06 Sep An Alarming Trend
I guess it has always been true but it hit me between the eyes the other day just how much one factor is a part of so many of the people, families, and situations that I try to help with every day of my professional life. That one factor is alcohol.
Before you exit out of this blog because of what you expect me to say, read on a bit if you would. I am not a teetotaler. I might be found with a glass of wine or a favorite beverage in my hand on occasion. I am not coming from a moral or religious perspective or trying to get you to buy into my belief system. But if you were with me all week long in my office listening to the clients I see every day, you would notice what I have noticed. Drinking, being drunk, needing to drink, getting over drinking, preparing to drink, going out to drink, and anything else you can connect with drinking is in a sizable percentage of the stories I hear. And no, I am not an alcohol or chemical dependency counselor per se. It’s just there – a lot.
A good thing is that the research on low to high risk drinking is quite good. I know an organization called The Prevention Research Institute that has done a lot of work on coming up with pretty exact numbers of drinks (12 oz can of beer, 4 oz glass of table wine, or shot of distilled spirits each constitute ONE drink) a person might be able to safely consume based on several factors with the biggest factor being genetic background. I am not completely up to date with the stats so I won’t try to be super-exact but to say this. If there is a lot of alcoholism or alcohol problems (DUIs, arrests, bar fights, etc.) in your family of origin, you might need to strongly consider lowering or even eliminating alcohol from your life. Further, if you think about some of the problems you have in your life and you find a connection with drinking (more fights when drinking or more drinking after fights, for example), you also might want to think about cutting back or even eliminating alcohol. I say this because of the research and because of what I see every day. Alcohol is not always a factor but when it is a factor, it is usually a pretty large factor.
I understand fully that there are very certainly people who will read this blog who need to make a change in this area and who are scared about whether or not they even can. I say this to you. Don’t be afraid any more. There are people and organizations out there that can and will help you. Stop believing the lie that your drinking is telling you and get the help you need.
