Dealing With an Alcoholic Parent

All children, no matter what their age, look up to their parents. But how difficult is it for a child to respect and grow properly in a household when having to deal with a parent who is suffering from alcoholism? It is not easy and can be very damaging to the family and its relationship with one another.

Dealing with an alcoholic parent is like facing a roller coaster ride every single day. There are unspoken levels of stress that emit from the alcoholic's abusive behaviors. A parent who is consumed by their addiction to alcohol often has the inability to properly care for their children. This leaves the kids to adapt the rolls as the adult and end up having to face adult issues far before they should have to.

An alcoholic is difficult to deal with for anyone, let alone a child or teen. Having to see a parent self-destruct is no piece of cake. The added pressure of feeling the need to have to keep the parent in one piece while holding the family together is suddenly left to the child.

No kid should ever have to feel the need to fend for themselves. Reaching out to your parent who is suffering from alcoholism may seem impossible for a child. Even as a young adult, having to play role reversal and be the one running the house is not fair. Offering help for the alcoholic parent is a very important but sometimes impossible task. With many who suffer from alcoholism being stubborn and in denial, it is terribly unfair. However, in order to keep a family happy and healthy, the alcoholic must be dealt with and offered help in order to stabilize a solid family unit in the future.

Alcohol Use And Violence

Certain things go together in a good way and some things, like alcohol and violence, do not.

It is proven that the use of alcohol greatly increases the alteration of the way a mind functions. Someone who may be very calm and peaceful while sober, may become violent and quick tempered when drinking alcohol. Such changes in mental functioning play a large factor in the relationship between alcohol use and violence.

Visit any police precinct on any given night and you will not be surprised to see a good number of arrested individuals brought in for intoxication and violent acts associated with such drunkenness. Not only does alcohol act as a mood inhibitor, but it gives a false sense of security among its abusers.

Violence and alcohol related issues are a major problem, from households to college campuses and everywhere in between. As crime levels increase from the dangerous duo, it continues to emerge as a powerful and dangerous problem.

Violence-related injuries are also ranked high among those people who have been taking part in drinking activities. One of the most obvious being physical violence from one person to another. Alcohol use and violence and the effects they have on those involved are insightful reasons to not take part in drinking at all. Substance abuse in all forms has the capability to turn into an unfavorable situation. And despite its current legal status, alcohol is not different in such situations.

When a person attends a traditional 12-step program they tend to put the fear of relapse in them. They believe that addiction is an incurable disease. The National Institute on Drug Abuse has exactly the same perspective - addiction is chronic and people usually relapse. Many treatment programs embrace this philosophy. This is rather unfortunate as it only serves to set people up to fail. There are no definitive answers about the brain, but a lot of study has been done about the power of suggestion and how the brain processes information. Therefore, it seems best to offer positive messages that addiction is curable and relapse is not a given. Non 12 step rehabs give this message.

Understanding Addiction

The more a person knows about addiction the easier it becomes for them to understand it. People are frequently embarrassed when they find themselves chemically dependent, so they delay getting treatment. This is not a good idea at all since the brain is altered by the use of drugs and alcohol. The longer they are used the more the brain circuits are affected.

What you need to know is that a substance abuse problem can happen to anyone. A person can become an addict based on 3 contributing factors. Some have a genetic predisposition through their biology. Environment + biology often equal a person who will use drugs. Development, if a person gets a taste of the high early on they have a much higher likelihood to become an addict later on. The necessary precautions need to be taken if you or someone you care about is at risk of addiction because of any of the above mentioned things; prevention is best.

Elements of Treatment Programs that Help One Succeed

Addiction is not only mental, it is physical as well. When deciding on a treatment plan the most successful thing is that it consists of therapy that addresses both sides. Non 12 step rehabs often include a biophysical component that takes care of the physical addiction. Tiny amounts of the substances get caught in the fatty tissue when a person uses. The person is at a higher risk for relapse unless those are completely removed from the system.

Once this is done the mental/emotional side can be worked on. The most common type of therapy used is cognitive behavioral. Individual therapy sessions provide the person the opportunity to work through the things that led them to chemical dependency. The above mentioned treatments present alternatives to 12 step rehab programs that help a person get clean, as well as take away the fear of falling back to the destructive lifestyle.

Personally knowing the effects drug and alcohol has on an individual and having overcome the battle of addiction, Steven R. Tucker has since been an addiction counselor for non 12 step drug rehab organizations. Creating awareness of the effectiveness of non-traditional alternative rehab programs to help others nationwide achieve a true drug-free life.