Alcohols impact in Family

The alcoholic:

• Denies the alcohol problem, blames others, forgets and tells stories to defend and protest against   humiliation, attack and criticism from others in the family;
• Spends money for day-to-day needs on alcohol;
• Becomes unpredictable and impulsive in behavior;
• Resorts to verbal and physical abuse in place of honest, open talk;
• Loses the trust of family, relatives, and friends;
• Shows deterioration of physical health;
• Experiences a diminishing sexual drive;
• Has feelings of despair and hopelessness; and,
• Thinks about suicide and possibly makes an attempt.

The spouse:

• Often tries to hide and deny the existing problem of the alcoholic;
• Takes on the responsibilities of the other person, carrying the load of two and perpetrating the spouse dependence;
• Takes a job to get away from the problem and/or maintain financial security;

• Finds it difficult to be open and honest because of resentment, anger, and hurt feelings;
• Avoids sexual contact;
• May over-protect the children, neglect them, and/or use them for emotional support;
• Shows gradual social withdrawal and isolation;
• May lose feelings of self-respect and self-worth;
• May use alcohol or prescription drugs in an effort to cope.

The children:

• May be victims of birth defects;
• May be torn between parents; being loyal to one, they arouse and feel the anger of the other;
• May be deprived of emotional and physical support;
• Avoid peer activities, especially in the home out of fear and shame;
• Learn destructive and negative ways of dealing with problems and getting attention;
• Lack trust in anyone;
• May lose sight of values, standards and goals because of the absence of consistent, strong parenting.
• Suffer a diminishing sense of self-worth as a significant member of the family.

Sunil Kumar                                            Jayasudha Kamaraj

Clinical Psychologist                                Counseling Psychologist

Founder - Mind Zone                               Co-founder, Mind Zone

+91 9444 297058                                     +91 91760 55660