The toughest part, most say, is by accepting the diagnosis – accepting that you have a problem with alcohol, that you are an alcoholic. Then, you need to decide what type of treatment you think you need. There’s no one-size-fits-all treatment for alcoholism. For some people, cold turkey works and remains successful, for others, it wouldn’t get them anywhere.

If you or someone you love is struggling with alcohol, you may want to watch this video. It’s is a video of experts discussing methods of treating alcoholism and may answer many of the questions that you had. Just click on the TV screen below to watch:

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Images: Stock.xchng, iStock

Post from: Blisstree

Video Tuesday: Alcoholism

One drug, Topamax, reportedly “reduced the number of days on which alcoholics drank heavily” more than with just therapy alone. Topamax is currently used to treat epilepsy and migraines. Another study says people that took naltrexone and attended therapy were more likely to stay clean, and drink less when they did fall off the wagon.

Obviously, these results are preliminary and much more research is needed. But any strides in the treatment of addiction are a good thing.

Image: sxc.hu.

Post from: Blisstree

Addiction Pill

Why? First Things First – if it is a fact that you are sitting in meetings, dining out with “us,” hanging out with “us,” working with “us,” and admitting to “our faces” that you have admitted to your innermost self that you are an alcoholic, there is only one fact that rises in importance above all others!

You’ll have to remember this though – we all acknowledge a few other facts don’t we? How about this – alcoholism is a fatal, progressive and patient disease. Alcoholism kills. It kills both “guilty” and innocent. I say “guilty” to appease those who subject themselves to making society happy…

Alcoholism robs human beings of their health, wealth and love of others and of themselves. It is a thief. Alcoholism steals from our employers. Alcoholism removes financial stability. Alcoholism fills our hospitals with the broken lives of men, women and children. However alcoholism affects humanity in a negative manner, it will do just that.

With that being said, what is the single most important fact that rises above everything else? It certainly isn’t that you are recovered or I am recovering. The fact is that each and every single day that those of us who admit to being alcoholic and don’t pick up a drink of alcohol – it is a victory over death and destruction.

If you have an obsession to attempt to force your will on anyone, one way or another, recovered or recovering, and are obviously willing to fight over it, you most assuredly have not recovered from a hopeless state of mind and body.

But, that is only one man’s opinion…

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Recovered? Recovering? The Argument Is Assinine!

Post from: Blisstree

Fr. Martin Begins His Chalk Talk

Powerless? Unmanageable?

“We believe, and so suggested a few years ago, that the action of alcohol on these chronic alcoholics is a manifestation of an allergy; that the phenomenon of craving is limited to this class and never occurs in the average temperate drinker.”

Craving didn’t do it for me as far as definitions go. The good Dr. Silkworth put the “screws” to me in the next sentence;

“These allergic types can never safely use alcohol in any form at all; and once having formed the habit and found they cannot break it, once having lost their self-confidence, their reliance upon things human, their problems pile up on them and become astonishingly difficult to solve.”

A habit that cannot be broken. Yep, now that makes perfect sense to me. Endless problems without solutions. Yep again… Powerless and unmanageable.

Post from: Blisstree

We Admitted We Were Powerless

The Hideous Four Horsemen:
Terror, Bewilderment, Frustration, Despair

Hideous? – Hateful; shocking. Syn. — Frightful; ghastly; grim; grisly; horrid; dreadful; terrible.

Terror – Extreme or Intense Fear

Bewilderment – Confused, Puzzled, Befuddled, Disorientated

Frustration – The feeling of annoyance when one’s actions are criticized or hindered

Despair – Loss of hope; utter hopelessness; complete despondency.

From page 151;

“For most normal folks, drinking means conviviality, companionship and colorful imagination.”

Know any “normal” folks? How long has it been since your drinking was convivial? When was the last time your drinking introduced you to a healthy relationship? And how long has it been since your imagination morphed into nothing more than nightmares?

“It means release from care, boredom and worry. It is joyous intimacy with friends and a feeling that life is good.”

Care? Who gives a damn! Boredom? Being chased by blue lights isn’t boring, is it? Worry? Heck, its become old hat to be wondering about how I’ll provide for my family. That’s no worry anymore – back to who cares? Pour me another…

“Never could we recapture the great moments of the past. There was an insistent yearning to enjoy life as we once did and a heartbreaking obsession that some new miracle of control would enable us to do it.”

Yeah, but I don’t drink nearly as bad as my buddy Jerry…

“As we became subjects of King Alcohol, shivering denizens of his mad realm, the chilling vapor that is loneliness settled down. It thickened, ever becoming blacker.”

This time will be different. Hey – check her out…

“Some of us sought out sordid places, hoping to find understanding companionship and approval. Momentarily we did – then would come oblivion and the awful awakening to face the hideous Four Horsemen – Terror, Bewilderment, Frustration, Despair.”

Ouch, this feeling sucks. How did I get here? Hey bartender, 101 on the rocks and keep my glass full okay?

Unhappy drinkers who read this page will understand!

Post from: Blisstree

The Hideous Four Horsemen

I have no idea at all whether or not Lindsay Lohan has the disease alcoholism. From her actions she appears to, but that is her decision to make, not mine.

The consequences of her drinking and drugging are another story! Catch this -

“Lindsay Lohan is about to see dead people. The 21-year-old actress will soon be working at a morgue as part of her punishment for misdemeanor drunken driving, her attorney, Blair Berk, told a judge Thursday… Her two four-hour days at the morgue are part of a court-ordered program to show drivers the real-life consequences of drinking and driving. She must also spend two days working in a hospital emergency room.”

Now, if that wasn’t “bad” enough…

“Lohan was arrested twice last year on DUI charges and pleaded guilty in August to misdemeanor drunken driving and cocaine charges. She has already served 84 minutes in jail as part of the plea deal.”

Wow!!! A WHOLE 84 minutes in jail!!! What were they thinking???

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Willing To Accept The Consequences?

“He cannot picture life without alcohol. Some day he will be unable to imagine life either with alcohol or without it. Then he will know loneliness such as few do. He will be at the jumping-off place. He will wish for the end.”

Towards the end of my drinking I knew about a different version of “One Day At A Time” and it wasn’t pretty.

I’d come to in the morning (no, I didn’t “wake up” any longer) and my thoughts were “Oh sh**, I’m going to have to live through another one of these? Please God, can’t we put an early end to this?”

Times have changed – and so have I, thank God!

Post from: Blisstree

The Jumping Off Place

From The New York Times Health section, Benedict Carey shares his thoughts;

[Categorized under - Psychology - New Year's Resolutions - Regret - Mental Health]

The New Year’s Cocktail: Regret With a Dash of Bitters

“The ideal New Year’s Eve party would come with a psychological voucher, redeemable the next day for a post-mortem session with friends. A chance to relish the night’s humiliations, take bets on who went home with whom, and nominate the guest most in need of therapy, present company included.”

Love it… a psychological voucher, lmao. Could any of us relate a “psychological voucher” to a “nudge from a judge?”

Post-mortem? With friends? Oh, I’m rather certain there are those who were at parties last night where they knew no one, made asses of themselves, came to with a hangover this morning and thought, “Oh hell, what did I do now?” Or…

Have yet to come to but when they do they’ll discover someone they don’t know lying next to them in whatever sleeping arrangement they wound up in and think “Oh hell, what did I do now?”

“Granted, it may be hard to make the case that one of those is the person capsized on the couch, recovering from last year’s last party. But give it a few days. Ghost-busting is possible, but best done without a hangover.”

Liz Lewis has ten cures for hangovers at Healthbolt. There’s one neither she nor Forbes mentions, including moderation (what’s moderation?). It only applies to folks like us, me and you;

Sobriety = abstinence = no hangover.

Post from: Blisstree

Best Done Without A Hangover?

Yes, Namenlosen, though it hasn’t occurred in the way you and I seemed to plan it (lol), there has been communication between my oldest son and I for the first time in many years. Over ten.

This, is not easy… and at the same time it isn’t really that hard. Fears. The boogeymen. The worst fear? How I perceive what is said, translate it, then respond to it. At its root? That damage that insists on telling me that I’m wrong again!

There is also this strange “need” to affirm that I’m okay as a man and an adult. That stems from damage inflicted (self-inflicted after all is said and done) by another (the ex) who was vengeful for perceived or real “treatment” she received from a walking, talking, attitude case called a drunk. This was an early part of this new communication – talk of mom and sis. Talk of sh** talk about mom and sis. Which was confusing, to me.

An alcoholic mind has a weird translation process. Just the fact that “it” has to translate is another story

Time For A Meeting!!!

Later…

Post from: Blisstree

Simple Communication