Alcoholism and Its effect on Families
43% percent of families have problems with an Alcohol in their family(Family Alcoholism Statistics). Whether they are distant family or close family. Alcoholism is a disease that people fight with day to day for most of their life. It makes it hard on families when family members such as dad or moms have to be split due to the issue. The Amount of families that struggle with this horrible disease keeps growing every year. Families should be more careful with their children, so they don’t grow up to be like those family members that are separated by the family. The effect of Alcoholism can destroy the family and their way of life.
First, how will being an Alcoholic affect the children's view of their
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For all 17 years of my life alcoholism has affected my life and my families life too. My Grandpa Haringa, who is my mom’s dad, has been an alcoholic for a long time. The first thing that happened my mimi divorced him because he was such a negative influence and was too drunk to be able to have grandchildren. At the time of my birth he wasn’t really there to be with me. When I was growing up I saw him only once but that was within the confines of his front yard. It wasn’t that we didn’t have time to see him because we was close, He lives at the big brick house on our way to church. He wasn’t really there for me when I played sports like my first baseball game or even those games that I play to this day. His brother Herman is more like a Grandpa to me than my real grandpa was. So people just really think that alcohol is the life for them even some people thinking it is more important than their kids and their kids. I remember the first time he talked to me, that I remember, was only a year ago at church on February 9 2014. I remember thinking that who is this dude, because I was ushering that month and he said these words “Can you had me a bulletin”. So then I said sure and after I handed him the Bulletin, My dad started to talk to him and then they didn’t hug or anything and then he walked away. My dad then started to ask me “do you know who that was”. I said I had no clue, so then he started to tell me that was my grandpa. I started to question my dad by saying like are you sure that was him, he said yeah. I went to the restroom and then started to check myself in the mirror because I wanted to make sure that I looked good in front of him. Now my other Grandpa, Tim Laidlaw, who was my dad’s step-dad. He has had a huge problem with alcoholism, I have never seen him or even talked to him, that I remember. He has had health problem with his heart because of his addiction and continues to have health issues. Which proves that families
Drinking can have a lot of bad effects. It can go from getting arrested to ruining your life. It has broken many families up form alcohol abuse. I have personally seen it happen to several.
Children all over the world are exposed to the many risk, just like Dave. Dave did not face any biological risk factors like low-birth weight, being a premature baby, or prenatal alcohol exposure. However, Dave was faced with many environmental risks. One risk is the fact that he lived in a household with two alcoholics, this put Dave at even more risk of having emotional problems than children that live with nonalcoholic parents. According to the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry’s Fact for Families page, “One in five adult Americans have lived with an alcoholic relative while growing up.” They go on to state, “Alcoholism runs in families, and children of alcoholics are four times more likely than other children to become alcoholics themselves. Compounding the psychological impact of being raised by a parent who is suffering from alcohol abuse is the fact that most children of alcoholics have experienced some form of neglect or abuse.”
One in five adults can identify with growing up with an alcoholic relative and Twenty-eight million Americans have one parent abusing or dependent on alcoholic (Walker, & Lee, 1998). There are devastating and ubiquitous effects of alcoholism, which vary from psychological, social, or biological problems for families. Counselor’s treating this problem all agree that the relationships within a family, especially between a parent and a child is one of the most influential within a system, but what are the effects on the family when a parent is an alcoholic? Contemporary research has found there is a higher prevalence of problems in the family when alcohol is the organizing principle. In addition, there is copious research on the roles of individuals within the family becoming defined into specific categories, and evidently, the roles may become reversed between the parent and the child. This topic of functional roles in alcoholic families will be analyzed and investigated further. Family therapy has had substantial results in the treatment of an alcoholic parent. These results will be discussed more along, with the literature examining the existing research related, to specific interventions and treatments in family therapy with an alcoholic parent. Before research on the treatment is illuminated on distinctive therapies, it is crucial for counselors facilitating family therapy to comprehend the literature on the presenting problems commonly, associated with alcoholic parents and the effects this population has on their families. Furthermore, the adverse outcomes an alcoholic parent has on their children and spouses has been researched and reviewed.
As a child, I didn't always understand the depth of my dad's addiction, or what it exactly meant. I didn't even view it as an addiction, rather just how things were. Living in a small house, there was no option to completely ignore it. The more he drank the more bellicose he became, and the more verbally abusive he became. Freshman year I wrote a letter to my dad because I'd decided that my passivity of the issue was no better than an endorsement of his behavior. I was angry with how he acted, and with myself for not knowing what to do about it. With my letter came empty promises: a promise to limit drinking, and a promise to
Alcoholism has been a fixture in our society since the first introduction of alcohol. Despite it being an equal opportunity disease, a large majority of not only the treatment, but also the research, has been about men. This lack of consideration of the different needs for men and women has led to many women going through recovery systems that do not address their experiences, and therefore do not allow them to take full advantage of that recovery system. This paper will attempt to look at the different experiences that men and women have in their journey through a substance addiction (particularly alcohol), from addiction through recovery. The main recovery method that will be discussed here is Alcoholics Anonymous. As an observation addition to this assignment, I sat in on an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in Kerrville, TX. The meeting was on Thanksgiving Day at noon. I took detailed notes of the meeting, while keeping a watchful eye for any gendered interactions during the flow of the meeting.
I started drinking when I was 16 years old. The reason of my drinking started because the father I had left me when I was 12 years of age. I felt an emptiness as a father figure because my father left and I “filled” that emptiness with alcohol. Alcohol made me feel complete. I did not know the downsides of being intoxicated until I experienced it myself. It all started when my dad left my mother for a hooker he found in a bar. My father left his wife and 3 kids for a women he had just met. A physical problem was when my father invited me and my sibling to his other daughters baptism. Getting there the women my father was with and I felt so much anger, hatred and sadness. I had a couple drinks and everything went downhill. I ended up fighting my father’s girl and ending my relationship with my father. Under the alcohol intoxication I beat my father’s girl up really bad and my adrenalin did not make me stop. I beat her up so bad that there was blood on the floor. My emotional experience was that I always felt alone. I always felt sad. Even though I used alcohol to “fill in” my emptiness is wasn't enough. I would cry myself to sleep when my father didn’t help financially. My family problem because alcohol was because me and sibling were depending on my mother to take care of all the house necessities. Alcohol makes me an aggressive person and that leads to family problems. I’m in
As a child, I did not know what alcoholism was, I just assumed that the Beefeater Gin stench coming from my relative was his cologne. However, as I grew older and was exposed to a greater variety of people and circumstances, I slowly became aware of alcoholism. I began to incorporate the new experiences I had in relation to alcohol use with a deeper understanding of my extended family. This new awareness was unsettling and painful to me.
throughout her childhood with an alcoholic father and a selfish mother who cared more about her art and happiness than that of her children’s. Alcohol misuse can affect all aspects of family functioning: social life, finances, good communication, relationships between family members, parenting capability, employment and health issues , It also has a strong correlation with conflicts, disputes and domestic violence which can leave a damaging effect on children. Alcohol misuse often times change the roles played by family member...
Children of Alcoholics: Getting Past the Games Addicted Parents Play.
...out the affects alcoholism has on the family, one may think that it is a life full of endless turmoil. There is help out there, though, which should begin in the school system. Schools need to educate kids about alcohol abuse and establish an ongoing trusting relationship with kids who need help. The children aren not to blame for the actions of their parents and they need someone to help them understand that it's not their fault and they can break the cycle. This way the children will know that they have at least one person they can turn to for help and that they aren't alone.
Severe mood swings, violent rages, memory loss—each of these problems were a part of my family life during the past two or three years. These problems are the result of alcoholism. Recently, a member of my family realized his abuse of alcohol was a major problem to not only himself, but also to those around him. He would lose control of his temper and often would not even remember doing it the next day. Alcohol became a part of his daily life including work, home, and any other activities. His problem was that of a "hidden" and "high-society" alcoholism. When he was threatened with the loss of his job and the possibility of losing his family, this man knew it was time to get help. After he reached his lowest point, he took the first step towards recovery—admitting his problem.
Raising a family is never easy. However raising a family and being an alcoholic make things even harder. Having an alcohol addiction can be
The problem of alcohol abuse has been recognized for thousands of years, but only more recently have we begun to see alcohol addiction as a treatable disorder. According to the Classical Disease Model of `Alcoholism,' habitual use of alcohol can be identified as a disease. Webster's Dictionary defines the concept of `disease' as follows: "Any departure from health presenting marked symptoms; malady; illness; disorder." Therefore, as many occurrences of alcohol excess provoke such symptoms, it is somewhat understandable that `alcoholism' is classified as a disease. The Classical Disease Model appears to offer a hopeful option. Treatment and sobriety can allow people to lead fulfilling lives. Adjacent to the notion of alcoholism as personal failure or moral deterioration, the Classical Disease Model appears to be a more desirable concept as it provides a motive for the alcoholic to seek treatment and gain sympathy, minimizing personal guilt. As alcoholism is seen as a progressive and, to an extent, hereditary illness for which those afflicted are not accountable, victims avoid being ostracized from society (Jellinek, 1960). Labeling the problem as a `disease' allows the medical profession to take responsibility for the treatment of alcoholism, which puts the problem in a more favourable light than if it were in the hands of psychologists or social workers, thus detaching the stigma connected with the problem while it is put on a par with other diseases such as diabetes or cancer. However, critics of the Classical Disease Model believe stigma helps reduce alcohol problems and aids the alcoholic. Any effort to reduce the stigma which is faced by the alcoholic will reduce pressures to moderate consumption and could have the additional ...
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...
Alcoholism is a disease in which the drinking of alcohol becomes uncontrollable. Compulsion and craving of alcohol rules the life of the alcoholic. Many of us drink alcohol to socialize which is not alcoholism. An alcoholic is a frequent habitual user. Alcohol, a central nervous system depressant, dulls the senses especially vision and hearing. Signs of alcoholism are tremors, delirium, inability to concentrate and many others. “According to the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, more than 13 million Americans abuse alcohol”(Mayo Clinic Health Information 1). There are many causes leading an individual to alcoholism. Alcohol damaging effects are physically, psychologically, and socially devastating.