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. Having alcohol in one’s system can lead to violent and very dangerous rampages, and adding children to this mix is extremely harmful to them not only physically but also emotionally. Dr. Michael Windle explains that “alcohol abuse can interfere with parenting skills and marital relations, thereby affecting adolescent development and adjustment” (Effects on Children of Alcohol Dependent Parents). Under the influence of an alcohol dependent parent, children will often grow up in a callous and emotionally unavailable environment that can lead to a dangerous lifestyle as an adult such as difficulty socializing, criminal activity, and a dependency on alcohol much like their parent.
When a child lives in a household with a parent or authoritative figure who consumes alcohol to an excess, it is likely that they are to receive abuse. According to various studies, “up to 90% of child abuse cases involve at least one parent being an alcoholic” (Children Affected by Alcoholic Parents 1). With abuse comes many psychological problems. A child can become very introverted and refuse any help from their friends, family, or teachers. This becomes a problem when the child matures into an adult and has many concealed feelings and memories of the past.
It is unhealthy for someone to contain feelings because they then have a risk of being exerted on something or someone who has not particularly done anything to deserve it. This type of behavior can lead to depression, anxiety, and, in s...
... middle of paper ...
... This is the reason why alcoholism is so difficult to treat; because there is no one they trust who can help them get over the rough patch.
Drinking alcohol is a very serious situation that could potentially damage a family based solely on the choice of one person; it is a very selfish act and should not be done to an excess. Overindulging in alcohol can severely affect the children of the alcoholic. The child may become embarrassed and refuse help from others, they may become involved with criminal activities when older, and they most likely will develop a drinking problem themselves at a young age. When sons and daughters become involved with a parent’s drinking problem, it becomes more than just a personal issue for the parent. It is important to think of others also when making life-changing decision especially when it could potentially make or break a family.
Brendan Behan, an Irish poet and writer, stated, “One drink is too many for me and a thousand not enough.” For alcoholics, it is hard to consume one alcoholic beverage and after drinking ten beverages, they feel as though it is not enough and should continue drinking. This is a situation that occurs too often and is a real struggle to overcome. In fact, variations of Behan’s quote have been used in alcohol recovery programs worldwide. But why must some alcoholics use his quote to understand the power that alcohol has over them? There are three contributing factors that lead to alcoholism - mental health, genetic structure, and social environment.
Children all over the world are exposed to the many risk, just like Dave. Dave did not face any biological risk factors like low-birth weight, being a premature baby, or prenatal alcohol exposure. However, Dave was faced with many environmental risks. One risk is the fact that he lived in a household with two alcoholics, this put Dave at even more risk of having emotional problems than children that live with nonalcoholic parents. According to the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry’s Fact for Families page, “One in five adult Americans have lived with an alcoholic relative while growing up.” They go on to state, “Alcoholism runs in families, and children of alcoholics are four times more likely than other children to become alcoholics themselves. Compounding the psychological impact of being raised by a parent who is suffering from alcohol abuse is the fact that most children of alcoholics have experienced some form of neglect or abuse.”
Consumption of alcohol affects children in many negative ways. Jeannette Walls and her siblings have faced an abundance of obstacles thrown at them by their father. Despite his major flaws, Jeannette still views him as the person she used to admire. But because of
In the article “Children of Alcoholics” produced by the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, the author explains the negative effect of parental alcoholism on their children’s emotional wellbeing, when he writes, “Children with alcoholic parents are more likely to experience symptoms of anxiety and/or depression, antisocial behavior, relationship difficulties, behavioral problems, and/or alcohol abuse. One recent study finds that children of drug-abusing fathers have the worst mental health issues (Children of Alcoholics 1). Walls reflects upon her childhood experiences in which her father would become drunk and not be able to control his behavior, as she writes, “After working on the bottle for a while, Dad turned into an angry-eyed stranger who threw around furniture and threatened to beat up Mom or anyone else who got in his way. When he’d had his fill of cussing and hollering and smashing things up, he’d collapse” (Walls 23). The Walls children, who frequently encounter their father’s abusive behavior, are affected mentally in the same way that national studies have shown. Jeanette Walls describes how, after drinking, her father’s behavior becomes cruel and intolerable through his use of profanity, threats, and angry, even violent, actions. In a conventional family, a parent has the responsibility of being a role model to influence their children in a positive way as they develop. Unfortunately, in the Walls family and other families with alcoholic parents, children are often subject to abuse and violence, which places them at risk, not only physically, but mentally. Rex’s irrational behavior when he is drunk is detrimental to the children’s upbringing, causing them to lose trust in their parents, have significantly lower self-esteem and confidence, and feel insecure. Rex’s behavior contributes to Jeanette’s
The strongest and most influential person who modeled alcohol use in my childhood was a male relative. I was not completely aware of many of these impacts until adolescence. As a child, I did not know what alcoholism was, I just assumed that the Beefeater Gin stench coming from my relative was his cologne. However, as I grew older and was exposed to a greater variety of people and circumstances, I slowly became aware of alcoholism. I began to incorporate the new experiences I had in relation to alcohol use with a deeper understanding of my extended family. This new awareness was unsettling and painful to me. Many of my relatives were alcoholics. There was never a family brunch, dinner, or casual gathering that was not centered around alcohol. The excessive and consistent reliance on alcohol fueled the arguments and shouting matches I witnessed between my male relatives. Their arguments were always laden with racist, sexi...
One in five adults can identify with growing up with an alcoholic relative and Twenty-eight million Americans have one parent abusing or dependent on alcoholic (Walker, & Lee, 1998). There are devastating and ubiquitous effects of alcoholism, which vary from psychological, social, or biological problems for families. Counselor’s treating this problem all agree that the relationships within a family, especially between a parent and a child is one of the most influential within a system, but what are the effects on the family when a parent is an alcoholic? Contemporary research has found there is a higher prevalence of problems in the family when alcohol is the organizing principle. In addition, there is copious research on the roles of individuals within the family becoming defined into specific categories, and evidently, the roles may become reversed between the parent and the child. This topic of functional roles in alcoholic families will be analyzed and investigated further. Family therapy has had substantial results in the treatment of an alcoholic parent. These results will be discussed more along, with the literature examining the existing research related, to specific interventions and treatments in family therapy with an alcoholic parent. Before research on the treatment is illuminated on distinctive therapies, it is crucial for counselors facilitating family therapy to comprehend the literature on the presenting problems commonly, associated with alcoholic parents and the effects this population has on their families. Furthermore, the adverse outcomes an alcoholic parent has on their children and spouses has been researched and reviewed.
Earls, F., Reich, W., Jung, K. G., & Cloninger, C. R. (2006). Psychopathology in children of alcoholic and antisocial parents. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 12(4), 481 - 487.
For Adult Children of Alcoholics, surviving their families becomes the point of existence. The fortunate may be able to draw support from a supportive adult, and may emerge with fewer difficulties than their brothers and sisters. The majority, however, have to “make do.” Some spend lonely hours in their rooms wishing only to vanish behind the woodwork. Others attempt to rescue the foundering vi...
The article "Alcohol Abuse is a Serious Problem for Teenagers," was written by the Center for Science in the Public Interest. The article states, "Nearly four million young people suffer from alcohol dependence," and the average age at which children begin to drink is as early as 13. The article goes on to say that the number of children who experiment with alcohol has been rising steadily over the years. The article points out the unfortunate effects of drinking which range from an array of physical illnesses like liver problems and cancer. From the article we learn that because teenagers tend to indulge in binge drinking, they are at higher risk to suffer the consequences of alcohol consumption. According to the article these consequences include developmental problems like lack of growth, a reduced ability to learn, and to psychological problems like depression and suicidal tendencies. Alcohol abuse in turn leads to social problems which include dropping out of school, robbery, and "risky sexual behavior." We learn that alcohol serves as a "gateway-drug," leading to more addictive drugs like cocaine. The article substantiates this claim by citing a study conducted by the Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University. The article also touches on the problem of alcohol used by parents though the primary focus of this piece is about teenage drinking. The purpose of the article is to jolt readers into an awareness of the magnitude of the problem of teenage drinkiing. Most people know that teenagers like to experiment, try the new and forbidden, but the Center assumes that no one is fully aware of how serious this problem can be if it is not addressed.
Alcoholism comes with many problems and consequences that are dangerous for young teens. In America the average age for a girl’s first drink is thirteen, and for a boy it’s eleven. Young teens that drink are more likely to do with or
throughout her childhood with an alcoholic father and a selfish mother who cared more about her art and happiness than that of her children’s. Alcohol misuse can affect all aspects of family functioning: social life, finances, good communication, relationships between family members, parenting capability, employment and health issues , It also has a strong correlation with conflicts, disputes and domestic violence which can leave a damaging effect on children. Alcohol misuse often times change the roles played by family member...
“When I was 13, my dad started drinking more and more. Every day he would come home from work and have beer, lots of it. I didn’t think much of it at first, but then he started getting more angry and violent. He would shout at my mom and me. It was like my father had gone and been replaced with another guy” says an anonymous kid who lives with an alcoholic parent in “How my dad’s drinking problem almost destroyed my family”. The kid depicts that he is so confused, angry and upset especially when his father got fired for going to work drunk. This is one of many children’s voices who suffers having an alcoholic in their family. Most of them are depressed because alcohol has destroyed their family. This is an addiction that does
...the dangers of alcohol are emphasized, not only to the individual but to the family. However often alcoholics don’t consider the negative influence they are having on their children. Although there still contradictions about the causes of alcoholism: some argue that it is a disease while others say it’s a choice. Whatever the reasons, parental drinking affects children negatively. It is dreadful that most children of alcoholics, the younger ones at least, have no control over the negative effects that their parent’s drinking problems give them. Many of these consequences of parental drinking can persist for a great part of the children’ s lives, so it is important to make alcoholics aware of the undesired effects of alcohol. It is definitely not the children’s choice to grow up with alcoholic parent(s), yet they still are largely impacted for their parent’s choices.
..., common are divorces and, sometimes, loss of parental rights. Most victimized here are children, who do not, yet, have much understanding of similar situations, and that, effects in impaired ability to trust people and feel safe, later on in their life. What else, next to the family situation, collapses in a long-term alcohol abuser’s life? Alcoholics are antisocial; they do not want to let anyone thru a wall they built around themselves. With time, they lose friends. Important matter is that alcohol dependents lack feelings of responsibility, so they become less effective at work. Their credibility drops and they are no longer valued workers – they lose their jobs.
Families in society today encounter a number of factors that make it difficult to have the “traditional American family”. Many families have grandparents acting as parents, single mother homes, and adolescents that are struggling with addiction and behavioral issues. Families are extremely affected by addiction and alcoholism and family therapy can play a major role in assisting the affected family members. Many marriages end in divorce and children inherit the disease of addiction. Alcoholism is a silent killer of the American family dream. Some of the issues linked with alcoholism in the family arebehavioral issues with family members,mental health issues within the family, and effects of alcoholism on the children.