Dear Friends,

Alcohol is an interesting health topic; one that strikes the heart of many families. While legal, it can have many health and relationship consequences. I choose not to drink alcohol.
Why?
Because my family history suggests that I would have been very good at it…like too good.
 
Yes, like many (most) families, we have relatives that struggled with alcohol abuse. Abuse is hard word because initially it isn’t abuse but when the disease progresses, the person’s will gets taken over by addiction. I figured why tempt fate?

People will ask me if it was hard growing up with an alcoholic father. Truthfully, there were some hard moments. We were fortunate in the fact that my father ended up getting sober through the AA program. So my memories are mostly from when I was very young and my dad was a very loving man.

In fact, after he went through AA and sobered up, he stayed active in the AA program and in his faith. My dad had a stroke and lived in a vegetative state in a nursing home from 59 years old until this death at 69 years old. Upon his passing, I thought his wake would be very poorly attended, given his long time being off the grid.

Boy was I wrong!

For several hours, stranger after total stranger approached my sisters, my mom and I to give condolences and shared:

“Your dad helped save my life in AA.”
 “If it weren’t for your dad’s support, I would be dead from the juice.”
“Your father inspired me to stay dry and it saved my marriage.”
On and on and on. Never had I been prouder to be his son.

There are things you never know about a person until they are gone. The great thing about being in the family of an alcoholic is that I can use that experience to help people who are going through it themselves or have a loved one who is.
 
One thing I always try to convey to people who haven’t’ made it to the other side yet is that it can end up being a total blessing…HUH?! Think about how what you are going through is going to give you the ability to help others get sober.
 
But it doesn’t have to be alcohol, it might be MS, cancer, diabetes, and amputation…you name it, if you have suffered through it, you can help someone else. In fact, it is my belief that supporting others ends up giving you the strength needed to continue helping others. It is like fertilizer for your soul…kinda shitty but makes you grow : )

Make it a goal to improve your life because of your hardships, not letting it ruin your life. In the end you have control over how you let it effect you.

So reach out if you need help and outreach when you have help to give. One thing is for sure, hiding from it isn’t helping the world.

God Bless,
Dr. Dan