Personal Reflections for DUI - Essay Example

Reflective paper for DUI Imagine hanging out with your friends after a long busy week. You are just enjoying yourselves with talks, games, and some drinks. You enjoy yourselves for several hours after realizing that it is a bit late for you to get home. You and your friends understand that you have been there for some hours taking drinks, but none of you show any sign of being drunk. There is a choice you now have to make. The choice is whether to drive home or call a taxi to take you home. The reason why I was assigned this sanction is that I was once involved in a similar situation.I ended up making the wrong choice. Even though I was drunk, I decided that I was still able to drive home. While I was on my way home, a highway patrol police stopped for over speeding. At this time, the policeman decided to carry out some traffic tests on me. I failed this test, and I could not believe that I was arrested due to DUI. The aim of writing this reflective paper is to enlighten you so that if you are faced with similar choices, you will be able to make better decision and not making decisions similar to the one I made that night. The content of this reflective paper points out how making a bad decision can effect one on a more individual level (Hingson and Michael 64). To begin with, the embarrassment which I went through was in two phases. The first phase is that of being arrested and put into jail for being involved in an illegal act. I was arrested, my belongings confiscated and locked inside a cell. On top of this, the story spread out at a faster rate, and by the time I was released almost everyone in my home area was aware of what happened. Therefore, even before I came out of jail. My parents and my pastor were aware of what happened. The next embarrassment phase was more humble. I was supposed to explain myself to my parents and again to my spiritual parents. In addition, I had to explain to my friends, family, relatives, and peers why I made such a silly decision. Secondly, I was faced with many sorts of new demands. For instance, I had to attend appointments with church elders and ADAPT (Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention and Treatment). Since the highway policemen had taken away my driving license; it was not easy for me to reach to such places. Most of the time, I was forced to ask for a ride from my friends or relatives to take me to, for instance, do some shopping or to groceries. Thirdly, I was faced with some new financial crisis. I had to pay some fines, bonds, and significant increment in insurance premiums. Due to these extra expenses, my business incurred a huge loss that year as well as borrowing some cash from friends and relatives. Lastly, it was an easy thing for me to come to terms with the stresses that this bad decision making had brought into my life. The stress had resulted from the embarrassments I was to deal with, the new demands of time due to poor transport means, realizing that my action negatively affected many people, although no one was physically injured, proving that these actions did not portray the kind of person I am, and the financial stresses brought up by this poor decision making. I learned that, next time I go out with my friends to have some fun, I will make sure that I have a plan on how I will get home before it gets late. If I get to point I am supposed to make a decision of whether to drive or to call a taxi, I will consider this decision making carefully. I learned that it is good to always be careful when it to a point of making such critical decisions not to find yourself in my situation (Beitel, Michael and William 158). For instance, when it comes to driving while drunk, it is good to ask yourself: can I possibly handle harming or killing an individual, can I handle being put into custody, can I handle all the embarrassment, can I handle the new demands that are associated with such actions, can I handle the extra financial demands, can I handle losing my career, and can I handle the associate stress that results from making bad decisions. Since that day, I have completely changed my decision making pattern. Before I make any decision I always consider both benefits and consequences of following a certain decision. I do this to ensure that any decision I make does not, either directly or indirectly affect anyone negatively. This is because, for instance, the worst part in DUI incidences is that a drunkard driver can kill a person, but the driver is just fine with no bruise or any scratch. Considering the issue of driving while drunk, a large number of drivers so not consider that there are risks and consequences they cause when they sit behind the wheel when they are drunk. Most drivers do not think about taking the life of an innocent person. In most countries, DUI, especially drunk driving is one of the leading criminal offenses (Hingson and Michael69). I came to realize that an individual can be charged with drunk driving due to consumption of alcohol, even if he or she is not technically drunk. However, many people claim that being drunk is when a person is in a state that he or she is unable to walk straight. But, it is good to understand that even if you are able to walk straight, the fact remains that you are drunk and you can cause an accident if you drive. If a driver is caught driving while drunk, regardless of whether he or she has no alcohol problems, the driver should be charged with drunk driving. Alcoholism treatment and necessary education should be given before such a driver is given back his or her driving license(Beitel, Michael and William 164). From that time, if I find myself with a friend who is drunk, I usually refuse to drive with him. I normally force such a friend to give me his or her car keys so that I will personally drive him into her home. At a time, if I have contacts of one of his or her relatives I call them to come and drive him or her home. This is because, my situation taught me a lot and I can’t wait to see any of my friends, relatives or peers getting involved in a similar incident. Along a similar line, if I organize for a party, I ensure that I confiscate all the car keys immediately the guests enter in. This is to ensure that nobody who is drunk gets back his or her keys and instead I drive them home. It is essential not to allow anybody to drive while drunk in your presence. In conclusion, drivers should understand that drunken driving results in an increment of insurance premiums. They should also understand that, drunken driving not only results in financial crisis, but also can cost a life of an innocent individual. Despite the consequences of drunk driving, this issue has not yet been resolved. Probably, this problem will never be resolved if the government fails to implement strict traffic laws regarding DUI. Divers should always consider the side effects of drunk driving. It is good to always be careful when it to a point of making such critical decisions not to find yourself in my situation (Hingson and Michael72). Works cited Beitel, George A., Michael C. Sharp, and William D. Glauz. "Probability of arrest while driving under the influence of alcohol." Injury Prevention 6.2 (2000): 158-161. Hingson, Ralph, and Michael Winter."Epidemiology and consequences of drinking and driving."Alcohol Research and Health 27.1 (2003): 63-78. Read More