ALCOHOLISM – A FATAL DISEASE

Did you know that alcohol is the most commonly used drug in the world? The most important fact - alcohol is a drug - is often overlooked.  Easy to access and part of our social interaction alcohol is still one of the most fatal toxins to use. Alcoholism is a disease – terminal if untreated.

Alcoholism not only affects the patient. It also has an enormous impact on family and friends surrounding the alcoholic. Families break down and relationships get lost. As one of my friends – a recovering alcoholic sober for more than 14 years puts it “It is like having an old devil sitting on your shoulder and telling you, have just one. It can’t harm you. Go ahead. It will feel so good!” Even after all these years of sobriety Erwin still battles his demons every day of his life. Recovery isn’t an easy road to walk. The statistics are bleak. Only a few make it.

Erwin is one of the few who made it. But as he indicated he still has to take it a day at the time. He said it took him several breakdowns until he got it. He literally drank him self stupid – physically and emotionally. He lost relationships and friends and ended up laying in the gutter with no home and job. He was just by himself looking for the next drink. Eventually he got picked up from the streets and went into detoxification several times. Needless to say he had no health insurance and the State had to pick up the bill.

What does detoxification mean? After putting down the bottle the body goes into withdrawal. If untreated and without medication it can be fatal. All bodily functions break down. All vital organs fail. The brain goes into havoc. Paranoia and disillusions occur. In this condition if at home with family the alcoholic becomes a danger to himself and the family.

Now back to Erwin. He did get help but despite the help he went into so-called delirium tremens which causes malfunction in the entire brain. He attacked the staff at the detox clinic and had to be transported to a hospital into ICU. Strapped down in hands and feet and tranquillized he spent three days in a comatose state. It took another few days for him to be ready to go into a rehab program. To prepare to be a useful part in society again Erwin spent weeks in the program. As of today he still goes to his AA meetings several times a week. He says without that he would drink again, even though he knows everything about his illness there is to know.

Most people know the short term effects of drinking too much alcohol. Impairment of driving a car, slurred speech and hangovers are just a few to mention. But not many people think about the long term effects. It can cause several different types of cancer, high blood pressure, sexual malfunction and permanent damage of vital organs to list some. A sudden stop of long-term drinking is likely to cause the withdrawal symptoms described. Social interactions break down and life becomes unmanageable.

As the daughter of an alcoholic father I learned first-hand about the results of alcoholism. I know that the family of the drinking parent also needs help. Important self-help groups like Al-Anon try to support people during and after active alcoholism of their loved once. It is a fact that families of alcoholics become ill too. Co-dependency is very powerful and it sometimes takes family members years to overcome this learned behavior. Al-Anon is a wonderful and safe place to go. The group helps to deal with feelings of loneliness. Sharing with other people and seeing what others do and say is significant in finding the right tools to emotionally survive.

My friend Erwin is now 63 and has no intention of falling “off the wagon” as alcoholics like to say. My father didn’t make it. He died at 54 of lung and throat cancer. He never stopped drinking, despite all the visits to detox clinics.

Erwin is proof it can be done. He is one of the heroes in our daily life. The statistics are still not good but people like Erwin are everywhere. They are very active as sponsors in AA which keeps them sober. Giving back is one of the things that help to stay away from alcohol according to Erwin.

He is convinced that alcoholism is one of the deadliest diseases since there is no cure and the survival rate is low.