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My partner’s uncle frequently discusses his experiences with alcoholism and Alcoholics Anonymous. One night, while I was flipping through the AA books brought out for me to look at, I asked him why there was such a difference between his recovery from alcoholism and other individuals’ recovery from bulimia. His reasoning for why people with eating disorders are able to learn to have a healthy relationship with food while he is never able to have a drop of alcohol again without spiraling out of control was that he was inherently different and more messed up than others. One thing that inspired compassion in me during this conversation was that he kept repeating that he wasn’t referring to all people with alcohol problems, just himself. He sees
On February 27, 2014, I visited an Alcohol Anonymous (A.A) therapeutic group meeting called Another Chance. Another Chance is an intergroup meeting located inside the Concord Baptist Church of Christ, at 833 Gardner C. Taylor Boulevard, Brooklyn, NY 11216. Another Chance has been in operation for over thirty years, and holds open discussion meetings on alcohol use and prevention, every Thursday from six in the evening until seven o’clock. This group interaction with alcohol substance use and abuse focuses on helping all members regardless of race, ethnicity or culture, to abstain from drinking one day at a time; and encourages them to maintain healthy thoughts and emotions through the use of the “Twelve Steps and Traditions” of recovery and intervention approaches.
This is also the case in the story titled “The Housewife Who Drank at Home” from the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous. As the women in this story begins, she admits that just the mere title of “alcoholic” would have been a defective term of failure and met with shame and yet in her humble beginning she rarely considered her behavior as drinking. Over time the drinking increased and as such her behavior was reactive to her shame of becoming the very thing she feared. “ I should have realized that the alcohol was getting hold of me when I started to become secretive in my drinking” (Alcoholics Anonymous, 2001, pg. 296, para. 2). Though in retrospect she claims she should have known, the shame furthered her behavior to hide her drinking by assuring she had alcohol for others and did not look as though she personally indulged. Though not every person that suffers with addiction is affected by this shame spiral, there is a degree of social conditioning that plays a part in the spiral occurring just before recovery begins. King (2016) describes his dilemma with opioid dependency, recalling the acceptance of his addiction as a disease, but the inward struggle with self-image as he felt he lacked moral fortitude. This is equally common among addicted individuals and as such prolongs the shame spiral based on
Alcoholism is as prevalent in my family, as blood is in our veins. When previously asked to observe 12-step groups, I ritualistically flocked to Alcoholics Anonymous, without consideration of the possibility that other groups had any potential to make an impact on me. I always pride myself in my ability to identify as an individual that is not ensnared in alcoholism, but unfortunately am an individual that was highly tormented by alcoholism. Through observation of the group and how it processed, as well as identifying how I felt as a new attendee, I was able to understand why self-help, support groups are so vital for individuals in recovery. I finally realized, I too am in recovery.
In the article "The Irrationality of Alcoholics Anonymous", Gabrielle Glaser contravenes the sacredness of Alcoholics Anonymous and how it is believed to be the only treatment for alcohol abuse. She starts the article with a narrative of an alcoholic and shows us how he was failed by the Alcoholics Anonymous. Using this, she further explains her point and how the program's success rates have been exaggerated. Glaser disagrees with the claim that the program is the only way out for alcoholics. She travelled to Finland for research where she discovered that abstinence may cause more drinking than usual, and the use of the drug naltrexone for treatment. The author endorses the drug, after she did an experiment on herself. She criticizes the fact
I attended the Alcohol Anonymous (AA) twelve step meeting on Friday December fourth at 8:00 p.m. at the community center at Roxbury Park in Beverly Hills. The people were middle aged men and women of different ethnic backgrounds. The meeting started in an arranged fashion. I sat in the back and was addressed by an elderly man who wanted to know who I was to and I replied that I was a student writing a paper for school. He was fine with my answer and departed. The meeting started with people presenting themselves. First, there was an open conversation that started was with the storytelling of one member’s endeavors with alcoholism. After this heartwarming account, other people in the group provided how the
AA’s founder Bill Wilson asserted that alcoholism is a spiritual disease with only one cure., AA believes that the one and only cure is by following, and living by the 12 step program. Alcohol Anonymous 12-step program derived from this type of thinking and from the very beginning, new members are taught that they are absolutely powerless to alcohol, and that the only way for you to be cured is for “a power greater than yourself could restore you to sanity”. AA members separate themselves from the rest of society, and attribute their drinking problems to every other aspect of their lives. There is a list of contributing factors to an individual’s disease, published by Bill Wilson. The list is roughly 25 aspects of every alcoholic’s life but Alcohol is never listed because in Mr. Wilson’s eyes it’s not the alcohol that is the problem. Instead it is the individual that has become a victim to the alcohol.
Most people think of alcoholics of being part of the homeless population or of lower class. I learned that anyone can be an alcoholic, even nurses and doctors. In an Ohio survey regarding addiction as a disease, the results of the survey found that statewide 59% think that an alcohol or drug addiction is a disease and 43% believe that alcoholism or addiction is a weakness (Ohio Survey, 2010, p. 7-8). However, these two believed facts are wrong; Alcoholism is a disease and not a weakness. I think by understanding this and that alcoholism is a disease that is not easily controllable, I am accepting to those struggling with alcoholism and inspired by those that choose a life of sobriety. Those suffering from alcoholism and are able to overcome the cravings and disease are some of the strongest people I know. Attending this meeting has been a life-changing experience that has impacted my personally and my future practice as a nurse. I hope to be a nurse that is more accepting, open-minded, and judgment-free to everyone, despite my morals, beliefs, and societal
I have never experienced what it would be like to be a part of an AA meeting. The only time I have had seen or heard someone mention meetings for alcoholics has been TV shows and movies, which would portray these meeting as a circle of strangers just deliberating stories of their life and how this disease has changed them forever. Therefore, I had no idea what to expect. I felt intimidated and had a sense of nervousness, so I decided I would not go alone and brought a friend. My expectation upon entering this meeting was to see beat up people with bad hygiene and a homeless appearance. As a matter of fact, the expectations I had upon walking towards this place was that I was going to get hit on and even get kidnapped. As crazy as it sounds, all these thoughts came through my mind particularly because of the type of environment I expected it to be. For the most part, I was wrong. I was actually surprised at what I witnessed and I came to realize that I was over-reacting. Upon arrival, there were people spread out; some talking together and some sitting alone. The room was nothing like I imagined. It wasn't an auditorium or a gym like they showed on TV. This place which I had imagined to be a dreadful enclosed surface with maniacal individuals turned out to be a small room with sofas and tables to make guests feel welcomed, with regular looking men and women appearing to be middle-aged. I thought "There has to be something wrong, I can’t be convinced that all these people who seem normal to me have an addiction problem with alcoholism". My friend and I took a seat by the door just in case we wanted to make a quick exit.
In Alcoholics Anonymous, the source of sobriety is not contained within the alcoholic. Power is given up to God, with powerlessness over alcohol
When the term alcohol anonymous is said most of us think of a group of drunks that can’t seem to get themselves together and stay clean. For the student nurse this is the view that she had going into her first alcohol anonymous meeting. As bad as it sounds, it is kind of hard to imagine what goes through the minds and lives of people who deal with this struggle on a daily basis. Innervison was the eye opener that the student nurse needed to clear all the stereotypes, and negative thoughts about people that just seemed to want to drink and never get their lives together. Innervision is a non-profit organization that specializes in help with recovery patients, helping consumers find employment, education, and provides resources for patients with psychiatric disabilities.
For Adult Children of Alcoholics, surviving their families becomes the point of existence. The fortunate may be able to draw support from a supportive adult, and may emerge with fewer difficulties than their brothers and sisters. The majority, however, have to “make do.” Some spend lonely hours in their rooms wishing only to vanish behind the woodwork. Others attempt to rescue the foundering vi...
Something that has been an issue for my family personally and many individuals as well is the addiction to and abuse of alcohol. My mother’s side of my family consisted of three alcoholics, whom I believe can represent the three common types of people suffering with alcoholism. My uncle David has a three bedroom house in Travis County with a wife, two kids, and a steady career at the Department of Public safety. He has been sober for 25 years, which has enabled him to cope with alcoholism. My uncle Scotty is commonly referred to as a “hobo”. He is a homeless, ex-plumber, with one daughter. He has been struggling with his addiction throughout his life. My third uncle, Andy, passed away two years ago at the hand of a drug overdose. I think of
I am an adult child of an alcoholic, and I learned destructive thoughts and behaviors from my family of origin, that left me with a great deal of unresolved conflict and co-dependency. However,...
Most people do not realize that alcohol is a drug that claims the lives of youth in college campuses across the world. In my case, it took the encounter with the ORL staff at UCLA for me to come to understanding that I am putting myself and those around me in danger through my risky drinking habits. With hours of self-reflection and the help of a cosmopolitan article called The Deadly Drinking Mistakes Smart Girls Make, I have found that there are several risks associated with alcohol that can put me at a quarrel with death. Even so, drinking does not always need to be deadly, and by keeping in mind the well-being of my fellow bruins and the skills mentioned in the article, I can find a balance between drinking for fun and drinking till death.
Alcoholism is a disease that affects many people in the United States today. It not only affects the alcoholic, but also their family, friends, co-workers, and eventually total strangers. The symptoms are many, as are the causes and the effects.