Alcoholism Midterm Report -- Introduction
It was a rainy Wednesday afternoon and little Tommy was struggling to cross the 
slippery puddle- filled streets. The crossing guard at the corner felt a tug at 
her leg and it was Tommy waiting to cross. He waited patiently at the corner 
until traffic seemed to clear. The crossing guard began to lead Tommy across the 
street when out of nowhere a car sped around the corner and without 
acknowledging the crossing pedestrians, ended little Tommyşs life. Tommyşs 
parents were called at work and notified of the horrible accident. Through all 
the gory details they received the same awful truth that is heard by millions 
every year, Tommy had been killed by a drunk driver.
Alcoholism is an epidemic in America that affects the lives of many. Alcoholism, 
as a disease, affects the individual, the family, and society as a whole. 
Families are torn apart, domestic violence occurs, and innocent bystandersş 
lives can be changed forever, just like little Tommyşs. Drunk driving is just 
one of the many issues involving the abuse of alcohol. Alcohol abuse can lead to 
further drug and substance dependence. On the individual, alcohol damages bodily 
processes and organs, and affects personality and temperament. An approach to 
treating this serious illness is group therapy and individual counseling. The 
severity of the problem and the willingness of the patient will determine the 
extent of treatment he or she will undergo.
Though there are many aspects of alcoholism, a major issue at hand is whether or 
not alcoholism is a genetically inherited disease. Through research studies and 
surveys, it is evident that alcoholism is, in fact, genetically inherited. 
Genetic makeup is not the only factor, however. Environmental influences can 
foster genes and motivate a person to drink. Many people drink due to a 
neurological imbalance (which causes a psychological disorder). Others use 
alcohol as an outlet to their daily stresses. There is even a group of people 
who become alcoholics with an unknown motive. Alcoholism is a disease with many 
dimensions. This disorder begins as early as childhood and elevates throughout 
adolescence to its prime stage in adulthood. The early years are the crucial 
determination point. If a child grows up with constant exposure to alcohol, they 
will most likely pattern their behavior after the role model. This is how the 
whole cycle continues. It is unfortunate that so many Americans are affected by 
this disease and they are not even aware of it. Treatments are available for 
those individuals who are willing to seek help for themselves. 
Depression, anxiety, anger, or stress. These are all common unwanted personality 
traits that we experience at one time or another. However, the likelihood that 
we experience these traits is nearly doubled when alcohol is involved. Alcohol 
inhibits not only our daily bodily functions but our mind as well. Alcoholism 
leads to times of withdrawal and low self esteem. It can take our character and 
change it without us even knowing it. It manipulates the way we think and the 
way we react in different situations. Our personality is who we are and who we 
are known as. Alcoholism takes that personality, corrupts it, and turns us into 
the person we never thought weşd become. As the alcohol becomes more important 
and necessary in an alcoholicşs life he will find himself unable to any longer 
answer the question of who he is but will rather find himself answering 
questions such as who has he become. 
Peer pressure is a major influence on the consumption of alcohol. Legally a 
person must be over twenty-one to drink alcohol. Those types of people feel the 
pressure that should drink, but so do the young adults in high school. The main 
group that I will research is that of the drinkers under twenty-one. Everybody 
that grew up in a şnormal American high schoolş knows what itşs like to feel the 
effects of peer pressure. It may not just be on beer and alcohol, it may be in a 
type of sport, or anything. In my section of this paper I will tell you how 
adolescents start drinking, and possibly how they obtain it. Drinking has become 
a normal topic of discussion for people under twenty-one, and I will tell you 
why young adults drink and what you should do to try to discourage it. 
Drunk driving is a very serious problem. It is the leading cause of 
unintentional injuries deaths, and the number one killer or young people in our 
country. This is a problem that requires a lot of work and needs immediate 
attention. Some of the recommended strategies include changing the social norm 
to make alcohol impaired driving socially unacceptable, limiting alcohol 
availability among under-aged youth, alcohol service training for those who sell 
and serve alcohol, early treatment and rehabilitation programs, offering 
alternative transportation programs for those of legal drinking age, and 
increasing the perception of risk for arrest for alcohol-impaired driving. Some 
of these strategies are being carried out and the numbers of drunk drivers has 
decreased dramatically in the past few years. More work needs to be done though 
and everybody needs to help out. Drunk driving is a very serious problem and 
with hard work and determination it can be stopped. 
The boy in the second row sticks his tongue out at the teacher as she turns to 
write on the chalkboard. şHe is such a trouble maker!ş the teacher thinks after 
seeing him through the corner of her eye. But is the boy really bad? Maybe he 
has problems at home that result in him acting up in class the way he often 
does. This young boy exhibits signs of a scapegoat., one of the roles kids may 
take on when they live in an alcoholic household. When someone has a drinking 
problem it not only affects his or her life but also the lives of his family 
members. 
Children are affected by the alcoholic parentşs behavior greatly. They take on 
roles such as the scapegoat, the hero, the lost child, and the mascot. All of 
these roles help the child deal with the problems and take emphasis off of the 
parent. The spouse of the alcoholic also takes on a role known as the enabler. 
This role player makes excuses for the alcoholic in areas such as jobs and 
social life. Family members feel normal emotions but to a greater extent than a 
normal family would feel. They feel anger, fear, guilt, sadness, confusion, 
embarrassment, and isolation all resulting from living in such a destructive 
environment. Family members are forced to second guess what the alcoholic would 
want done and they are often punished if their guess is not correct. 
Self esteem diminishes, friends may disappear, jobs may be lost, and itşs all 
due to trying to cover up the alcoholicşs disease. Children of alcoholics suffer 
in school as well. Not only do they not have as much time to study and do their 
homework but they may live in fear of someone discovering the truth about the 
dysfunctional family they live in. The family is affected by the alcoholicşs 
behavior more than most people think. 
Helping an alcoholic can be very difficult, especially since their problems vary 
from one person to another. There are a number of treatments for alcoholics. 
Such as Alcoholics Anonymous, which are meetings that help alcoholics with their 
recovery. There are also various helping agencies for example, emergency rooms, 
psychiatric wards, detoxification facilities, mental hospitals, and private 
physicians. All of these agencies help problem drinkers in various ways. In all 
of these agencies different treatment methods are used by the therapists. 
Aversive conditioning, hypnotherapy, group psychodrama, and also lysergide 
therapy are just some the treatments used. These treatments can help some 
problem drinkers with their difficulties. Inpatient care or residential 
treatment is also used by a number of alcoholics. Inpatient care is one of the 
best treatments, since the personnel are recovered problem drinkers. Outpatient 
care, on the other hand, are alcoholism clinics which help problem drinkers 
using various treatment methods. The primary treatment of most alcoholism 
clinics is group therapy can be conducted in many ways. There are many places 
where problem drinkers can receive help for their problems. Alcoholism clinics 
can be found everywhere. The number of all the alcoholism and psychiatric 
clinics is increasing tremendously. In all the helping agencies various 
treatments are given to the problem drinkers. All of these treatments can help 
problem drinkers to alter their way of life.


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