This article was written by Devin

Everyone knows the symptoms of alcohol abuse—hangovers in the short term, liver damage in the long term.  Alcohol can be fun, but also generally destructive and messy.  There are many alcohol abuse effects that are extremely painful physically, mentally, emotionally, or otherwise.  Here are a few of the consequences that follow drinking that are worth keeping in mind:

1) Physical Effects: Just to get these out of the way—long term drinking will systematically destroy your liver, cause gallstones, wreak havoc on your brain, and potentially cause you to gain weight.  Colloquially, victims of long-term alcohol abuse deal with the strange phenomenon often called “beer shits.” If you aren’t familiar, we’ll let you guess on that one.

2) Alienation/Depression: Many people use alcohol as a mechanism of self-medication to deal with emotional deficits.  In layman’s terms, people often drink because they’re depressed.  However, because alcohol is a depressant, it makes for a pretty sick cycle.  Alcohol is a way to deal with depression, but it also causes it.  For those particularly prone to depression, alcohol is bad news bears.

3) Addiction: Quitting drinking becomes increasingly difficult for long-term drinkers.  Ninety percent of recovering alcoholics relapse in the first four years, which isn’t a great statistic for those trying to curb their drinking.  That shit is addictive, and if you let it, it will get you.  Some people can drink moderately for their entire lives without any problems—good for them.  Some people can’t and it’s serious business.

4) Embarrassment: Personally, I think this can be one of the worst problems when it comes to drinking.  With each sip of beer, the propensity to do something really embarrassing increases nearly exponentially.  The longer you drink, the more likely you are to embarrass yourself.  Granted a high tolerance for alcohol can curb this, but I promise you will eventually do something humiliating.  It is inevitable.

5) Wasted Time: Though drinking is a social thing, frequently the abuse of alcohol eats up precious time at both ends of your life.  You’ll spend hours a day drinking AND it will cut years off at the end of your life.  That seriously something worth keeping in mind!

There are many alcohol abuse effects that can be both painful and problematic.  If you’re looking for a reason to quit drinking, there are many to choose from.  If you’re looking for a reason to keep drinking, maybe you should spend some time thinking these over.  Either way, alcohol abuse does take its toll.

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