Two Prevalent Authorities In Your Life

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Recommended: A study of alcoholic families found that adult children of alcoholics who came from families

Question: Name two prevalent authorities in your life that have shaped how you use, or do not use, alcohol. Explain how and why they have shaped you so.

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, sexist, and classist hatred. My female relatives were silent, resentful observers of the flying slurs who found solace in their own alcoholic stupors. …show more content…

I initially believed alcohol was to blame for their hatred. However, I soon recognized that the bigoted, hateful language and actions of my relatives was always present in them, whether they were under the influence or not. Alcohol was merely an excuse to shout these hatreds out loud. The biggest influence my relatives' alcoholism had on me was my conviction that I would have a different relationship to alcohol use in my life. The familial pattern of alcoholism had a lasting impact on me through the awareness that I have a predisposition to alcoholism. In order for me not to become addicted to alcohol, I would need to be vigilant about

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