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Jennifer is a forty-year-old preschool teacher who has been consuming alcohol in an excessive manner since she and her boyfriend broke up their relationship. In fact, for the past eight months she has been drinking very nearly a bottle of wine every night, and on the weekends she also has been drinking several cocktails all through the day. In a word, Jennifer has been drinking so excessively and hazardously that it’s a wonder that she hasn’t suffered from alcohol poisoning.

After feeling dispirited because she was starting to let her health go downhill, Jennifer at long last told herself that enough is enough, that it’s time to quit the self pity party, that it’s time to quit the irresponsible and excessive drinking, and time to make a new start with her life. So the next Saturday morning at 9:00 AM, she made up her mind to stop drinking suddenly and completely without preparation or planning.

When She Attempted to Quit Drinking She Felt Awful, She Started to Sweat Extensively, Her Head Was Aching, She Was Extremely Moody and Tense, She Had Utterly No Appetite, and She Vomited a Number of Times

When Jennifer quit drinking, she thought that she would quite possibly be tempted to sneak a few drinks, but she never believed that she would feel so horrific. More specifically, just about two hours after she stopped drinking, she was extremely restless and moody, she started to perspire profusely, her head was aching, she vomited numerous times, and she had absolutely no appetite.

When she called her best buddy and informed her that she had quit drinking and that after a few hours she without any warning began experiencing flu-like symptoms, Carmen, her best buddy, told Jennifer to call her healthcare professional and go over what she was feeling.

She Admits to Her Doctor That She Has Been Drinking In an Excessive and Abusive Manner, That She Just Tried to Quit Drinking, and That She is Going Through Ghastly Flu-Like Symptoms

So Jennifer called her physician, told him that she has been drinking in an excessive and hazardous manner for quite a few months and that when she made an effort to totally quit drinking earlier in the day, within a few hours she felt as if she had the worst case of the flu that she had ever suffered through.

Her healthcare practitioner told her that she may be suffering from symptoms of alcohol withdrawal and that she should have a friend or neighbor take her to the emergency room as soon as humanly possible.

As soon as Jennifer got off the phone, she got a friend to take her to the hospital. Interestingly, as sick as Jennifer was, all she could think about all the way to the hospital was whether or not she might be alcohol dependent.

Evidently her medical practitioner had called ahead and informed the emergency room staff to expect Jennifer because when she got to the hospital, she was met by two nurses who immediately told her to lie down on the portable bed they had with them. After getting transported to the emergency room and undergoing two or three important tests, it was validated that Jennifer was in point of fact going through alcohol withdrawal symptoms and was in need of alcohol detox.

A doctor gave her some medications to lessen the discomfort of her flu-like symptoms and also gave her some meds to help eliminate the alcohol that was still in her system.

An Alcohol Abuse and Alcohol Dependency Healthcare Practitioner Explains in a Clear Manner That She is Dependent on Alcohol and Then Goes Over What Alcohol Withdrawal Symptoms and Alcoholism Stages Are

After a couple of hours, Jennifer was removed from the emergency room and transported to the recovery room. After she was in recovery for approximately two-and-a-half hours, Doctor Hults, a chemical dependency and substance abuse specialist, came to see her. He took quite a bit of time and explained in a clear fashion that Jennifer had experienced alcohol withdrawal symptoms when she stopped drinking because she had become alcohol dependent.

He then stated that with repeated and excessive drinking, the person’s brain steadily adjusts to the alcohol so that it can execute tasks and operations in a “semi-normal” fashion. When the individual then suddenly quits drinking alcohol, understandably, the brain takes action by bringing forth alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Not only this, but her healthcare practitioner also explained the different alcoholism stages that an individual who is alcohol dependent regularly experiences as the disease gets progressively worse as time goes by.

It is Established that Jennifer is in the First Stage of Alcoholism and She Receives a Good Forecast For a Complete Recovery if She Gets the Alcohol Dependency Treatment She Needs

Fortunately for Jennifer, it was determined that she was in the earliest stage of alcoholism and, consequently, she was given a favorable diagnosis for a total recovery if she gets the alcoholism therapy she needs.

Jennifer told the medical practitioner that she will do whatever it takes to get sober and to restore her life and her health. She also stated that she has an exceptional hospitalization insurance policy that will quite possibly pay for most of the treatment costs that will be incurred. It was apparent that Jennifer was very pleased with her encouraging prognosis and felt reassured knowing that she will be able to get the alcoholism rehabilitation she needs so that she can start on the road to recovery.

Jennifer is a thirty-eight-year-old inside sales representative who has been consuming alcohol quite heavily since she and her fiancée discontinued their relationship.  In actual fact, for the past five months she has been drinking just about one-and-a-half bottles of wine every night, and on the weekends she also has been drinking a number wine coolers all the way through the day.  In a word, Jennifer has been drinking so hazardously and abusively that it’s a miracle that she hasn’t suffered from alcohol poisoning.

After feeling dispirited because she was beginning to overlook her health, Jennifer finally told herself that enough is enough, that it’s time to stop the self pity act, that it’s time to stop the hazardous and irresponsible drinking, and time to get on with her life.  So the next Saturday morning at 10:30 AM, she came to a decision that she would stop drinking cold turkey.

When She Attempted to Stop Drinking She Felt Sick, Her Head Was Pounding, She Vomited a Number of Times, She Was Extremely Moody and Anxious, She Had Utterly No Appetite, and She Started to Sweat Extensively

When Jennifer quit drinking, she figured that she would probably be tempted to sneak a few drinks, but she never believed that she would feel so awful.  More explicitly, about four hours after she stopped drinking, she started to sweat profusely, she had absolutely no appetite, she was extremely tense and moody, she vomited numerous times, and her head was aching.

When she called her best buddy and informed her that she had stopped drinking and that after a few hours she without any warning started to have flu-like symptoms, Betty, her best pal, told Jennifer to call her healthcare professional and clearly explain what was happening.

She Admits to Her Physician That She Has Been Drinking In a Hazardous and Abusive Manner, That She Just Tried to Stop Drinking, and That She is Suffering Through Terribly Unpleasant Flu-Like Symptoms

So Jennifer called her physician, informed him that she has been drinking in an abusive and irresponsible manner for quite a few months and that when she attempted to completely stop drinking earlier in the day, within a few hours she felt as if she had the worse flu-like symptoms that she had ever gone through.

Her physician informed her that she may be suffering from symptoms of alcohol withdrawal and that she should have a relative or friend drive her to the emergency room as soon as possible.

As soon as Jennifer got off the phone, she got a neighbor to take her to the hospital.  Interestingly, all the way to the hospital, as sick as Jennifer felt, the only thing she could think about was whether or not she might be an alcoholic.

Evidently her family doctor had called ahead and informed the emergency room staff to expect Jennifer because when she got to the hospital, she was met by two emergency room employees who without hesitation asked her to get in the wheelchair they had with them.  After getting wheeled to the emergency room and undergoing a couple of important tests, it was validated that Jennifer was in fact going through alcohol withdrawal symptoms and was in need of alcohol detoxification.

An emergency room healthcare practitioner administered some drugs to lessen the intensity of her flu-like symptoms and also gave her some medications to help eliminate the alcohol that was still in her body.

An Alcohol Addiction Healthcare Practitioner Goes Over the Fact That She is Dependent on Alcohol and Then Goes Over What Alcohol Withdrawal Symptoms and Alcohol Dependency Stages Are

After a couple of hours, Jennifer was transferred from the emergency room and transported to the recovery room.  After she was in recovery for around three-and-a-half hours, Doctor Fox, an alcohol addiction and alcohol abuse specialist, came to visit her.  He took his time and clearly explained that Jennifer had experienced alcohol withdrawal symptoms when she quit drinking due to the fact that she had become alcohol dependent.

He then elucidated the fact that with heavy drinking on an everyday basis, the drinker’s brain progressively adapts to the alcohol in order to work in a “normal” way.  When the individual then suddenly quits drinking, however, the brain reacts by creating alcohol withdrawal symptoms.  Not only this, but her physician also went over the different alcoholism stages that an alcohol addicted person regularly experiences as the disease gets progressively worse.

It is Confirmed that Jennifer is in the First Stage of Alcohol Addiction and She Receives a Favorable Diagnosis For a Full Recovery if She Gets the Alcohol Addiction Therapy She Needs

Fortunately for Jennifer, it was discovered that she was in the first stage of alcohol addiction and, consequently, she received a good diagnosis for a total recovery if she obtains the alcohol addiction rehabilitation she requires.

Jennifer told the healthcare professional that she will do whatever it takes to get sober and to restore her health and her life.  She also articulated that she has an excellent hospitalization policy that will almost certainly pay for most of the costs required for treatment.  It was apparent that Jennifer was extremely thankful about her encouraging medical forecast and felt free from worry knowing that she will be able to get the alcohol addiction therapy she needs so that she can begin the path to recovery.

Merissa and Augie have been seeing one another for six-and-a-half years. They met while taking the same Italian language and culture class at a medium size, countryside, Church affiliated liberal arts college located in the Western part of the U.S. While they were only good buddies at first, they finally started to date when they were in their second year of college.

Due to the fact both of them came from very strict backgrounds, neither one of them drank much beyond the testing stage when they first started to date. As the time passed by, however, they started to go to more sorority and fraternity parties, happy hours, keg parties, and football bashes. Consequently, they in a step-by-step fashion began to drink increasingly more the longer they saw one another in a dating relationship.

Their Social Life Generally Consisted of Going to Professional Sporting Events, Going to Happy Hour With Their Friends, Going to Restaurants Three or Four Nights Per Week, Going to Parties With Their Friends, and Going With Their Friends to the Local Bar and Grill on the Weekends

After they graduated, they both found jobs in a medium size city that was around sixty-five miles from their undergraduate college. Then they finally determined that they would move into the same apartment together.

Due to the fact they were far removed from the college drinking scene, nevertheless, their social life commonly consisted of going to restaurants three or four nights per week, going to professional sporting events, going to happy hour with their friends, going to parties with their friends, and going to the local pub with their buddies on the weekends. In brief, Augie and Merissa began drinking in an irresponsible and hazardous manner.

Now that were living with one another and beginning to get more earnest about their relationship, nevertheless, they began thinking about buying a house, getting married, becoming more responsible, and having children.

With any important modification in a person’s life there is usually something that produces the particular adjustment in question. For Merissa and Augie the idea of buying a new house and having children was this “mechanism of change.” In brief, for the first time in their lives, Augie and Merissa began to critically review their hazardous and irresponsible drinking and the long term effects of alcohol on their health.

How Would Their Heavy and Abusive Drinking Affect Their Mental Health, Their Relationship With Their Parents, Their Finances, Their Ability to Have Children, and Their Relationship With One Another?

Would their excessive and abusive drinking unfavorably affect their ability to have children? How would they be able to continue spending almost all of their money on drinking if they were to start saving for a new house? How mature would they be if they had children and continued to drink in an irresponsible and abusive manner? How would they be able to face their parents and tell them about their long term hopes, dreams, and aspirations while they still drank in a hazardous and irresponsible manner while having fun as they did when they were in college? What would their hazardous and irresponsible drinking do to their relationship? How would their abusive and heavy drinking affect their mental health?

From a different slant on things, although neither one of them ever suffered from alcohol poisoning, received a DUI, or experienced alcohol withdrawal symptoms, they realized that their excessive and abusive drinking was becoming a thorny issue that they could not ”sweep under the rug” anymore.

After Giving Their State of Affairs Much Deliberation, Merissa and Augie Finally Realized That Their Hopes, Aspirations, and Dreams Would not be Fulfilled if They Continued Their Hazardous Drinking

All of these inquiries without a doubt pointed to the same conclusion: Augie and Merissa needed to discover that they couldn’t continue their hazardous and heavy drinking if their dreams, aspirations, and goals were to be fulfilled.

Once they arrived at this conclusion, they told their drinking pals about their goal of buying or building a new house, about their marital plans, and about their plans to start a family. They also told their drinking friends that they still wanted to pal around with them but that they would be drinking in strict moderation from this point forward so that they could begin realizing their future aspirations, goals, and dreams.

Much to their disbelief, all of their buddies expressed relief because they too had been deliberating on their lives and concluded that their life-styles were totally centered around drinking. They also felt that they would have to change significantly if they were to become more responsible and show more consideration for their health, their careers, and for their plans in the next ten or fifteen years.

After their candid discussion with their friends about their hopes, plans, and dreams, Merissa and Augie in reality started to have more meaningful relationships with all of their buddies. The primary reason for this was the fact that all of them had the same state of mind regarding their hazardous drinking and their relatively short and long-term plans, goals, and aspirations.

Merissa and Augie have been going out for eight-and-a-half years. They met while taking the same art history class at a relatively small, countryside, Church affiliated liberal arts college located in the Eastern part of the U.S. While they were essentially good buddies at first, they eventually began dating when they were in their second year of college.

Because both of them came from very ”old school” backgrounds, neither one of them drank very much beyond the testing stage when they first started to date. As the time went by, nonetheless, they began to go to more sorority and fraternity parties, keg parties, football bashes, and happy hours. Consequently, they over time began to drink more the more they dated.

Their Social Life As a Rule Consisted of Going to Professional Sporting Events, Going to Parties With Their Friends, Going to Happy Hour With Their Friends, Going to Restaurants Three or Four Nights Per Week, and Going With Their Friends to the Local Nightspot on the Weekends

After they graduated, they both got jobs in a relatively large city that was around sixty miles from their undergraduate college. Then they at long last decided to move into the same apartment with one another.

Due to the fact they were far removed from the college drinking scene, nonetheless, their social life regularly consisted of going to professional sporting events, going to happy hour with their friends, going to parties with their friends, going to restaurants three or four nights per week, and going to the local cabaret with their pals on the weekends. In brief, Merissa and Augie started to drink in an irresponsible and excessive manner.

Now that they were living in the same apartment together and beginning to get more unwavering about their relationship, nonetheless, they began thinking about having children, getting married, becoming more responsible, and buying a house.

With any important modification in an individual’s life there is normally something that forces the specific transformation in question. For Augie and Merissa the idea of having children and buying a new house was this “source of change.” Stated more explicitly, for the first time in their lives, Augie and Merissa began to critically assess their excessive and hazardous drinking and the long term alcohol effects on their lives.

How Would Their Abusive and Excessive Drinking Affect Their Relationship With One Another, Their Finances, Their Relationship With Their Parents, Their Ability to Have Children, and Their Mental Health?

Would their abusive and excessive drinking adversely affect their ability to have children? How would they be able to continue spending almost all of their money on drinking if they were to start saving for a new house? How mature would they be if they had children and continued to drink in a hazardous manner? How would they be able to face their parents and tell them about their long term hopes, dreams, and plans while they still drank in an irresponsible manner while having fun as they did when they were in college? What would their drinking behavior do to their relationship? How would their irresponsible drinking affect their mental health?

From a different perspective, although neither one of them ever suffered from alcohol poisoning, received a DUI, or experienced alcohol withdrawals, they realized that their hazardous and abusive drinking was becoming a thorny issue that they could not disregard any longer.

After Giving Their State of Affairs Much Thought, Augie and Merissa Finally Realized That Their Dreams, Hopes, and Plans Would not be Met if They Continued Their Irresponsible and Hazardous Drinking

All of these uncertainties undoubtedly indicated the same conclusion: Merissa and Augie needed to be more aware that they couldn’t continue their heavy and hazardous drinking if their hopes, plans, and dreams were to be fulfilled.

Once they settled upon this conclusion, they notified their drinking pals about their plans to start a family, about their goal of buying or building a new house, and about their marital plans. They also told their drinking friends that they still wanted to pal around with them but that they would be drinking in strict moderation from this point forward so that they could start to realize their future hopes, dreams, and plans.

Much to their wonder, all of their buddies expressed relief because they too had been reflecting on their lives and concluded that their life-styles were much too frequently focused on drinking. They also believed that they would have to change drastically if they were to become more mature and manifest more respect for their aspirations, their health, and for their careers in the next fifteen or twenty years.

After their candid discussion with their friends about their dreams, aspirations, and hopes, Merissa and Augie actually started to have more meaningful relationships with all of their buddies. The key reason for this was the fact that all of them had the same outlook regarding their irresponsible drinking and their short and long-term plans, goals, and aspirations.

When I was a sophomore in high school, I enrolled into a substance abuse class. At that age, I did not comprehend that alcohol abuse in reality was a sub classification of drug abuse. While taking this class and learning more about drug and alcohol abuse and above all about alcohol side effects, I read a lot about Alcoholic Anonymous, their meetings, how their programs have twelve steps, and how successful the Alcoholics Anonymous recovery program has been for people all through the world. I also learned a lot about alcohol rehabilitation and the different alcohol rehab clinics that are commonly available to problem drinkers.

Dangerous Results That are Linked to Alcohol Addiction and Alcohol Abuse

Some of the injurious results related to alcoholism and alcohol abuse that I learned about in this class certainly terrified me. The ruined lives and frequent serious issues experienced by most alcohol addicted individuals made me feel like I never wanted to drink alcohol when I became old enough. That is, I did not want to face the disaster and ruination that alcohol addicted individuals almost always experience.

Let this sink in for a moment. What fifteen-year-old teenager wants to face premature death due to his or her drinking behavior? What young person wants to become so out-of-control regarding his or her drinking that drinking alcohol becomes the object of one’s life? What teenager wants to go to one of the local alcoholic rehabilitation centers to deal with alcohol-related issues before he or she becomes an adult?

What teenager wants to encounter alcohol withdrawal symptoms when he or she tries to quit drinking? Why would a person engage in drinking to such an extent that it would cause problems in every area of his or her life? Drinking later in life after an individual has a career, a family, and develops personal responsibilities makes sense. But why would a teenager want to sacrifice his or her education, employment, finances, and relationships for a life that revolves around irresponsible drinking?

These issues were so significant that I discussed some of them in class throughout the school year. What was downright inconceivable to me was the number of students who openly didn’t care about the dangerous results of hazardous drinking that I talked about. It was almost as if they couldn’t be bothered with the truth and how these consequences can ruin their lives. For the first time in my life I started to understand something that my grandfather used to articulate throughout my youth: you can lead a horse to water but you can’t force it to drink.

It’s Beneficial, Enlivening, and Important to Keep Away From the Destructive and Unhealthy Outcomes of Alcohol and Drug Abuse

And even at my young age, I also started to realize how important, liberating, and beneficial it is in life to keep away from the unhealthy and destructive results of alcohol and drug abuse.

Jennifer is a thirty-five-year-old quality improvement consultant who has been ingesting alcohol in a hazardous and irresponsible manner since her fiancée and she discontinued their relationship. In fact, for the past three months she has been drinking very nearly a bottle of wine every night, and on the weekends she also has been drinking a number cocktails all through the day.

After feeling discouraged because she was starting to neglect her health, Jennifer at last told herself that she’s had enough, that it’s time to stop feeling sorry for herself, that it’s time to stop the abusive and hazardous drinking, and time to get on with her life. So the following Saturday morning at 9:00 AM, she decided to stop drinking completely and suddenly without preparation or planning.

When She Attempted to Quit Drinking She Felt Ill, She Was Extremely Moody and Anxious, She Had Utterly No Appetite, She Started to Perspire Extensively, Her Head Was Pounding, and She Vomited Several Times

When Jennifer stopped drinking, she thought that she would quite possibly be tempted to ”steal” a couple of drinks, but she never presumed that she would feel so terrible. More to the point, approximately an hour after she quit drinking, she was extremely moody and anxious, she had utterly no appetite, she started to perspire extensively, her head was pounding, and she vomited several times.

When she called her best buddy and informed her that she had quit drinking and that after a few hours she all of a sudden started to experience flu-like symptoms, Betty, her best buddy, told Jennifer to call her healthcare practitioner and explain in a clear manner what she was experiencing.

She Admits to Her Doctor That She Has Been Drinking In a Hazardous Manner, That She Just Tried to Stop Drinking, and That She is Suffering Through Awful Flu-Like Symptoms

So Jennifer called her medical practitioner, told him that she has been drinking in an abusive and irresponsible manner for several months and that when she made an effort to completely quit drinking earlier in the day, within a few hours she felt as if she had the most ghastly flu-like symptoms that she had ever gone through.

Her physician informed her that she may be going through alcohol withdrawals and that she should have a family member or friend take her to the emergency room ASAP.

As soon as Jennifer got off the phone, she got a family member to take her to the emergency room. Interestingly, all the way to the hospital, as sick as Jennifer felt, the only thing she could think about was whether or not she might be an alcoholic.

Obviously her healthcare professional had phoned ahead and told the emergency room medical team to expect Jennifer because when she got to the hospital, she was met by a nurse and a paramedic who promptly told her to get in the wheelchair they had with them. After getting taken to the emergency room and undergoing a couple of basic tests, it was verified that Jennifer was in actual fact suffering from alcohol withdrawal symptoms and was in need of alcohol detox.

A physician administered some drugs to diminish her flu-like symptoms and also administered some meds to help eliminate the alcohol that was still in her blood.

An Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Physician Goes Over the Fact That She is Alcohol Dependent and Then Clearly Explains What Alcohol Withdrawal Symptoms and Alcohol Dependency Stages Are

After two or three hours, Jennifer was taken from the ER and transported to the recovery room. After she was in recovery for approximately three-and-a-half hours, Doctor Knight, a drug and alcohol addiction specialist, came to see her. He took plenty of time and explained in laymen’s language that Jennifer had gone through alcohol withdrawal symptoms when she quit drinking because she had become addicted to alcohol.

He then explained that with excessive drinking on an everyday basis, the person’s brain little by little gets acclimated to the alcohol in order to operate in a “normal” fashion. When the person then abruptly refrains from drinking alcohol, it can be pointed out, the brain reacts by generating alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Moreover, her medical practitioner also went over the various alcoholism stages that an alcohol addicted individual commonly experiences as the disease gets worse over time.

It is Established that Jennifer is in the First Stage of Alcohol Dependency and She Obtains a Favorable Prognosis For a Full Recovery if She Gets the Alcohol Treatment She Requires

Fortunately for Jennifer, it was discovered that she was in the earliest stage of alcoholism and, as a consequence, she received a favorable forecast for a full recovery if she obtains the alcohol dependency rehab she needs.

Jennifer told the physician that she will do whatever it takes to get sober and to recover her life and her health. She also articulated that she has an excellent hospitalization insurance plan that will probably pay for most of the costs required for rehab. It was clear to see that Jennifer was quite pleased with her encouraging medical prognosis and felt free from anxiety knowing that she will be able to get the alcoholism treatment she requires so that she can begin the path to recovery.

When I was a sophomore in high school, I took a substance abuse class. At that time period, I did not realize that alcohol abuse in point of fact was a sub category of drug abuse. While taking this class and learning more about drug and alcohol abuse, I read a lot about Alcoholic Anonymous, their meetings, how their programs have twelve steps, and how successful the Alcoholics Anonymous recovery program has been for people all over the world. I also learned a lot about alcohol rehabilitation and the various alcohol rehab clinics that are habitually available to problem drinkers.

Some of the damaging outcomes related to alcoholism and alcohol abuse that I learned about in this class undeniably frightened me. The ruined lives and numerous difficulties experienced by most alcohol addicted people made me feel like I never wanted to drink alcohol when I became old enough. More to the point, I did not want to face the wreckage and destruction that alcohol dependent people almost always encounter.

Let this sink in for a moment. What fifteen-year-old individual wants to face premature death due to his or her drinking behavior? What teenager wants to become so out-of-control regarding his or her drinking that consuming alcohol becomes the object of one’s life? What teenager wants to go to one of the local alcoholic rehabilitation centers to deal with alcohol-related difficulties before he or she becomes twenty-one?

What youth wants to experience alcohol withdrawal symptoms when he or she tries to quit drinking? Why would an individual engage in drinking to such an extent that it would cause serious issues in every area of his or her life? Drinking later in life after a person has a career, a family, and develops personal responsibilities makes sense. But why would a teenager want to sacrifice his or her education, employment, finances, and relationships for a life that revolves around excessive drinking?

These issues were so important that I talked about some of them in class during the school year. What was utterly incredible to me was the number of students who openly didn’t care about the damaging effects of irresponsible drinking that I discussed. It was almost as if they couldn’t be bothered with the facts and how these consequences can demolish their lives. For the first time in my life I started to figure out a saying that my grandfather used to say to me all through my adolesence: you can lead a horse to water but you can’t force it to drink.

When I was a sophomore in high school, I enrolled into a substance abuse class. At that time, I did not understand that alcohol abuse in reality was a sub division of drug abuse. While taking this class and learning more about drug and alcohol abuse, I read a lot about Alcoholic Anonymous, their meetings, how their programs have twelve steps, and how successful the Alcoholics Anonymous recovery program has been for individuals all over the world. I also learned quite a bit about alcohol rehab and the different alcohol rehab clinics that are often available to alcohol abusers.

Some of the detrimental effects linked to alcoholism and alcohol abuse that I learned about in this class definitely startled me. The ruined lives and frequent difficulties experienced by most alcohol addicted individuals made me feel like I never wanted to drink alcohol when I became old enough. More to the point, I did not want to face the wreckage and devastation that alcohol addicted people almost always encounter.

Ponder upon this for a moment. What fifteen-year-old individual wants to face premature death due to his or her drinking behavior? What adolescent wants to become so out-of-control regarding his or her drinking that drinking alcohol becomes the object of one’s life? What young person wants to go to one of the local alcoholic rehabilitation centers to deal with alcohol-related issues before he or she becomes an adult?

What adolescent wants to encounter alcohol withdrawal symptoms when he or she tries to quit drinking? Why would an individual engage in drinking to such an extent that it would cause problems in every area of his or her life? Drinking later in life after a person has a career, a family, and develops personal responsibilities makes sense. But why would a teenager want to sacrifice his or her education, employment, finances, and relationships for a life that revolves around excessive drinking?

These issues were so meaningful that I talked about some of them in class during the school year. What was completely astonishing to me was the number of students who essentially didn’t care about the dangerous consequences of irresponsible drinking that I talked about. It was almost as if they couldn’t be troubled with reality and how these outcomes can destroy their lives. For the first time in my life I started to appreciate a saying that my grandfather used to emphasize all through my younger years: you can lead a horse to water but you can’t force it to drink.