Sunday 25 November 2018

WALK IN DRY PLACES #essentialsofrecovery

WHAT OUGHT TO WORK-BUT DOESN’T

Understanding Alcoholism


One of the old theories about alcoholism was that we drink because we had deep psychological problems. It followed that if we could clear up these problems, we would no longer need to drink excessively.

Another theory was that staying dry for a long period of time would dislodge one’s alcoholic tendencies. After a certain length of sobriety, we would be able to return to normal drinking.

Both theories sound plausible, but in practice neither has worked. Many of us came to grief trying to make these ideas work.

What we eventually learn about psychological problems is that they may intensify our troubles, but they are not the real cause of our alcoholism. The cause may be rooted in some physical problem that enables us to achieve unusual highs from drinking. We also know that one drink acts as a trigger for more drinking—at least for us.

Our answer has been, first and foremost, to eliminate the first drink. Even if it doesn’t square with theories, it works.

No matter how long I’ve been sober, one drink would be deadly to me. Accepting that fact enabled me to get sober after finding that theories about my problem weren’t working.


© 1996 by Hazelden Foundation
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