Adult Children of Alcoholics - 1623 Words

In the United States, twenty million children are experiencing physical, verbal and emotional abuse from parents who are addicted to alcohol. Growing up in an alcoholic house can leave emotional scars that may last a lifetime. This is tragic because we consider that childhood is the foundation on which our entire lives are fabricated. When a childs efforts to bond with an addicted parent are handicapped, the result is confusion and intense anxiety. In order to survive in a home deficient, of healthy parental love, limits, and consistency, they must develop survival skills or defense mechanisms very early in life. The crippling effects of alcoholism and drug dependency are not confined to the addict alone. The family suffers,†¦show more content†¦With diminishing energy, they doggedly search. Fearful of conflict, they withdraw their love from relationships at the first sign of imperfection. Disillusioned, they withdraw, with deepening depression. Adult Children of Al coholics cling to self-defeating patterns of connecting and communicating, for behaviors learned in dismay do not change easily. Finally, they feel stuck, surrendering any hope of getting off the merry-go-round of despair and disillusionment. Fortunately, there are a number of support groups designed to help adult children of alcoholics identify their problems, and start resolving them. Analytically trained therapists and those who work with adult children of dysfunctional families provide a needed and great service. The most fundamental purpose of psychotherapy with any adult child is to open a hidden, imprisoned, and extremely fragile part of the self, and convince it to allow itself to be touched by another person. However, these patients all fear, that if they open the door to the heart of the self, it will be crushed by the therapist, just as it was nearly crushed by the insensitivity, abuse, or betrayal of the parents. Psychology and Religion prescribe a form of psychotherapy that searches out the hidden heart of the self in order to unify the psyche and allow the spirit to begin a new period of growth. They advocate an explicit clinicalShow MoreRelated Adult Children of Alcoholics Essay1597 Words   |  7 Pages nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;In the United States, twenty million children are experiencing physical, verbal and emotional abuse from parents who ar e addicted to alcohol. Growing up in an alcoholic house can leave emotional scars that may last a lifetime. This is tragic because we consider that childhood is the foundation on which our entire lives are fabricated. When a child’s efforts to bond with an addicted parent are handicapped, the result is confusion and intense anxiety. In order to surviveRead MoreThe Dangers Of Adult Children Of Alcoholics1772 Words   |  8 Pagesbelief that adult children of alcoholics tend to abuse alcohol as the result of bio-genetic composition, and to show instead the evidence that the unpredictable home environment in which alcoholics grow up may be responsible. I will also review the risk for alcohol abuse among and how growing up in a chaotic family environment affect adult children of alcoholics. Families with either one or two parents alcoholic they home life is in consist turmoil. They often have rules the children must followRead MoreAlcoholism and Parenting: Samuel Adams961 Wor ds   |  4 Pages The subject of parents consuming alcohol and how it affects their children is one that has plagued this world since long before the introduction of the first Samuel Adams. Alcohol damages brain cells and can prevent someone from making correct decisions. 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