Many people turn to alcohol consumption as a solution to life’s problems. Did you know that according to the Betty Ford Institute, about one in three children in the U.S. lives with someone who is alcohol or drug addicted? These behaviors have an extremely negative impact on other family members and often those loved ones tend to try to hide the situation, avoid discussing it and lose trust in those around them. Alcoholism is therefore considered a “family disease” because the alcoholic personality has such a huge negative impact on the entire family. In fact, children growing up with an alcoholic or drug addicted parent are two to three times more likely to follow this path later in life.
An alcoholic affects each family member in a different way. Children are often neglected, abused or exposed to domestic violence. They may develop anxiety, nightmares, phobias and depression. Children in these situations often suffer from low self-esteem, feel guilt and sometimes even feel like the alcoholism is their fault.
The spouse to an alcoholic often has to juggle many additional responsibilities that the alcoholic is not tending to. Life becomes more stressful and depression, anger and resentment can build. The spouse is often constantly embarrassed and ashamed and an enabling relationship develops in which the non-alcoholic spouse is constantly covering for the alcoholic one so that friends, family and employers don’t find out how bad the situation really is.
Now there is a simple and easy way to save your entire family and the alcoholic from this addiction. Modern technology has made alcohol awareness classes available to the general public online. It is often easier to encourage a loved one to take the initial step of self-improvement and ultimately acknowledgement of the problem, from the privacy of your own home. With 10 hour online alcohol classes the entire family can sit together and scroll through the course, stopping to discuss issues that they are suffering from. High quality courses can be found online that are designed by a licensed and practicing family psychotherapist. All the information and techniques are completely current and are the same education you would find in many classrooms across the U.S., but without the commute. The convenience continues with the fact that nothing needs to be printed out. The only equipment necessary is a web-based computer and you are good to go.
If you or a family member is suffering from this disease, it’s important for the health and safety of everyone involved that you get help. The best place to start is from the comfort of your own home and on your own schedule any time of the day. There really are no excuses for not trying this path of rehabilitation. There is no public humiliation, no driving, and no timelines to meet. Classes are inexpensive, easy to understand and access, and always available. The only effort the client really has to make is to be willing to take ownership of the problem and be ready to work on it.