alcohol treatment centres

mrsdm

hi all, im a newbie, this is my first time to post on here. i really hope im putting this in the right place.
my husband is an alcoholic and needs to go into rehab. he admits it himself and is looking for help.
the problem is that we are both unemployed at the moment, so cant afford to pay. some places will take money from your social welfare payments but with 4 kids and a 1200 euro a month mortgage(which we dont get any help with) we really cant afford it.
so my question is, does anybody know of anywhere in the offaly or midlands area that any cost will be covered under the medical card.
thanks for taking the time to read this
mrsdm

Phoenix_Rising

HI,

Firstly, well done to your husband for admitting that he has a problem. That is a huge first step.

Secondly, has he tried AA? I got sober without going to a treatment centre, but i did go to a hell of alot of meetings! There are AA meetings everywhere in Ireland and they are free.

Might be worth a try anyway.

Best of luck to you both.

Oh The Humanity

I would encourage him to go to AA too, its free and he can go to as many meetings as he needs.

LegacyUser

Even if he doesn't go to a treatment center, he will have physical symptoms. The degree will depend on the amount of alcohol your husband would drink on a regular basis. A person who binges at weekends can expect to feel exceptionally tired, so sleep is crucial. As well as that, alcohol is made from fermented sugar, so be sure that he eats a lot of sugar; it will help greatly with the cravings. He should never be thirsty, if he can help it, make sure he drinks a lot of water. Three meals a day, if possible.

His body is going to have a lot of extremes. One week he won't be able to sleep, another he won't be able to get enough. There will almost certainly be night sweats at times, too.

If he drank more than that, you can expect more severe symptoms. He really, really will need to go to a GP, in any case. His body and nervous system will simply be exhausted and depleted with all this stuff, so he might well need outside help. His nerves will be stretched tight for a while, perhaps, so at times just getting through a day will be more than enough.

You're very good to stick with him. He'll need AA, but you're going need your own support, Al-Anon, to keep you going. Your husband is going to be going through lots of changes, some of them pretty unpleasant at times. You need to look to your own care too.

Very best of luck to both of you.

iguana

This organisation has very flexible approach to payments. Though perhaps you've already spoken to them. http://www.cuanmhuire.ie/default.aspx

If you are looking for something totally free you should go to your gp and ask about places that accept medical card. Some hospitals help patients go through de-tox if that is necessary. And there are doctors who will prescribe librium and other help supplements which will get a patient through a detox safely. You should definitely see a doctor first. And if you get an unsympathetic doctor you should try another one.

mrsdm

thanks everyone for your replies. he is going to see the doctor in the morning. i know its going to be a long hard struggle for him(and us aswell) but this is the first time that he has ever admitted that he has a problem, so hopefully we can can get on the right track now.
thanks again.

chicken_food

I would suggest getting health insurance, because places like the Rutland centre out in Knocklyon are partnered with certain health insurance companies. Ring them and talk about the what ifs and maybes!! It could end up saving you a fortune.

mazcon

I would also strongly recommend that you join Alanon to help you to deal with everything. It is a sister group to AA and is for families and friends of alcoholics. You will find great help and support from people who have either gone through what you are going through or are going through it now.
Best of luck to you both, it's a tough road but well worth it in the end.

lynnsback

I have been where you are, with my alcoholic fiancee. It's not easy. I cannot recommend al anon highly enough. They are simply exceptional. I think your hubby needs to go to a doctor to make sure he will be physically safe. AA is fantastic and he could go to a meeting daily. Some people in early recovery even go twice a day.
I have to say I totally disagree with an earlier poster though. He is right that alcohol is a sugar, but many recovering alcoholics just switch addictions and become addicted to sugar. Your husband does not need further complications from a high sugar diet. He should actually avoid sugar and try to eat good carbs like fruit and veg. There is a great website www. Radiantrecovery.com you might like. The creator of the website has done fantastic work on brain chemistry and nutrition. She authored Potatoes not Prozac and has a high success rate with alcoholics.

Andrea B.

I have to second the treatment and programme in Cuain Mhuire. I believe there is a unit in Athy.
They are a charity and accept social welfare payments.

mrsdm

well he went to see the doc, hes on librium at the moment for the withdrawals, he was also referred to an addiction counsellor, he went to see him yesterday and he likes him and he said it was very easy to open up and talk to him.
he is trying to get up the courage to go to AA. he said its very daunting to go into a room full of strangers and admit he is an alcoholic. hes hoping to go to a meeting this week, so fingers crossed.
thanks very much for all your advice and help. xx

Andrea B.

One of the reasons the person I know eventually accepted Cluain Mhuire is that they had hit the ultimate rock-bottom. Unfortunately for some, this is the point whereby they are most likely to accept all and any form of help, including the room full of strangers. He was one step from the street because of the amount of bridges burnt. 2 kids and loving wife included.

He had definate delusions of grandeur and would have considered himself "above" some of the social cross-section within Cluain Mhuire or AA, 6 months earlier.

Happy to say that one month after leaving the 3-month Cluain Mhuire program and after 3 years chronic alcoholism he is back with family and small steps at a time. He attends AA 3 times weekly.

My thoughts are with you in dealing with what must be one of the most selfish afflictions.