Addicted to Alcohol!

Hi There,

My brother had a bitter break up when he found that his girlfriend was cheating on him for another guy who is in his friend circle. He was heartbroken and his business was failed. He became an alcohol addict and sometimes he smokes a lot. Our family was very sad to see him in this condition and we need to bring him into normal life. We took him into a nearby de-addiction centre. It has started making some positive changes in him. Even though his urge for drinking alcohol has reduced a little, he still has the tendency. We understood that we need to engage him in some activities or other methods so that he will not remember his past and won't drink alcohol too much. Are there any suggestions to reduce addiction?

After 50+ years of dealing with alcoholics / addicts, some were in my family, I understand what you and your family are going through with your attempt to be helpful. I did the same, but it didn’t work, as it virtually doesn’t work for addicts.

What work for my addicted family members was not enabling them by releasing them with love, which I leaned from Al-Anon Family Groups. The term “enabler or enabling” generally describes someone whose behavior allows an addicted loved one to continue self-destructive patterns of behavior by trying to bail them out, fix them financially, etc. Their behavior continues, because they didn’t accept accountability, and forgetting their past promotes immature addictive behavior.

The bottom line, just like me, the alcoholic / addict had to find their bottom, so they can look-up to the road of recovery. They can ONLY do this “alone” through self -examination. Clearing away the wreckage of one’s past through self-examination is the key to recovery. Alcoholics Anonymous is living proof where millions have recovered.

You need to talk to him first and not immediately send him to rehabilitation centres. He is having a difficult period right now, and many people are trying to get away from problems for a while. You need to help your brother, my friend. He can't do it on his own. When I was addicted to alcohol, I tried to solve this problem because I didn't have any friends or relatives. I was able to find this website -- https://www.theluckiestclub.com/join-community, thanks to which I was able to attend Daily Online Alcohol Recovery Meetings. After 3 months, I was able to stop drinking, and I think because smart people talked to me, that changed my life.