Why does an alcoholic continue to drink if he knows that later on he is going to feel bad?

Answer 1

because he wants to feel good now

he doesn't care about feeling bad later

he was going to take care of that by drinking, anyway

(and your pestering him makes him feel bad so now he's going to have to take another drink)

Yes it is difficult. They are in an entrenched behavioural cycle. The best thing to do is to get all the family together and detox the guy and then stop him from getting more - this is a little dodgy according to the laws of most countries and so they set up detox centers.

The trouble there is the alcoholic doesn't want to stop. They don't want to detox.

Answer 2

The same reason why a smoker picks up another cigarette; it's an addiction. Knowing it could eventually kill you, should be enough, but it isn't. The only difference, is that smoking doesn't change how you would normally act, and alcohol does. Alot of alcoholics are usually depressed or have a lot of stress in thier lives, and have a hard time coping with reality. I would suggest AA and counceling. When someone is an alcoholic there not only hurting themselves but the people who love and care about them, if they can't quit for themselves, they should atleast try and do it for the people they care for. If AA and counceling doesn't work; then praying and turning thier life around with God's help will.

Answer 3

Addiction has two phases. The first is the initial "mental" need. Someone who starts to drink heavily usually likes how they feel while they are drunk, they can forget about all of their problems. The second phases is the "physical" need. After the person drinks and drinks everyday their body adapts to the new conditions of its chemistry and forms a dependance on the alcohol. Nicotine is well known for this. Ideally there is a third phases and that would be breaing the dependance.

Answer 4

The thing about addiction, is that you lose control of your life without a substance. An alcoholic can't feel good, or better, or really function on an emotional level without alcohol. Aside from it being a physical addiction, where functions of the body start to rely on the substance, it's also an emotional addiction, where emotional processes don't happen, or don't happen like they're supposed to without alcohol.

If you're drinking to avoid depression, for instance, you only think about dealing with it now, numbing the pain, rather than the consequences of tomorrow, and if you're really addicted and can't function without it, it stops being about the pain, and instead starts being just about consumption. The only thing addicts focus on after a certain point is where their next fix is going to come from.

Logic doesn't factor into it at all,.

Answer 5

People say that it is a sickness and some people have actually obtained disability because of it...however, I personally feel that it is an addiction just like drugs, cigarettes etc.

They know they will feel bad but they simply need the booze in order to "function" or so they believe. Many alcoholics don't feel that they are worth a great deal without the booze and they actually believe that they are a better person when they drink.

It's something that they have to work at to overcome and it's something that they have to fight against every single day if they do quit...just like a drug addict or someone who quits cigarettes, the desire is always just below the surface.

Answer 6

It is a cycle of insanity that the Alcoholic does not fully understand or else they could stop. Escapisms come in many varieties, some of which or seemingly harmless but never the less unhealthy. Like escaping to a church for comfort even though you do not truly believe in God. Or more to the point do not want to serve God, just let him serve you so you do not have to act out addictive behaviors such as drinking or smoking crack. Or maybe a sexual or gambling addiction. People that think that involving yourself (addictivley) in hobbies,sports,shopping,tv or overeating are ok. But anything that we do addictively is part of this insane disease. Being free from addictions is easier said than done.Our whole society is centered around self-gratification instead of helping others. The cure to any addiction is helping other people. People should take time to think of something or someone else instead of acting out addictively trying to sooth their own pain.The key to fixing me is to help someone else that WANTS help fix themselves.This to is an addictive behavior also.You can not actually fix spmeone else, but if someone needs some help we should help them if they want help. Not just helping people with similar problems, but all problems. Like if someone needs some wood to burn to keep their family warm, find someone who needs a fallen tree removed from their property and take the wood to the people that need it. Booze is not the only thing that helps people sleep at night. A clear conscience and hard work is a natural sleep enhancer.

Answer 7

He can't help it.

Sometimes alcoholic drinking is described as a cylcle of drinking, bizarre behavior because of drinking, remorse for the behavior and drinking to ease the feeling of remorse.

Sometimes its described as trying to fill up the emptiness, inside.

The immediate gratification outweighs the knowlege of how he'll feel later.

Answer 8

The alcoholism is his escape. He doesn't care that he'll feel bad later as long as he feels good right now.

Answer 9

becuz alcoholism is a disease and it is very hard 2 quit, and lots of alcohlics dont get hangovers, i wouldnt consider myself an alcoholic but i very rarely get them, and a lot of the ones that do just get drunk as soon as they wake up so its not realy a problem 4 them

Answer 10

Because he knows that while he is drinking he will feel better than he would at any other time.