Mood & Alcohol

There is a very significant interaction between alcohol dependence and other addictions and mood disorders. Abstinence from alcohol for a period of weeks may be all that is required to lift somebody's mood in a significant number of addicted service users.

Alcohol, even in moderate quantities, can cause a depressive episode in a vulnerable person. This can occur on the same night, the next day, or even a few days later.

Alcohol can also make suicidal ideas more intense in someone with a history of depression

Alcohol and other addictive substances may also precipitate episodes of elation in vulnerable people

Some people can become depressed even as they successfully battle an addiction; some can experience craving as a feeling of depression and others can become depressed as a result of problems which worsen during the period of addiction.