Alcohol Abuse and Depression

Alcohol Abuse and Depression
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Alcohol Abuse and Depression
The oxford English dictionary defines depression as a state of “severe despondency and dejection,” that is mostly long lasting. As a medical term, depression refers to a psychological condition of adverse feelings of hopelessness and emotional inadequacy. Alcohol abuse or alcoholism on the other hand refers to the continued consumption of alcoholic drinks in high levels despite evident adverse negative consequences resulting from the same. Depression can be a result of alcohol abuse or it can result from it. Alcohol per se is a depressant to the nervous system and heavy intakes have negative effects on the brain and other body organs. Consequently, attempts of withdrawal from alcohol intake can result in depression symptoms, if these symptoms persist, and then the option of using antidepressants can be opted for.
To begin with, alcohol abuse has adverse effects on fetus still undergoing development in a mother's womb. Apart from affecting the mother's mental system the effects pass the placenta to the fetus where they influence cell development by causing death of neuron brain cells (Gohlke et al. 2008). Surprisingly, both heavy and moderate consumptions have notable effects on the same. A situation termed Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Disorder (FASD) arises as a result. A child in its development stages hence suffers from devastating cognitive and psychological brain function, this ultimately results in depression for parents under question. Adults also suffer from abnormal neuron networking because of heavy consumption of alcohol. Chen et al. (2003) recorded adverse states of emotional wellbeing and social cognition in adults who were alcoholic. There has also been a recorded pattern of long-term impairment of memory and learning capabilities in serious alcoholics, factors easily associated with instances of depression, considering social, physical and economic downfalls that these people encounter on a regular basis. The aspects of reduced visual spatial learning capabilities often make alcoholics exposed in competitive intellect environments feel low self-esteem for themselves and ultimately lose their self-affirmation of character. However, researchers have found associations of cognitive capability having links to genetics and consideration of the social environment that people are exposed to, still, the evidence backing adverse effects of alcohol consumption on cognitive capabilities and hence depression remains solid. Cases of chronic depression have been linked to psychiatric health with the effect of alcohol intake posing as a major contributing factor to the same. There exists an apparent association of abuse of alcohol with long-term psychiatric and psychological risk factors, as a form of mental disorder. Once people come to learn that they have become victims of such disorders, depression, almost by design, set...