr.org/IJHSR_Vol.7_Issue.6_June2017/IJHSR_Abstract.031.html

International Journal of Health Sciences and Research (IJHSR)

Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research

Mikko Salaspuro

Studia Warmińskie

Małgorzata Przybysz-Zaremba

Indian Journal of Community Medicine

J Pharm Biomed Sci

Dr Madhav Raje

Ewa Włodarczyk

DrManoj K Pandey

RELATED TOPICS

•   We're Hiring!
•   Help Center
• Find new research papers in:
• Health Sciences
• Earth Sciences
• Cognitive Science
• Mathematics
• Computer Science
• Academia ©2024

SUBSTANCE ABUSE DISORDER: A CASE STUDY

• Eternal University

Discover the world's research

• 25+ million members
• 160+ million publication pages
• 2.3+ billion citations

• Recruit researchers
• Join for free
• Login Email Tip: Most researchers use their institutional email address as their ResearchGate login Password Forgot password? Keep me logged in Log in or Continue with Google Welcome back! Please log in. Email · Hint Tip: Most researchers use their institutional email address as their ResearchGate login Password Forgot password? Keep me logged in Log in or Continue with Google No account? Sign up

• Corpus ID: 150555722

A Practical Guide to Alcohol Abuse Prevention: A Campus Case Study in Implementing Social Norms and Environmental Management Approaches.

• K. Johannessen , C. Collins , +1 author Beverly Mills-Novoa
• Published 1999
• Environmental Science, Education

Figures and Tables from this paper

58 Citations

A typology for campus-based alcohol prevention: moving toward environmental management strategies., changing the college aod environment for primary prevention, social norms and the prevention of alcohol misuse in collegiate contexts., how to reduce high-risk college drinking: use proven strategies, fill research gaps, implementing a social norms approach to reduce alcohol abuse on campus: lessons learned in the shadow of ‘the world's largest six-pack’, social norms marketing: a prevention strategy to decrease high-risk drinking among college students., how do college students view alcohol prevention policies, misperceiving the college drinking norm and related problems: a nationwide study of exposure to prevention information, perceived norms and student alcohol misuse., analysis of the freshmen alcohol abuse program, a systematic/structural examination of factors that facilitate and inhibit natural recovery from alcohol abuse in college students, 26 references, perceiving the community norms of alcohol use among students: some research implications for campus alcohol education programming., a social norms approach to preventing binge drinking at colleges and universities., health and behavioral consequences of binge drinking in college. a national survey of students at 140 campuses., challenging the collegiate rite of passage: a campus-wide social marketing media campaign to reduce binge drinking, media advocacy and public health: power for prevention, the national campaign to prevent teen pregnancy., school-based drug education in north america: what is wrong what can be done, environmental management: a comprehensive strategy for reducing alcohol and other drug use on college campuses., selecting the right tool: a compendium of alcohol and other drug assessment and evaluation instruments for use in higher education., qualitative evaluation and research methods, related papers.

Showing 1 through 3 of 0 Related Papers