ACOA Mutual help groups, perceived status benefits, and well-being: A test with adult children of alcoholics with personal substance abuse problems.

A field experiment was conducted to examine the potential effects of mutual help group participation on perceived status benefits, depression, and substance use among 82 adult children of alcoholics (ACOA’s; aged 22-60 yrs) with personal substance abuse problems.

Participants were randomly assigned to attend either ACOA-specific mutual help group meetings or substance abuse education classes during the initial month that they were enrolled in a residential treatment program for low-income substance abusers.

Analyses were based on assessments made at baseline, a 1-month posttest, and a 6-month follow-up.

Results indicate that participation in the mutual help group promoted perceived status benefits, which in turn led to reductions in depression and substance use.

These findings have clear implications for consumers of ACOA groups and can inform research on the social psychological underpinnings of different types of mutual help groups.

Kingree, J. B; Thompson, Martie. Mutual help groups, perceived status benefits, and well-being: A test with adult children of alcoholics with personal substance abuse problems. American Journal of Community Psychology. Vol 28(3), Jun 2000, 325-342.

The Complete ACOA Sourcebook: Adult Children of Alcoholics at Home, at Work and in Love by Janet Woititz Read more about this title…

• 12-Step Recovery Theory And Application
• AA And Al-Anon
• AA And The Disease Concept Of Alcoholism
• Adolescent Children Of Alcoholics
• Al-Anon Offers New Life
• Alcohol Consumption In Patients Pancreatitis
• Alcohol Metabolization
• Alcohol Related Brain Injury
• Alcoholic Brain Damage And Thiamine
• Alcoholic Jealousy
• Alcoholics Anonymous
• Alcoholics Can Benefit From Al-Anon
• Alcoholism And Personality Disorders
• Alcoholism Is Also Genetic
• Alcoholism Myths
• Anti-Craving Naltrexone Injection Reduce
• Benefits Of Alcoholics Anonymous
• Beyond Codependency
• Brief-TSF Description
• Children With Alcohol Dependent Fathers
• Counselor Characteristics
• Craving Reduction
• Effective Professional Interventions
• Effects Of Gambling Addiction
• Free Inhalant Abuse Education
• Just For Today Card
• Mindfulness Can Help Recovery
• Prescription Drug Overdose Becomes Big Killer
• Process Of Recovery For Alcoholic Women
• Research Evidence For TSF  .
• Return To Drinking After Liver Transplantation For Alcoholic Liver Disease
• Role Of Significant Others
• Screening Can Decrease Teen Risk Behaviour
• Sleep Problems Affect Alcoholism Recover
• Spirituality And Helping In Alcoholics Anonymous
• Strategies For Dealing With Common Problems
• Strategies For Dealing With Denial
• Sweet Tooth And Alcoholism
• Symptoms Of Alcoholism
• Teen Drinking Leads To Risk Of Alcoholism And Social Exclusion
• The Aging Alcoholic
• The Classification Of Alcoholics
• The Dry Drunk
• Thyroid Function In Depression And Alcohol Abuse
• TSF Description
• Twelve Step Recovery Is Spiritual
• Twelve Steps To Recovery From Burnout
• What About Partners Of Alcoholics?

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Psychopathology of Children with Alcohol Dependent Fathers.

SUMMARY; Objective: In this study, we aimed to research cognitive, behavioral and psychopathological differences between children of fathers with alcohol dependency (ACOA’s) and children of fathers without alcohol dependency (non-ACOA’s).

Method of research: A battery of psychological tests was performed on 46 children of 34 alcoholic fathers and 36 children of 34 non-alcoholic fathers, between the ages of 6 and 16 years were evaluated. Two groups were matched with each other on the basis of socioeconomic level of family, age and gender of children.

Results: The findings of this research indicated that children of alcoholic fathers had a higher incidence of psychopathology.

Frequency of DSM-IV Diagnoses in the Study and Control Groups.

Teacher Report collaboration scores were higher in research group.

It was also found that mothers in research group had higher level of psychiatric symptoms.

Conclusion: Alcohol dependent patients are an easily available group for clinicians.

It can be more realistic to treat alcohol dependency as a family disease because of associated psychiatric problems in children and mothers.

In addition to alcohol dependent fathers, including mothers and children in the psychiatric assessment and treatment plans may become a preventive step for the child.

Research report; Sadriye Ebru ÇENGEL KÜLTÜR, M. Fatih ÜNAL, ?eniz ÖZUSTA. Psychopathology of Children with Alcohol Dependent Fathers. Turkish Journal of Psychiatry, 2006; 17(1)

Brief-TSF is designed to include all family members where appropriate

What symptoms of alcoholism does Brief-TSF address?

Many signs and symptoms of alcohol abuse may not be apparent even to a close relative or friend.

However, some can be easily seen and some may be hidden by other symptoms; or denied by the drinker.

The Brief-TSF course describes the signs and symptoms of alcohol abuse and alcoholism and provides ways of uncovering them.

Medical symptoms of alcoholism.

The medical symptoms of alcoholism are;

• Hangovers,
• blackouts,
• injuries,
• lethargy,
• weight gain or loss,
• poor coordination,
• high blood pressure,
• impotence,
• vomiting,
• nausea,
• cirrhosis of the liver,
• pancreas disease,
• brain damage, and
• tolerance to alcohol.

Psychological signs of alcohol dependence.

The psychological symptoms of alcohol dependence are;

• Poor concentration,
• sleep problems,
• cloudy thinking,
• depression,
• anxiety/stress,
• aggression,
• loss of control of drinking and
• denial of the effects of alcohol.

Social aspects of alcohol abuse

The social aspects of alcohol abuse are;

• Difficulties and arguments with family or friends,
• difficulties performing at work or home,
• unemployment,
• withdrawal from friends and social activities,
• legal problems and
• financial insecurity.

Spiritual affects of alcohol addiction.

The spiritual affect of alcohol addiction are;

• Dysthymia or mild chronic depression,
• restlessness,
• irritability,
• discontentment,
• self-centeredness,
• insecurity,
• self-pitying,
• resentful,
• fearful and
• feeling useless.

Partner Brief-TSF

Brief-TSF includes intervention with significant others in an alcohol dependents life. Significant others may be

• partners of alcoholics,
• children of alcoholics,
• adult children of alcoholics,
• parents of alcoholics,
• grand parents of alcoholics and
• work colleagues.

Partner Brief-TSF has similar goals and methods to Brief-TSF. The overall goal is referral of the significant other to Al-anon or Alateen.

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Partner Brief-TSF

Brief-TSF includes intervention with significant others in an alcohol dependents life. Significant others may be family members such as partners of alcoholics, children of alcoholics, adult children of alcoholics, parents of alcoholics, grand parents of alcoholics and work colleagues. These are sometimes known as co-dependents of alcoholism.

Partner Brief-TSF has similar goals and methods to Brief-TSF. The overall goal is referral of the significant other to Al-anon or Alateen. This is achieved by disturbing the denial of enabling behaviors, promotion of selfhood and making contact with an Al-anon peer sponsor.

• 12-Step Recovery Theory and Application
• AA attendance was best predictor of abstinence
• AA Fact File
• AA Membership
• Al-Anon offers new life
• Alcohol Abuse in Older People
• Alcohol Metabolization
• Alcoholics Anonymous
• Alcoholics can benefit from Al-Anon
• Alcoholism and Personality Disorders
• Alcoholism is also Genetic
• ALCOHOLISM MYTHS
• Anti-craving Naltrexone Injection Reduce
• Asking about drinking
• Beyond Codependency
• Brief-TSF Description
• Combined AA & Treatment for Addicted Physicians
• COUNSELOR CHARACTERISTICS
• Craving Reduction
• Dual dependence
• EFFECTIVE PROFESSIONAL INTERVENTIONS
• Effects of gambling addiction
• Free Inhalant Abuse Education
• Lesbian Alcoholics were Unloved
• Lesbians, Alcoholism & Depression
• Management of substance-abuse disorders
• Process of Recovery from Alcoholism
• Return to Drinking After Liver Transplantation
• ROLE OF SIGNIFICANT OTHERS
• Strategies for Dealing with Common Problems
• Strategies for Dealing With Denial
• Symptoms of alcoholism
• The Aging Alcoholic
• THE DRY DRUNK
• Treatment and twelve-step strategies
• TSF Description
• Twelve Step recovery is spiritual
• TWELVE STEPS TO RECOVERY FROM BURNOUT

Al-Anon offers new life to families of alcoholics

Alcoholism touched every aspect of Brenda’s family life. She lost a father to alcoholism, and her brother developed the disease. She also married a problem drinker. They had a large family, and her husband left the job of parenting to her.

"I had out-of-control children at home," she says. "There was no structure–no rules, no bedtime schedules. It was just chaos." Brenda tried to structure the household but found that she couldn’t do it alone. Some of her children developed behavior problems at school and eventually abused alcohol themselves.

For nearly a decade, Brenda searched for support. She went to parent meetings at school. She went to marriage counseling. She went to churches and Bible study groups. Finally, a therapist suggested Al-Anon.

"I remember listening to people at my very first Al-Anon meeting and thinking, this is where I belong,"

"I remember listening to people at my very first Al-Anon meeting and thinking, this is where I belong," Brenda recalls. "The stories I was hearing there were about the very kinds of things happening in my life."

Al-Anon offers free and confidential support for anyone affected by an alcoholic or problem drinker. This includes parents, grandparents, spouses, partners, coworkers, and friends. Alateen, a part of Al-Anon, is a recovery program for young people impacted by a loved one’s alcoholism.

Founded in 1951 by the wives of two Alcoholics Anonymous members, Al-Anon is based on AA’s Twelve Steps. There are no dues and no fees. Rather than relying on mental health professionals, members lead self-help meetings in a spirit of mutual help. The purpose is to share their hope, strength, and experience in dealing with an alcoholic loved one.

It works. Today more than 26,000 Al-Anon groups exist in 115 countries.

Al-Anon begins with the principle that alcoholism is a family disease. And those who care most about the alcoholic are affected the most.

Al-Anon literature compares life with an alcoholic to a drama where people develop stereotyped, almost scripted, roles. Their behaviors center on the alcoholic and are dominated by:

• Obsession–going to great lengths to stop the alcoholic’s drinking, such as searching the house for hidden stashes of liquor, secretly pouring drinks down the drain, or listening continually for the sound of opening beer cans.
• Anxiety–worrying constantly about the effects of the alcoholic’s drinking on the children, the bills, and the family’s future.
• Anger–feelings of resentment that result from being repeatedly deceived and hurt by the alcoholic.
• Denial–ignoring, making excuses for, or actively hiding the facts about the alcoholic’s behavior.
• Guilt–family members’ belief that they are somehow to blame for the alcoholic’s behavior.
• Insanity–defined in Al-Anon as "doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results."

With help from their peers, Al-Anon members learn an alternative–detachment with love. This happens when family members admit that they did not cause their loved one’s alcoholism; nor can they control or cure it. Sanity returns to family life when members focus on taking care of themselves, changing the things that they can, and letting go of the rest.

As a result, alcoholic family members are no longer shielded from the consequences of their own behavior. This, more than anything else, can help them face the facts about their addiction and admit their need for help.

"Since I’ve been in Al-Anon, my life has totally changed," says Brenda. "I filed for divorce and set up my own household. Now my children are getting a lot more of their needs met with a lot more stability in their lives, and I’m a much happier parent. Since I moved out, my son has been on the honor roll at school and my daughter has had the best two years of her life."

To learn more about Al-Anon go online to http://www.al-anon-alateen.org/. A basic text, "How Al-Anon Works for Families and Friends of Alcoholics," explains the Al-Anon program in detail.

Alive & Free is a health column that provides information to help prevent substance abuse problems and address such problems. It is created by Hazelden, a nonprofit agency based in Center City, Minn. "Copyright © 2003 Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved."

How Al-Anon Works for Families & Friends of Alcoholics

Recovering alcoholics can benefit from Al-Anon

R.J. has been clean and sober and an active member of Alcoholics Anonymous for 20 years. He lives the Twelve Step program each day, one day at a time. He attends AA meetings faithfully, reads the literature, meditates, and asks his Higher Power for guidance. He has told his story many times and listened with loving acceptance to the stories of others, as AA members are encouraged to do. He thought nothing about addiction could surprise him at this point in his life and recovery.

Then he discovered his 20-year old son had a drug and alcohol problem. "I felt so stupid," he said. "I know this stuff, and it never entered my mind that my son was using. He was the good boy, the one who got straight A’s. He knows I’m a recovering alcoholic and that his mother (my ex-wife) is a practicing one. I thought knowing about us would keep him sober. But he got to a point where he seemed paralyzed; he couldn’t stay on track. One day I said, sort of in passing, ‘You act like you’re on drugs.’ He said, ‘I am.’ When I asked what kind and he said he’d tried ‘just about everything,’ I was stunned. I didn’t know what to do."

Not knowing what to do, R.J. did nothing the night of his son’s revelation except listen. "I told him I wouldn’t preach or yell, but I asked him if I could tell him when I heard him giving me the ‘standard’ addict’s lines like, ‘I have it under control.’ He said I could, and we talked until 4 a.m."

Next, R.J. sought help from others. His first impulse was to issue an edict telling his son not to come around until he got straight, but a counselor at work cautioned that things could get worse if his son felt abandoned, with no safe places or safe people to turn to. "She suggested I establish clear rules so he wouldn’t come here high or use here, but let him know that I love him and I’d do whatever it takes to help him when he’s ready."

When a long-time friend (also a recovering alcoholic) suggested going to Al-Anon, R.J. said he was "blown away" by the idea. Like many recovering alcoholics, he had always viewed Al-Anon as a Twelve Step mutual-help group for "them"–the family and friends of the alcoholic–and AA as the Twelve Step group for "us"–the alcoholics who affected their lives.

R.J. and his friend went to an Al-Anon meeting where they were the only men. He confessed that he was very nervous at first but said the familiar Twelve-Step meeting structure eased his anxiety. "Then I said, ‘I’m an alcoholic–the reason you’re here–but now I need help.’ It broke the ice, and they welcomed us with so much warmth and generosity."

Because it is not unusual to have more than one problem drinker in a family, it makes sense that recovering alcoholics can also be affected by another’s alcohol or drug use, and that they could benefit from the fellowship and support of Al-Anon. Except for one word in Step Twelve where Al-Anon has substituted the word "others" for AA’s word "alcoholics," the Steps of the two groups are identical.

"At AA we learn that we’re powerless over alcohol. At Al-Anon you discover that you’re powerless over others," explained R.J. He thought the Al-Anon members he met also gained by meeting two recovering alcoholics who embrace the same Twelve Step philosophy they do.

R.J. said it was a profound experience to view addiction "from the other side of the fence" at Al-Anon. "It struck such a chord when a woman there told me I’ve got my story, but my son is still writing his. I can tell him about my path and show him a path exists, but I can’t walk it for him."

Al-Anon meetings are held in 115 countries, and there are over 24,000 Al-Anon groups worldwide. For more information visit http://www.al-anon.alateen.org/.

Alive & Free is a health column that provides information to help prevent substance abuse problems and address such problems. It is created by Hazelden, a nonprofit agency based in Center City, Minn. "Copyright © 2003 Hazelden Foundation. All rights reserved." Any other use of the Web site or the information contained here is strictly prohibited.

At Amazon; How Al-Anon Works for Families & Friends of Alcoholics

Beyond Codependency: And Getting Better All the Time

By Melody Beattie

Review By Neal J. Pollock (VA USA)

While I have not read Melody Beattie’s other works, I thought this a very valuable book in and of itself. It sheds much light on the topic and helped me to become sensitized to the obvious signs of codependency in people. By doing this, it enabled me to avoid situations where I could become codependent in a relationship.

I think that, as in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, there are levels of psychological situations and/or problems. Thus, there may be people inherently inclined towards codependency, but there may also be people who are thrust into it due to the demands of others. The latter may find this book incredibly helpful in avoiding such relationships and in helping their dependent person seek real help vs. codependency from another person. There are also a number of great quotes by the author in this book. A few are:

p. 70: "It’s hard to feel compassion for someone while that person is using or victimizing us."

p. 71: "If everything looks black, we’ve probably got our eyes shut."

p. 164: "Who we’re in a relationship with says as much about us as it does about them." Earnie Tucker (quoted by Melody Beattie)

Codependency is not something to make light of, it’s as much (if not more) the codependent’s problem as the dependent’s. As Caroline Casey humorously noted in "Making the Gods Work for You" (Harmony Books NY 1998), on page 72:
"What do codependents see when they die? Someone else’s life flashes before their eyes."

This is literally a life-changing book for codependents.

Reviewer: A reader

Once Melody Beattie’s Codependent No More has been "digested", Beyond Codependency helps to move the recovering codependent past the hurt and on to the business of literally changing behaviors and making a better life. I absolutely recommend this book above any others to recovering codependents.