How Alcohol Addiction Complicates Your Finances Before Alcohol Detox

June 14, 2023

Written By: Buena Vista Recovery

If you are struggling with alcohol addiction, you are not alone. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has stated that excessive alcohol use is the leading preventable cause of death. Alcohol use is the cause of one in five deaths in the United States (U.S.) of adults ages 20 to 49. Before undergoing alcohol detox, alcohol addiction causes chaos in many parts of your life. This includes your finances. Fortunately, at Buena Vista Recovery, you can heal from alcohol addiction (which often starts with alcohol detox) and learn the skills to manage your finances in the future.

The Need for Alcohol Detox

When you struggle with addiction to alcohol, it’s usually because your body and brain have become dependent. Long-term alcohol use hijacks the pleasure receptors in your brain, leading to a physical dependence on alcohol. As a result, you may have tried to stop drinking in the past without much success. However, there is still hope.

This type of situation is where alcohol detox comes in. The process of alcohol detox helps your body and brain begin to heal. Alcohol detox at Buena Vista Recovery prescribes the first step, which is to stop drinking. However, due to physical dependence on alcohol, your body will experience withdrawal symptoms. These will vary depending on how long and how much you drink as well as the unique makeup of your body. Regardless of the symptoms or their intensity, symptoms must be monitored in order to keep you safe during the detox process.

It can be difficult to get through the detox process. However, with the help of a care team, you can get through alcohol detox. When you come out on the other side, you will be ready to take on other parts of addiction treatment. A trained facility will help you to modify your life to successfully recover from addiction. You will develop new life skills, which can include improving your financial skills. If you feel hopeless, it is okay. Remember that while it does take time, you can change your life and heal from alcohol addiction.

How Alcohol Addiction Impacts Finances

When you are struggling with alcohol addiction, your need to have a drink begins to control your life. As a result, long-term thinking about practical matters such as finances often goes out the window. It is common for this to be seen as a willpower issue. However, it is actually a part of the disease of addiction.

If you struggle to save money due to alcohol addiction, you are not alone. Alcohol is expensive, and keeping up with the amount of alcohol your body craves costs a lot. Unfortunately, long-term alcohol abuse also results in a higher tolerance for alcohol. This means you are likely to spend more and more money on alcohol as tolerance increases.

Additionally, alcohol abuse can lead you to make irresponsible financial decisions. For example, while drinking, you may buy expensive items or buy a round of drinks for a new group of friends. This is due to alcohol inhibiting your ability to think clearly. Instead of thinking about what you are saving for, like retirement which is in your future, you instead do impulsively what you want to do now.

Improving Your Finances Starts With Alcohol Detox

Managing your finances is a skill that takes time to learn. If you struggle with alcohol addiction, your addiction may be derailing your finances. However, you can change and it starts with detox. When you go through detox, you are healing from physical dependency. The result is that your brain and body begin to heal. This helps you to think more clearly, allowing you to think more long-term and make a plan for your finances.

After detox, you will go through addiction treatment. Regardless of the specific program, you will work with a counselor to help build skills that will help you to stay sober in the future. Many of the forms of therapy will help you to build new coping skills. Additionally, they help you to learn to plan and think about your future. You will discover what motivates you to make these changes in your life. This is an important part of alcohol addiction treatment because physical dependency is only one part of addiction. The other aspect is adjusting the choices that have led you to alcohol in the past.

Skills learned in therapy that help you cope and stay sober will also help you to become more financially secure. For example, as a part of your addiction treatment, you will learn to recognize and address places and situations that may make you feel cravings for alcohol. You will build skills that help you to manage these triggers. This is very similar to what can be done about your finances. Being financially secure requires forethought, planning, and follow-through. When you build the skills to manage triggers and stay sober, you will also be building confidence in your ability to manage your finances in a healthy and productive way.

When you are struggling with alcohol addiction, there is often a toll on your finances. This can be a result of irresponsible spending that supports and results from your alcohol addiction. However, you can make changes for the better, starting with alcohol detox and alcohol addiction treatment. At Buena Vista Recovery, we believe that every person can heal from addiction. Our programs help you to detox and heal physically. They also help you build new skills that allow you to stay sober after treatment. We work with most insurance plans and can help you to get the help that you need. If you are struggling with alcohol addiction, we can help. Call us today at (480) 741-9414 to learn more.