👩 I am a 60 year old mother of 7 who was born in the West of Scotland. All my life, I have seen how alcohol abuse affects everyone in the vicinity of the alcoholic and even those further away. As a child, the family get together involved alcohol and ended in arguments and sometimes a physical confrontation or fight.
Alcohol ruined my childhood, my teenage years and for the longest time I was insecure, anxious and depressed. I just had no idea until much later in life.
I lost my grand-father, my uncle at around 50 and my son of 34 to alcoholism. My father got sober 40 years ago and I will be forever grateful to Alcoholics Anonymous and my step-mother for him being alive today and still fit and active.
When my son died I was angry, confused and guilty. I felt I had failed him and caused his alcoholism. I wanted to ban alcohol, destroy the companies who make it and shut down the shops who sell it. How naieve was I? :)
I had attended support meetings as a teenager and tried again as an adult to try to find the way to cure my son. I didn't want support or sympathy, I wanted answers. I wanted to know why and how I could help and what I could do about it all.
Unfortunately I learned the answer was not a lot. Talking to my father helped a lot but many people don't have the luxury of a sober alcoholic in the family. I undertook a Counselling Course and have my Level 3 Counselling in Drugs and Alcohol Abuse. While it was very interesting and I learned a lot it is just for my own educational purposes.
I looked online and found lots of charities who lobby governments, Healthcare websites who offer advice on cutting down and stopping drinking, coounselling and rehab centres who offer their services but nowhere could I find a group of people like me. Even Al-Anon fell short of my needs. This website is a result of that frustration and feeling that I was the only one with these problems.
I want family and friends of alcoholics not to care about telling their story and worry about the stigma involved, the old sterotypes and that it might somehow be their fault. I want a place where we can lay down the burden of guilt, find the best way to help those we love and come together in the knowledge that we are all just trying our best. I hope you can join me