Miss Benning was a health teacher at the largest co-educational high school in the county. Even though she had been teaching for only five years, she had already established a reputation as a teacher with a teaching methodology that stimulated and encouraged her students to learn and to think.

As an illustration, one Wednesday morning at 11:00 she addressed the pupils in her class and said the following: “For the next week we are going to learn about some basic alcoholism facts from a more broad-based viewpoint and we are also going to learn about several of the most common signs of alcoholism from a less general and more specific point of view.”

“Not all of these alcoholism signs will categorically show that a drinker with a drinking problem is an individual who is addicted to alcohol, but the more signs that an individual displays, the greater the possibility that he or she is an alcohol addicted person.”

Miss Benning then informed the members in the class that each pupil would be held responsible for studying four alcoholism signs and then presenting his or her findings to the rest of the class via a twenty-five minute oral presentation.

The Students are Energized About Giving A Broad-Based Presentation to Their Fellow Classmates About The Signs of Alcohol Addiction

After learning about the various alcoholism signs for a number of days, the time had arrived for the oral presentations. It was instantly obvious that her pupils were enthused about the topic because the information that they presented was superb. To say that Miss Benning was pleasantly surprised with the passion manifested by the pupils in her classroom concerning this subject matter was an understatement.

The day after all of the students completed their presentations, Miss Benning passed out a piece of paper with a list of all the alcohol addiction signs that were presented and discussed in class and in the presentations. Miss Benning then asked the pupils in her class to study the list and rank the top five alcohol addiction signs that were most indicative of alcohol dependency. After roughly fifteen minutes, Miss Benning collected the pieces of paper and explained to the students in her class that after she evaluates the results, she will present her findings the next school day.

There was some real anticipation by the students while they were exiting Miss Benning’s class. One could swear that her pupils couldn’t wait for the next day to come so that they could find out the outcome of their in-class research.

The Pupils Contrast Their Numbers With the Appraisals From A Group of Chemical Dependency Experts

When the next school day came, Miss Benning gave out a sheet of paper that listed the top three alcoholism signs according to the students’ rankings. Next to these results, she added another column that was labeled “experts’ response.” She then informed the pupils in her classroom that the numbers in the new column she added stood for the conclusions that were constructed by a board of chemical dependency specialists.

Miss Benning told her students to look over the information on the piece of paper she handed out and then to raise their hand if they had any issues, questions, or concerns. Within 40 or 50 seconds, almost every pupil in the classroom raised his or her hand. It was apparent that the students had some questions, issues, or concerns about their results versus the answers given by the experts. As an illustration, just about every individual in the classroom had an issue with the highest ranked answer given by the specialists, specifically, “Do you feel awfully sick when you refrain from drinking?”

The Most Important Difference Between Alcohol Dependency and Alcohol Abuse is the Physical Addiction That is Experienced With Alcohol Dependency and Not With Alcohol Abuse

Miss Benning then told the students in her class why this answer was the most precise sign of alcoholism. She stressed the fact that the basic difference between alcohol abuse and alcoholism is the physical dependency that is experienced with alcoholism and not with alcohol abuse.

Basically this means that when an individual who is alcohol dependent all of a sudden quits drinking, he or she will go through alcohol withdrawal symptoms.

Miss Benning then informed the pupils in her class that alcohol withdrawal symptoms are responses by the body and by the brain to the deficiency of alcohol to which they had become accustomed. Stated more forcefully, alcohol withdrawal symptoms are messages from the brain and from the body telling a person who is addicted to alcohol that something is dreadfully misaligned and needs to be rectified. These messages consist of a number of dangerous, uncomfortable, and painful withdrawal symptoms that can possibly result in a person’s death if the appropriate therapy is not promptly obtained.

Miss Benning then listed the many diverse alcohol withdrawal symptoms that can be experienced when an individual who is addicted to alcohol abruptly quits drinking.

The fact that Miss Benning tried to underscore was this: a person who engages in alcohol abuse can experience almost any and every one of the alcoholism signs that the students had ranked, but the one sign or symptom that few, if any, people who engage in alcohol abuse ever experience is alcohol withdrawal symptoms.

To state this as clearly as possible, Miss Benning pointed out that alcohol abusers, unlike individuals who are alcohol dependent, are not alcohol dependent and as a result, when they stop drinking, they almost never go through alcohol withdrawal symptoms.

The Students Believe They Have Found An Indiscretion With the Findings From The Team of Drug and Alcohol Addiction Experts

The students also some difficulty with the second ranked answer given by the alcohol dependency experts, to be exact, “Have you ever had a drink the first thing in the morning to get rid of a hangover or to steady your nerves?”

Miss Benning told the students in her classroom that this sign does not inevitably signify that the problem is alcoholism, but that it does emphasize the need that alcoholics have to drink in order to avoid alcohol withdrawals.

After Miss Benning explained the relevance of alcohol withdrawal symptoms in the life of the alcohol dependent person, the students started to appreciate the basic difference between alcohol abuse and alcohol dependency.

To add a sense of closure to the topic, Miss Benning asked the students in her class to take out a piece of paper and answer the following question: “if every person who is addicted to alcohol knew about every one of the alcohol withdrawal symptoms and alcoholism signs we have studied, what percentage of them do you think would seek alcohol dependency treatment?”

After roughly one or two minutes, Miss Benning asked for the students’ predictions. While many students figured that around 70 to 80 percent of alcohol dependent individuals would obtain alcohol addiction rehab if they knew about the facts related to alcohol withdrawal symptoms and alcohol dependency signs, most of the pupils believed that this number would not be less than 70 percent.

The Pupils Were Shocked to Find Out That Only 25% of Alcohol Addicted People in the United States Seek Alcohol Dependency Rehabilitation

To the surprise of most of the students, Miss Benning mentioned that according to different scientific investigations, only 25% of the alcoholics in the United States ask for alcohol addiction rehabilitation. This astonished most of the pupils because they believed that exposure to the shocking statistics and facts associated with alcoholism would motivate the majority of the individuals who are addicted to alcohol to seek alcohol treatment.

Miss Benning then explained that people who are addicted to alcohol not only need alcohol on an everyday basis in order to function but they also require alcohol everyday so they can prevent possible alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Clearly, the alcohol dependent individual’s need to drink on a daily basis is stronger than logic or facts. To be sure, because the craving for alcohol is “reality” to the alcohol addicted individual, this is a demanding issue that is difficult to negate.

The Combination of Alcoholism and Mental Health Issues Often Leads to Relationship, Divorce, Friendship, and Marital Problems

Finally, Miss Benning explained to her pupils that it is relevant to conceptualize that alcohol addiction and diverse mental health issues such as depression are highly related. Not only this but the occurrence of mental health problems and alcohol dependency regularly result in marital, divorce, relationship, and friendship problems.

The Pupils are Encouraged to Learn About Alcohol Dependency Signs and Symptoms in Today’s Society

A few minutes later the bell rang, signifying the end of the class. Based on the enthusiasm displayed by the pupils when they were leaving the classroom, Miss Benning knew that she had encouraged and stimulated the students in her class to stop and think about an essential health and social problem that exists in our country.

Related articles:

• A Young Woman Tries to Stop Drinking, Suffers From Alcohol Withdrawal Symptoms, Learns That She is Alcohol Dependent, Makes Up Her Mind to Get Alcohol Rehabilitation, and Augments Her Communication Skills in Her Dating Relationships
• Enabling, Alcohol Addiction, And Alcohol Relapse: The Need For Family And Dating Relationships That Are Candid And Not Detrimental
• There’s Hope For Enhanced Dating Relationships If Those Who Engage In Abusive And Unhealthy Drinking Can Become Persuaded To Get The Alcohol Rehabilitation They Need