Recovery is Not Easy on the Family

Only the beginning, hang on tight.

Putting down the drink is the first step in recovery, but by no means does this alone help the mood swings, the confusion and the angry and frustrating outbursts of the individual in recovery. There is a book by Tian Dayton called, "Emotional Sobriety" that could help you and your husband understand the interpersonal dynamics of recovery.

You stated that your husband initially was afraid of becoming sober out of fear of who he really is. Alcohol takes one's character, personality and values away, leaving in it's wake, emotional pain and turmoil. For the newly sober it can be a nightmare, waking up to all the emotions suppressed by alcohol. Alcohol tamps down the Central Nervous System and when removed, the body goes through a number of changes that have negative effects and usually these symptoms are so intolerable that relapse takes the individual back to drinking to avoid the pain of sobriety and the changes the body has to endure to reach homeostasis. After 40 plus years of drinking his emotional system is dis-regulated. I encourage you to peruse this site and find other stories similar to yours, as there are countless experts that help thousands daily from this web-site.

AA is an organization that helps individuals like your husband set the ground work for emotional healing. These groups support each other during the all phases of recovery. I want to add here that alcoholism is not curable, and facing recovery requires supportive people who have been there and can understand the emotional roller-coaster of recovery. Alcohol changes the landscape of the brain and after one year to 18 months of abstinence the brain can make remarkable changes. Your husband exhibits now, emotions that mimic mental illness, because he's cultivated this disease with his drinking. Alcoholism is a brain disease and support groups like AA and Al-anon help alcoholics and their family cope with, "the new normal".

After 10 years or more of drinking, the individual begins experiencing the physical damage of the disease, as you have now learned that your husband is suffering from cirrhosis of the liver. Our bodies can not operate on a steady diet of poison for years on end. The organs are not forgiving and it's the cumulative damage of all the years of drinking that eventually break it down. The emotional damage from, "stinking thinking", distorted beliefs about self and others, and rigid, inflexible behaviors also tears at the fabric of the family and anyone else that is attached. Years of drinking causes personality changes and AA can be a supportive environment where your husband can talk about his life as an alcoholic and how he can re-script a new life for himself.

This site is an excellent resource for help. I encourage you to use it and to take care of yourself. You stated that you are co-dependent and have enabled him. Let Al-anon help you free yourself from his disease and enable you to find some joy in your own life. Seek out counseling for yourself and begin a personal development journey to keep you in balance. Try to understand what he is going through by finding out what the post-acute withdrawal symptoms to expect and how to treat them. You can be empathetic with him, but gently disagree and don't buy into his ever changing moods. Matching his anger and being a right-fighter is not helpful to anyone. Learn to engage dispassionately and find solutions, rather than staying in the problem. Rely on your family for support, seek respite and solace for yourself. After all, your husband made the choices and decisions to be where he is today. This is his disease, give it back to him.

Jeannie Cameron, LMHC, CAP

Naples, FL

239-732-5959