Father Ashley's Short Story

The third chapter of the Alcoholics Anonymous book develops the idea of what alcoholism involves and how people with alcoholism differ from normal people. This chapter elaborates on the idea that there is no such thing as making a normal drinker out of an alcoholic, meaning an alcoholic will never be able to have a few drinks and then stop. It is also believed within the alcoholics’ anonymous community that at in the early stages of their drinking careers, they could have stopped drinking. The first step in recovery is to acknowledge that there is a problem, the book describes different ways a person can be an alcoholic. Not every alcoholic is going to drink a long time nor take large quantities, but the inability to stop makes the alcoholic. The chapter explains how an alcoholic is still unable to stop on the basis of self-knowledge and will power. In order to protect against taking that first drink again, there must be a higher power. Chapter three outlines that there is more than one option of what

Many people have been misguided about whether or not alcoholism is “disease” that attacks a person’s good health. A key suggestion of those that believe alcoholism is a disease is that a disease is uncontrolled. This is not so. When people develop an addiction to alcohol they tend to push everything of importance out of their lives: family, friends, and sometimes even jobs. People with addiction to alcohol throw

He was an older man in his 60’s and also a veteran of the United States Marine Corps. Keith struggled with sobriety and still does however; his stories were geared around the military. He said that the military in a way helped him become an alcoholic. The military by no means persuaded him but it aided him by the governmental money he received for being a member of the Marines. He told us that all he would do is make the money for his services then he would blow it on alcohol and fun times in the bar. Keith was very blunt about his experiences and even called himself an asshole. He thought of himself as a good guy but then he said he would vomit in the bathrooms and clean off his face just so that he could still party with the people in the bar. He called himself an asshole because he said he was a funny drunk but when people looked at him they just got really mad. Keith said that obviously he got into a lot of fights and he wasn’t scared of anyone. After his experience with alcohol in this manner he came to the conclusion that being sober was going to be the right thing for him even though he knew it was going to be a struggle everyday of his life. One important thing he said that I thought was the highlight of the meeting was about being sober. He said, “Its true what they say about being sober; it stands for son of a bitch everything’s real.” This really hit me because even

and spanned a course of some twenty years. Two decades of conflict and disharmony that seemed to connect with many of the attendees displayed by their numerous head nods and looks of shared shame. He said he never intended to become an alcoholic. He was just trying to “fit in” with friends. Another reason given for using alcohol was to squash the stress and anxieties all too familiar with the formative years of pre-adulthood. “Little did I know”, he said that he was setting the stage for how to handle all his subsequent problems later in life.

Attending a local Alcoholics Anonymous meeting was a humbling and informative experience. To be completely honest, I had no idea what to expect going into the meeting. Right before I walked in, I felt somewhat uncomfortable and embarrassed. I felt as if I was intruding on someone’s personal life with my presence, even though I knew I was welcomed since the meeting was listed as “open”. Alcohol abuse is a very sensitive topic to me, as someone quite close to me is an alcoholic: my Uncle. I know that he is a recovering alcoholic, but I never quite know what is going on with him because I don’t ask questions and he never shares what he is feeling with me. When I was younger, I remember that he was always the life of my family parties, but I know now it was because he was drunk. When I see him now, he isn’t as energetic as he used to be and often avoids situations where alcohol is involved. Although my Uncle did not personally tell me, my father has shared with me that he attends AA meetings at a church in my hometown. I never understood what AA meetings really entail and didn’t grasp how they helped alcoholics recover. Attending this local AA meeting helped shed light on what my Uncle feels, and I am more understanding to his addiction. I am thankful for this assignment because I know that my Uncle is not alone; the AA community is so supportive and the members all have the best intentions of getting

Ben is a 22 year old and works as a photographer. He drinks a lot and goes to parties every single weekend with his friends. Ben has also started using heroin and became addicted to it while trying it out because of his friends. He grew up with his mum and had tough childhood as his mum is a single mum and also was addicted to alcohol. He grew up being exposed to alcohol ever since he was a child and he thinks that drinking alcohol excessively is normal. However, Ben got to the point that he no longer can live without alcohol and heroin and it started to affect his job and

My grandfather was an alcoholic. He drank from the moment he rose out of bed until he passed out in the evening. He battled with this disease for many years. Drinking alcohol was like breathing air, it was his daily routine until the day he passed away.. Alcoholism took his life at the age of 65. I loved my grandfather; he was a very caring and loving man. In fact, at one point he was an electrical engineer, he lost his job when alcohol took command of his every waking moment. I chose to attend an Alcoholic Anonymous (AA) meeting, because I wanted to gain an understanding of the program, in hopes to increase my understanding of the struggles my grandfather went through. This would be my first AA meeting. This particular AA group is called, The Spring Forest Recovery Group, they meet every Sunday at 7:00 pm. It is located at 4015 Spring Forest Road, Raleigh, North Carolina. Every 1st, 3rd and 5th Sundays they have their speaker meeting. Every 2nd & 4th Sunday they have their big book study. This past Sunday was their big book study. Everyone had his or her blue books, titled Alcoholics Anonymous. I walked in sat down and listened carefully as the 12-steps to recovery were being read out loud. The room was still except for the words that bounced and echoed throughout the room. The room is set cafeteria style, 8-foot tables and white chairs filled the room with rows of 4. Group is a mix of multicultural members, with a common problem or

Everyday, more and more people are being claimed by alcoholism. The most important message AA makes is that there is help available, and there are people who want to help you, just as other helped them. Louis, a 79 year old AA member reciprocates his AA experience by “try[ing] to help the younger people find sobriety and happiness the way I have. I tell them, “If I can do it, so can you” (AA pamphlet). This is just one of many stories AA members have to offer an observer.

One of my good friends became alcohol dependent at around the age of 18 and entered rehab last year. Because he was so young, we were very close, and I was young, his alcoholism projected onto me and it became a norm for us to get drunk during school or in the mornings or binge drink all weekend. He went away to college a year ahead of me and I was relieved and thought that I can finally focus on myself and the negative effects of alcohol would go away. But then he tried to kill himself and was dropped right back into our hometown

A staggering 30% of U.S. adults have been or currently are alcoholics, and not all of them have abstained from parenthood. The essay “Under the Influence” by Russel Sanders tells the tale of a young boy who had an alcoholic father, who he could not understand why he was an alcoholic, except for the belief that he was possessed by demons. He didn’t live around any treatment centers that could help his father, for he lived in the backwoods of Ohio. He talked about the constant fear of his father beating him (which he never did), and the constant fear of his father leaving him (which he did for small increments of time). The trauma of having a father who was an alcoholic father stayed with Sanders well into adulthood.

At age thirty-six when she was in sobriety, some of the client’s symptoms included reoccurring thoughts about drinking, especially during times where pain was likely to be felt, and needing to be reinforced about sobriety as the right decision. The client also became angry or frustrated when people were drinking in her presence or when she felt like she wanted to drink. The client has also become more conscious of feeling emotions and experiencing emotions, like when her family buried her mother’s ashes. She still faces relationships with difficulty but now knows and understands she is able to choose what she wants.

CPI arrived at the family residence located at 149 S Calhoun Avenue, Eatonville, FL 32751. CPI completed a joint visit with Taina L. Ramos FIS Counselor. Taina completed a BHC screen with Mr. Clayborne. Mr. Clayborne admitted to have a history of alcohol misuse and impulsive and aggressive behavior while under the influence. He began drinking while in his 20’s and drinks 1 to 2 times weekly. Mr. Clayborne drink preference is beer, but sometimes drinks vodka. He usually drinks when is stressed out. He has been to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings in Springfield, MA. The last meetings he attended was about 2 years ago. While in prison was seen by a psychiatric five times a day for 3 months, but is it not diagnosed with a mental health condition.

Andy has some similarities with Vaillant’s (2008) four factors that contribute to relapse prevention where he substituted his dependency of alcohol with running. Andy also created new caring relationships with people he met though AA

He is often concerned that the symptoms that he is not experiencing will suddenly hit him. But, while the physical ailments pose immediate problems for him, they only constitute a very small part of the healing process. The larger task at hand is suppressing the mental and physical need for alcohol, and facing the damaged state of his life that the disease has left him with. It is this task that scares him most.

Numerous treatment methods are constantly being discovered and developed to help start alcohol and drug abusers down the path of sobriety. There are many different methods available to help addicts who need help or to help addicts who want help. Our system is diverting from a punishing approach to a treatment approach. This paper will examine the most popular inpatient and outpatient options available throughout the nation. The types of addicts who normally file into these types of settings will be exam e, and The Way of Life. May I do your will always” (Alcoholics). These prayers are recited by the addict and must be experienced as well as nurtured to successfully break your addiction and never go back once you have completed the twelve