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The story “The Drunkard” by Frank O’Conner has many social issues, but the one social issue that sticks out most for me is substance abuse. My family has very addictive personality’s; it is mostly with alcohol and drugs. Substance abuse has been in my family for a few generations. I have learned that substance abuse can affect others around the person that is abusing. I want to talk about the history of substance abuse, types of substance abuse, and relapse of substance abuse that relate to the story “The Drunkard.” Substance abuse has been around a very long time and the history of it is fascinating. Substance abuse is a problem that will never go away, and it will always be a social issue. “In early human civilizations people used substances …show more content…
“Cocaine, meth, heroin, marijuana, nicotine, and alcohol are all types of substances” (Thornstein). In “The Drunkard” the two types of substances in this story are alcohol and nicotine. “He took out his pipe, blew through it, filled it, and then lit it with loud pops, his eyes bulging above it” (Frank O’Connor). The father was in the pub drinking and smoking with his child. Alcohol impairs your thought process and the ability to clearly think out your decisions. The father should have never gone into the pub with a child especially since he has a drinking problem. A child has no place being inside a pub. Relapse is something that can happen with substance abuse and it could be an endless …show more content…
It is hard for people to kick an addiction from substance abuse; the substance becomes their everyday life’s. In “The Drunkard” alcohol was the father’s Achilles heel; once he started drinking he couldn’t stop till he was drunk. “By the time he had taken the first he already realized he had made a fool of himself, took a second to forget it and a third to forget that he couldn’t forget, and at last came home reeling drunk” (Frank O’Connor). The child explained how the father could go months without a drink then something, such as a funeral, would trigger him. When people have an addiction to avoid having a relapse they try to stay away from what triggers their urge to abuse. “While recovering, you may be compelled to use recreationally. For example, by having "just one drink," you might think you can prove that you've beaten your addiction” (Sober Media Group). People can have relapse when they can’t handle the withdrawal symptoms. Relapse can happen to anyone that
Overcoming an addiction to alcohol can be a long and bumpy road. Many people feel that it is impossible to overcome an alcohol addiction. Many people feel that is it easier to be an addict than to be a recovering addict. However, recovering from alcoholism is possible if one is ready to seek the help and support they need on their road to recovery. Recovery is taking the time to regain one’s normal mind, health and strength. Recovery is process. It takes time to stop the alcohol cravings and pressure to drink. For most, rehab and professional help is needed, while others can stop drinking on their own. Recovery never ends. After rehab, professional help or quitting on your own, many people still need help staying sober. A lot of time, recovering
There are several different ways to approach substance abuse therapy but the approach must be fitting to the client and the client’s needs. The main goal of substance abuse counseling is to prevent the client from using harmful substances in excessive and potentially dangerous ways. A major portion within the therapy itself is relapse prevention. Relapse prevention is aimed at counseling the individual in such a way to prevent future relapse. The relapse prevention technique also helps the client to discover any underlying issues that may have caused them to start using drugs and alcohol in the first place. Substance abuse counseling focuses on the whole counseling technique, not just the small area of substance abuse. Because substance abuse is frequently related to other life issues, the counseling takes a more broad focus to not only help the client recover from their addictions but also to solve mental, emotional, occupational, and family issues as well. There is a growing need for substance abuse counseling in today’s society because of the more prevalent presence of drugs and alcohol. It is important to understand the different counseling techniques for substance abuse clients because of the growing number of clients in need.
A “drug-free society” has never existed, and probably will never exist, regardless of the many drug laws in place. Over the past 100 years, the government has made numerous efforts to control access to certain drugs that are too dangerous or too likely to produce dependence. Many refer to the development of drug laws as a “war on drugs,” because of the vast growth of expenditures and wide range of drugs now controlled. The concept of a “war on drugs” reflects the perspective that some drugs are evil and war must be conducted against the substances
According to WebMD, signs of alcohol dependence or addiction are not being able to quit drinking or control how much, the person may experience withdrawal symptoms, and you drink in the morning or are often drunk for long periods of time or drink alone (WebMD website, 2016, para. 3). As of result of Greg drinking, he needs to seek treatment so that he no longer harms himself or others. Those individuals who seek treatment also run the risk of having a relapse. Relapse is often defined as a return to drug use after a period of abstention (Capuzzi & Stauffer, 2016, p. 285). To avoid a relapse one should create a relapse prevention plan.
This experience helped me to recognize the internal struggle that a substance abuser faces on a continuous basis. In addition, I know that an individual can have a difficult time changing their behavior even when they have a strong desire to change; the smallest thing can cause a person to relapse.
Because of the complexity of substance abuse, different concepts of relapse and reduction in drug use need to be examined. Relapse is a complex, dynamic process that must be examined carefully by researchers and clinicians. The extensive treatment histories of many clients entering and re-entering programs suggest that recovery from drug use is long term, and episodic relapses are experienced. The process of recovery occurs throughout the drug use and treatment career. A better understanding of this process should lead to improved treatment and aftercare services that will reduce overall relapse rates, extend remission periods, and reduce the duration of relapse
“For every family that is impacted by drugs, there are another 10 to 15 families impacted by alcohol abuse. It's a pretty big deal. We have a tendency to only look at part of the puzzle.” (Kevin Lewis). As a society we tend to categorize the severity of addiction in a way that drugs are the most dangerous and alcohol being just a problem. Because alcohol addiction can be a slow progressive disease many people don’t see it in the same light as drug addiction. An addiction to drugs is seen as being a more deadly and dangerous issue then that of alcohol because a drug addiction can happen more quickly and can kill more quickly. Alcohol is something that is easy to obtain, something that is found at almost every restaurant. People with an alcohol addiction can not hide from alcohol as easy as a drug addict. Approximately 7 million Americans suffer from alcohol abuse and another 7 million suffer from alcoholism. (Haisong 6) The dangers of alcohol affect everyone from children with alcoholic parents, to teenagers who abuse alcohol, then to citizens who are terrorized by drunk drivers.
According to the American Heritage Dictionary, alcoholism is defined as "the compulsive consumption of and psychophysiological dependence on alcoholic beverages." It is a problem that can tear apart marriages and families, cause someone to lose his job, and many more negative results. In order to recover from this dependency a person must lose his desire for and dependence upon alcohol, continue to remain sober, and resolve all conflicts caused by the alcohol abuse. There are several alternatives an alcoholic has to rehabilitate himself. The best solution is a combination of individual therapy and a support group like Alcoholics Anonymous.
The ingestion of alcoholic beverages for their enjoyable effects is a custom which has been around for thousands of years, and alcohol continues to be a popular drug because of its short-term effects (Coleman, Butcher & Carson, 1984). An enormous amount of damage can be attributed directly to alcohol abuse as a result of lost jobs, accidents caused by drunk drivers, and so forth (Maltzman, 2000). Alcohol also compounds other problems--an estimated 25% to 40% of hospital patients have problems caused by, or recovery delayed by alcohol abuse (Maltzman, 2000). Clinical psychologists spend about one-fourth of their time dealing with people who are suffering in part from alcohol or other substance problems (Vaillant, 1995). Although alcohol problems have been around for so long, it is only recently that these problems have begun to be associated with medical or psychological difficulties.
First and foremost, alcoholism is hard to break due to the brain craving created by a drinking habit. According to Charles Duhigg in The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business, habit is created when there are a cue, a routine, and a reward that develop a craving that make people repeat the loop(49). The craving for drinking is generally cultivated by the short-term reward resulted from drinking. Most alcoholics believe that drinking can help them to escape from their hard times and forget their problems. Elizabeth
would like to give you a small background of the impact of substance abuse on the
This research paper will help enable sociologists to determine what the ongoing effects have on an alcoholic and further provides information on the long-term effects that society has to deal with. The significance of alcoholism and sociology is the ability of sociologists to research and discover how human behaviour is affected on many aspects of its effects on a person. An alcoholic can be described as someone who is addicted to drinking alcoholic beverages in excess. What starts out as social drinking can lead to excessive drinking and the many problems associated with alcohol abuse and i...
Drug abuse has been a hot topic for our society due to how stimulants interfere with health, prosperity, and the lives of others in all nations. All drugs have the potential to be misapplied, whether obtained by prescription, over the counter, or illegally. Drug abuse is a despicable disease that affects many helpless people. Majority of those who are beset with this disease go untreated due to health insurance companies who neglect and discriminate this issue. As an outcome of missed opportunities of treatments, abusers become homeless, very ill, or even worst, death.
..., cancer, liver and pancreas disease etc. There are many factors why do people drink, such as: make friends, forget problems, to feel happy, to relax, to feel less anxious, to feel confident and the genes, in my opinion play the key role in this problem. Some people don’t realize that this is a big deal, the big problem until it’s late. Once someone tried alcohol and become dependent it is hard to realize that person needs help to stop it. Also drinking alcohol is closely linked with use of other drugs, legal and illegal. Smoking, drinking and drug taking often co-exist. I chose this article to review because I think it has good examples to show people what causes alcohol dependence and what conditions one can get if drinking alcohol often. People need to remember that we live ones and it is important to keep ourselves healthy and none of bad habits worth our life.
The use of drugs is a controversial topic in society today. In general, addicts show a direct link between taking drugs and suffering from their effects. People abuse drugs for a wide variety of reasons. In most cases, the use of drugs will serve a type of purpose or will give some kind of reward. These reasons for use will differ with different kinds of drugs. Various reasons for using the substance can be pain relief, depression, anxiety and weariness, acceptance into a peer group, religion, and much more. Although reasons for using may vary for each individual, it is known by all that consequences of the abuse do exist. It is only further down the line when the effects of using can be seen.