Good for you another great story of how another way can work for some and is much needed. My son took Campral (?sp) It also stopped the urge and he quit drugs and alcohol.

AA should never be involved with medical issues.

many addicts need anti depressants for that lack of seratonin transfer—some need anti anxiety medicine.

The stats tell us a very high % of addicts have psychological underlying issues….manic depressive-bi polar-anxiety disorder -ptsd-clinicaal depression it goes on and on……..

I always tell others if you go the medical way the addict has to have a full physical and psych eval after at least 3 days inpatient to get thru Dts. I had my son tested for HIV-hepatitis-everything under the son—-eye exam—-psych eval…..you cannot do it alone.

and boy is it hard to find a Doc who wants to treat addicts!!!!

What a sad story—I loved my Grandmother so much I just can’t imagine that both of you lost out on a special relationship.

I do agree that if you have small children around it makes the situation different for all.

Unfortunatly most have families and many have small children.Thats the cycle of it all.

I am sure your parents suffered because they did all they could—it was not their fault they didn’t cause it,

Actually it shows what kind of people you come from that they would try the very best they could to get her help.

The whole point here is there are choices now—

there didn’t used to be-

now that medical science is starting to  treat addiction like the disease it is and educate the public

maybe that will give Hope that sometime things do not have to end badly.

you are so angry I can tell someone who was an addict has already robbed you and hurt you badly.

When I said ”afraid” I meant more damage can be done by drinking than by smoking a ciggie thats all.

I did not bring my son into this nor would I wish anyone elses family to have to go thru what most of us her have been thru.

We all share this Earth —if there are serious issues going on around us they affet everyone in one way or another sooner or later it all trickles down eventually.

Why are you so angry? I sure hope there are no addicts in your line of fire-but I am guessing there is or has been.

Yes I suppose you are right there is money involved at a certain level. I myself paid 5000 for my son to go 3 weeks to a treatment center.

Insurance covered nothing. But it did cover his medication—his MD visits and Psych Visits when we went in a different direction than AA.

On a street level you can walk into an AA meeting and no one has to pay—most of the books are given freely—so it is better than nothing.

With all the new medical beakthrough with medication and disease -in the future a combination of both will help.

you must have me confused wuth someone else my son has been sober for over four years now with medication. By talking about smoking I only meant to try an give others an idea of a craving per say.

IT IS YOU PROBLEM—-it is everyones.

No one said pay an addict to stop==just give them the time to get well where they do not lose all they have and can support their children.

It becomes your problems when they hit your child riding his bike down the street—or they leave their kids unattended-or rob you for money or even worse things—that is the difference I am not afraid of you smoking—But I am afraid of you if you are an addict—there is no comparing the 2.

Medical Science has reported that the brain of an alcoholic/addict is different from a straight person. Genetically you may be predisposed.

My son felt exactly the way you wrote-he didn’t want to sit in a room full of addicts and talk about addiction.

That did not work for him not AA——- but 1-1 counceling daily with a psych-weekly testing and partnering with an MD who treats alcoholics.

I do not believe alcoholic think anyone is beneath them—if they are an addict they have seen and experienced a nightmare of a life(?)

AA may work for others-they have been around a long time-so they are needed. They do not benifit monitarily from meetings—they are all free,

I hope one day we will treat them as they should be and life will be better for everyone—

they need 6 months in a detox unit-where they still get a stipend of moneyto help with their families etc…

Many can’t go more than 3 weeks because they have a home and family. Work should not hold it against them.

They sould get free care all around we give it to lots of others in this country-some who are not even citizens.

Addiction can be stopped—

I do not know about cured,

it is like smoking(which I did for years)

I haven’t had a ciggie in 2 years but if I picked ne up right now I would slip back to a pack a day overnight.

check out the HBO series online called ADDICTION……my feeling is—

get the info out there…

.maybe you will be the one the medication works for—

maybe not-

-but my God wouldn’t you just want to try everything you could?

Addicts are desperate we have to have what they need to stop drinking and then years of psych to heal their minds and bodies.

Addicts also have the  negative images in their heads of things they did while they were using—I have heard many horror stories—

they have to live with that.

I was going to write and apologise today thinking maybe I had been too rough here—it is so nice to meet intelligent women to share with.

Sorry I hogged the page so much -it is just something close to my heart—I remember the pain.

She was 13-he gave her drugs/alcohol and had anal sex with her.

Yes he needs to come home and pay the price.

I am also pissed at her obvious stage mother who would leave her alone with this creep at Jack Niclesons home—

would you leave your 13 year old there?

Mr Polanski is very talented at what he does-no doubt about it—and he has had his share of sufferring with his wifes and babies murder

BUT

If that were my Brother/Son/Father they would already be in jail—money talks!

This does not hurt me at all—I hurt for you. All of us have been where you are at-feeling those feeling you are having.

The day that my son assaulted me physically-I looked in his eyes and saw pure evil-it was then I thought -I have totally lost him/or he has lost himself.

While they are using/drinking they are sociopaths and malicious-most of them.

That is what I meant prior about underlying causes for drinking. That went un-noticed and un addressed possibly.

You cannot control how your family deals with him -but you yourself need to learn to live with this without it ripping you to shreds.

You can press charges aginst him for ”elder abuse” if he is abusing your parents—that way YOU would go to the hearing and NOT drop charges like others may.

Your brother possibly has been hurt out there but he has survived.

Remember he is your brother —remember him as your brother before the drinking—that part of him is still inside.

When he is gone you will take it hard if you are filled with anger towards him.

Save yourself first-It almost sounds like you are frustrated there is nothing you can do to help him and no one else is willing to help him in the right way. I remember that feeling. It consumed me and made me sick.

I wish YOU peace.

I care about everyone who has been through what we have-it is the last thing I think about before I close my eyes at night.I remember all the sleepless nights with worry.

Your daughter is high Functioning? I suppose that might  even be worse?My next door neighbor drank and was an alcoholic most of his life with a very high position in a company..he was also very personable and friendly. He decided himself one day that he would quit and he went to AA and he did .He was ready/ He stayed sober the rest of his life and never drank again and also worked as a concelor in a detox once he retired from his company job.

Funny thing is (not really funny) he was the most uptight- miserable-mean- man after he stopped drinking

and was very controlling…..Isn’t that strange?