Self Help Group for Helping Alcoholics - Assignment Example

Self Help Group Report Alcoholism does not differentiate between the rich and the poor, the scholar or the illiterate, the leader or the follower……everyone are equal when they get into its death- like grip…..because Alcohol respects nobody! I was taking a leisurely nap with the newspaper over my face when I was rudely awakened by the ringing of the phone. On hearing the anxious voice on the other end of the line got me moving like a whirlwind. The reason was my friend Angelo’s mother had called to say that he had taken bad. Angelo was staying only two streets away from me in Austin and we were thick friends from childhood. After graduating from High School we went to different colleges as he wanted to be an architect while I wanted to study medicine. Though our friendship continued, I was dismayed to find that Angelo had suffered a bad setback due to his drinking habit which he had started after he broke up with his girlfriend. Ever since that time he had only gone deeper into the habit which he could not seem to get rid of. It was a Sunday afternoon on the 7th of September and the time was about 2 pm. When we shifted the listless Angelo to the Alcohol Anonymous Department which was located in the heart of the city of Austin about an hours drive from where we lived. Angelo had a light temperature, was restless and blabbered in his delirium. We had phoned the hospital and they were waiting for us to arrive. On arrival they quickly moved Angelo to a stretcher which they wheeled into an emergency room. I reassured Angelo’s mother that everything would be fine and while waiting there made an observation of everything around. The first thing that struck me was the sad and anxious faces of parents and loved ones who had accompanied their dear ones here and waited in anticipation for the advice of the doctors and nurses who did their work with such dedication. I was quite familiar with the surroundings because a few years back I had accompanied another friend of mine who had a problem with alcohol abuse but was now over it. The people at the center were by and large a mixed group of both men and women between the ages of about 16 to 60 years old. Some had accompanied their children while others accompanied their husbands or wives. Most of the crowd present seemed to come from an affluent background but there were also others who came from a much lower social class. A good majority of people came from an ethnic background such as African, Vietnamese and Chinese. Everyone was going out of their way to help one another because everyone understood each other’s pain. Everyone were treated equally and with great respect and courtesy. It was a great eye opener to me when I attended one of the AA meetings with Angelo’s mother. The atmosphere in the room was serene and those who were attending showed an air of concern in paying attention to the councilor at the podium. The walls of the room had slogans like “One day at a time”, “Easy Does it” “How” (honesty, openness and willingness), 'First things first' and another good one which said - 'HALT' (hungry, angry, lonely and tired) The effectiveness of the mechanism that is used for these programs is reflected in these slogans. It did not feel like attending a meeting at all because there was so much of warmth and consideration not only on the part of the councilor but also from the group that were attending. The meeting began with formal greetings and then continued into more serious matters. The main and underlying purpose of the meeting was to reach out to the distressed alcoholics and trying hard to help them to lead a sober life. The councilor began by explaining how alcoholics begin their journey of alcohol abuse. She brings out the things that trigger a drinking spree such as the loss of a loved one, poor coping skills either in education or on the job front, poor economic background, deceit and cheating, parental divorce and the like. Sometimes these triggers are just for having a good time and some clean fun. These drinking sprees start off very innocently and may not seem to impact the individual all at once. But as time gradually passes by, the person becomes a slave to drink and gets encoiled in its deadly tentacles, unable to release himself. The members of the group are called upon to share some of the experiences that led them into the clutches of alcohol. Many of them reported on not being able to cope with the negative feelings and responses they had come across in life. Some said they were initiated into drinking by their friends or acquaintances. Some said they love partying and hence fell a prey to alcohol. There were still others who said they had to face a lot of hardship within their family or at their work-spot etc… The councilor went on to explain all about the bad effects of alcohol abuse and how it mainly affects the liver leading to diseases like Hepatitis B and C and various others cancers. She clearly explained about the dangers of drinking which finally leads to a situation which is life threatening to the individual. It also affected a person’s brain adversely leading to delusions and hallucinations. The final stage of all alcohol abusers would be quite pathetic because they would be in the core of the vicious circle with no point of return. They lead listless and aimless lives without caring about personal hygiene or cleanliness of their surroundings. The councilor also gave a few statistics when speaking on the importance of AA meetings by stating that In one study of over 8000 patients attending treatment programs in the USA, those who were also attending A-A meetings at one-year follow-up were 50% more likely to be abstinent than those who were not attending A-A meetings (Hoffman & Miller, 1992). Alcohol contributes to 100,000 deaths annually, making it the third leading cause of preventable mortality in the US, after tobacco and diet/activity patterns. (NIAAA) Speaking on the other side effects of alcohol, the councilor stated that ‘Based on victim reports, each year 183,000 (37%) rapes and sexual assaults involve alcohol use by the offender.’ (NIAAA) Sitting there at the meeting and listening to all that was said and done, I felt that I was rather lucky to have escaped the deadly tentacles of alcohol. It made me understand alcohol abusers in a way that I could never have understood the real impact if I had not attended this meeting. I also felt more equipped to be able to be of service in any other situation like this. It also made understand the various problems faced by people who get lost into the vicious grip of alcohol and made me more charitable towards them. Self help groups are very effective in helping alcoholics to come out of the trap and see the light at the end of the tunnel because it consists of people who had been there and come back. Members in the self help group are able to understand what exactly goes on within the drinker and are more skilled at handling different situations because they had once experienced the same thing. Self help groups keep everything highly confidential and are more understanding and sympathetic in helping alcohol abusers to kick the habit. References: Alcohol Anonymous www.dryoutnow.com/alcohol-info/Alcohol-anonymous-.html About Alcohol www.alcoholalcoholism.org/about-alcohol National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) http://www.niaaa.nih.gov Read More