Recovery Month: Explaining the differences between abstinence, sobriety and recovery

Abstinence, sobriety and recovery aren't interchangeable words. Abstinence is simply (or sometimes not so simply) compliance with not putting alcohol into the body. Sobriety is when it works and you begin to put it into play in your life. Recovery is when you reap the rewards of living a life contently with the fact that sobriety is a better thing to have than to lack. (Watch the episode on YouTube or read the entire article)

Think of sobriety being the first tee of the first hole on a golf course. It leads down a long fairway, sometimes you hit terrible shots, but you keep moving toward the first hole. The first hole is reaching recovery. You've snatched a victory from the bottle for now. Keep in mind that the round isn't over with the first hole… similar to the way you're not finished with recovery regardless of how great you played your sobriety. You can throw the whole round if you get cocky or start getting lazy after just one hole.

Abstinence… that's just the driving range. Some of us hit a few more balls on the range than others. Each one, though, could lead up to the first tee.

National Recovery Month celebrates the new life that begins with reaching that first green. Personally, I try to make every month a recovery month celebration. Beats going back to the driving range.

Two things to remember about sobriety and recovery. First, neither word is a synonym for boring or miserable. Second, they don't mean life is going to be perfect. It wasn't before, either. You know why they just write numbers on the golf score card? Because if you drew pictures, par sometimes wouldn't look so pretty and nobody would play on. Doesn't matter how you reach recovery, just that you take your swings at it. It works out fine. Don't need to take my word for it: Give sobriety a try and if it isn't better, I'm certain the liquor store – or the 19th hole – will still take your money and gladly allow you to return to the misery. If that's the case, hope to see you back on the driving range... and the first tee.

Visit alcohologist.com for a replay of CBS Sports' Power Up Your Health featuring Scott Stevens.  Host Ed Forteau led a discussion on risky myths of about "healthy" drinking.  Lucy Pireel's "All That's Written" included a feature on Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud called "When alcohol doesn't work for you anymore."  Details on the third literary award for Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud also can be found on www.alcohologist.com, plus the NEW book, Adding Fire to the Fuel, is now available. Download the FREE Alcohology app in the Google PlayStore today.

Two questions accurately diagnose 80 percent of patients with alcohol problems

“How often do you have six or more drinks on one occasion?” and “As a result of your drinking did anything happen in the last year that you wish didn’t happen?” A study published in the July British Journal of General Practice found these two questions alone scored an accurate diagnosis of 79.8 percent of hidden substance abuse among more than 5,000 respondents.

But combined with a CAGE questionnaire — which comprises an additional four questions — the approach achieved an overall accuracy of 90.9 per cent. (CAGE is an acronym for a century-old alcohol self-test, see related article.) The research was led by scientists from the University of Leicester, who looked at 17 previous studies relating to alcohol abuse to determine whether one or two questions could accurately predict preliminary screening.

The study could have benefits in helping doctors and nurse practitioners diagnose many illnesses in addition to the disease of alcoholism, as alcohol consumption is a primary or secondary cause of more than 60 other health problems including cancer. A January 2014 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report indicated that medical professionals in the U.S. don't routinely screen patients – even high-risk ones – for alcohol use disorders. Only one in six adults, and only one in four binge drinkers, say a health professional has ever discussed alcohol use with them, according to the CDC's conclusions.

“Drinking too much alcohol has many more health risks than most people realize,” said CDC Director Tom Frieden, M.D. “Alcohol screening and brief counseling can help people set realistic goals for themselves and achieve those goals.

There is much interest in ultra-short alcohol screening in primary care that may support brief alcohol interventions. Alcohol consumption is the third-leading cause of illness and death, claiming more than 88,000 Americans annually: Only one in eight of those killed are at the hands of an intoxicated driver. Additionally, as a result of illness, legal costs and lost productivity, alcohol use exacts a toll of more than $223 billion a year on the U.S. economy. Through the Affordable Care Act (or Obamacare), alcohol screening and brief counseling can be covered by most health insurance plans without co-pay and addiction-related treatment is covered to the same level as other medical/surgical procedures.

--see full article
 (Stuart Miles/Free Digital Photos image, used with permission)

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Visit alcohologist.com for a replay of the Bringing Inspiration To Earth show feature with Scott Stevens. Lucy Pireel's "All That's Written" included a feature on Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud called "When alcohol doesn't work for you anymore."  Details on the third literary award for Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud also can be found on www.alcohologist.com, plus an interview with Scott Stevens on Health Media Now and one at Christoph Fisher Books.  Mr. Fisher is an acclaimed international author from the UK, among his works is the Alzheimer's book "Time to Let Go."