Preventing Alcoholism and/or Addiction

As I have been in Dual-Recovery (drug addiction/alcoholism PLUS schizoprenia/bipolar/panic attacks) since 4/28/84 I have been trying, and I mean brain-storming and talkung with my peers, trying to come up with acure for alcoholism/addiction plus anything to prevent even the onset of any and all addiction.Our collective answer? And this answer comes from a combined of over 150 years of Recovery from alcoholism/addiction/dual-diagnosed experience! IMPOSSIBLE TO COMPLETELY PREVENT! There will NEVER be a drug-free America! Damn it! I curse because I know the hell of active dual-diagnosis! And the life long Recovery odds are at best slim!
     I believe most of the money put into problem alcoholics/addicts/dual-diagnosis individuals should be put toward Recovery from. "Like...?" you ask. Education...not just of the dangers of drugs/booze/dual-diagnosis, but just plain ild education! I, personally, made excellent grsdes in high school and made the Dean's List in Engineering @ Purdue University. You try it...stonef/depressed/hallucinating!
Upon initial Recovery indtead of thinking: "Damn! How do I make a buck for a good life in Recovery? Deal drugs?" Instead, I knew I absolutely loved Purdue and could make something outta myself! So I tried! And now I'm coming up on 30 years in Recovery! I love being a model citizen! And I'm trying to pass it on to anyone who wants Dual-Recovery!

Still Kickin!

As I haven't blogged in a while I'm still thriving alive and haven't found it necessary to drink/drug nor go off my meds nor do anything stupid! As those can be enough to entirely consume some like me I have been able to reassert myself into the world of literature. I have developed an entirely new manner with which to tackle my desire to write my memoirs, go places that help me in my Recovery from Dual-Disorders and maintain my sanity. So to speak! I have been writing furiously and love every bit of it and have around seven or more novels in me merely by way of memoirs! I have done a lot of living while having to suffer during most of it, there are hunks of my life which were an entirely entertaining set of schizophrenia-caused hàllucinations that were almost swashbuckling
and that/those are what I am writing about.

I'm Not A Man Nor Any Fun Unless I Drink/Drug?

I was around some wonderful recovering alcoholics as I was at the tender length of sobriety of three weeks. Two guys who evidentally hadn't gotten sick and tired of being sick and tired said they had a cold case of beer in their trunk and asked me to go drink with them. Luckily I had had enough anguish from drinking alcohol, alcoholically that I said, "No!" They said that "You're not a man unless you drink." I remained to obstain and not too long later I was told,"Anyone can drink! Let's see you quit!" As my now 29+ years of sobriety tells me that Recovering Alcoholics are the strongest/most tough-minded people you will come across! I've known many a Marine who couldn't handle Sobriety! Too bad! And you think a Sober/clean person isn't fun? If you require drugs/alcohol in order to have fun...to me that tells me those who think that way are no fun themselves! If you require drugs/alcohol in order to be fun...what does that say about you? It tells me you're boring all by yourself! And you're psychologically addicted if you think that you "need" pot/drugs in order to be fun. That's called a defect of your personality.
Since I've gotten clean/sober I have fun everyday! My sense of humor returned and everyday I treat myself a little! When I drank/drugged I had no sense of humor, didn't know how to communicate nor had any fun like I have today!

You're kiddin' me!

With all of us previously drinking alcoholics we cheated, lied, stole and would lie so much that if ever in a predicament where we were caught and then would tell the truth and admit our guilt  no one would believe us! In all of this if we ever got lucky and something good would happen to us we would feel as if we didn't deserve it! As a Recovering alcoholic of 29 years sober even though I'm a somewhat honest person and try to be a model citizen when good things happen to me I still feel as though I don't deserve it. I heard an one year sober alcoholic tell me that because he had been so bad when drinking that he now doesn't deserve sobriety. I told him that if he didn't deserve sobriety then the God of his understanding wouldn't keep him sober for over a year! I heard myself that day and told myself that if God felt I didn't deserve something then I wouldn't have it! Today I am having fun and am not doing anything illegal, immoral nor indecent! And, yes, it is fun!

Why So Serious?

When speaking about the alcoholic who is in the process of sobering up or whether they are in Recovery and needs to feel the spirit of Recovery, what the alcoholic will most likely respond to is earnestness. Define "earnestness" : that being: "serious intensity". As an alcoholic in Recovery, I often engage in earnestness and no one but another alcoholic will engage with me. For me, carrying the message of Recovery is so important to me that I automatically profess it with dead serious  intensity. For this is a matter of life or death whete if someone like me relapses, meaning I drink alcohol, that which has happened to others who drank! Like: one lady because she decided to drink "a beer" within a couple of months she was still drinking (alcoholically) she got a revolver stuck the barrel in her mouthand pullef the trigger. She met her Makerthat day, damn it! Another who began hanging out at bars, because of the close proximity between his hand and (I'll say it again) "a beer" within three weeks he died of a barbituate overdose. You see why I don't have as many friends as I'd like! Me? Why didn't I "keep them from drinking?" Because they didn't ask me for help...which would have included a great dose of earnestness...BEFORE THEY DRANK THAT FIRST BEER! Believe me, I miss people whom have died because they drank...heartbreakers! See why I so much push earnestness at those I love who are still sober?

Sober For Good?

As I'm a Recovering Alcoholic ("Recovering" meaning sober) since 1984 I have encountered many case managers who were employed to apply therapy to me and my other mental illnesses (alcoholism and drug addiction are considered mental illnesses as well) of schizophrenia/bipolar whom had absolutely no training in addiction and alcoholism yet were telling me to "...comply!" quiet forcefully when talking about my mental illnesses of schizophrenia/bipolar. I resisted the temptation to tell these case managers exactly where to stick it for this is my mind, my body and my life and no one has the right to order me around! That is, unless I break the law and I now do nothing illegal, immoral nor indecent due to those beautiful other Recovering alcoholics in my life! Instead of revolting verbally with these case managers I began to kindly teach them about Recovery from alcoholism/addiction. Especially about the thought that was prevalent and also incorrect that: "...once an alcoholic/addict gets clean from drugs/sober then that's the end of it! When actually the alcoholic/addict must continue to work his/her butt off in order to stay in Recovery! Plus, when ordered around the alcoholic (sober or not) the alcoholic will revolt and go do exactly what he/she was ordered not to do! It's, first of all, the nature of an alcoholic (addict, as well) and second, the nature of a free citizen of The United States of America! Of which I am both!

An Unpopular Position...Or Is It?

As a now Recovering alcoholic/drug addict I never once drank alcohol socially plus from day 1 of smoking pot I couldn't get enough which led to harder, stronger drugs like heroin and cocaine. Believe me, it was never really fun when compared to now being in Recovery from those chemicals. Here comes the probably "unpopular" part. As I remember being loaded for nearly 15 years continuously I can recall some individuals who I partied with that would nurse one beer all night and would smoke pot probably once in every six months. My point? I believe, just like a social drinker that there is such a critter as a social pot smoker. America has already proven that outlawing alcohol didn't work with prohibition. Now, how well are we doing in outlawing pot? How many nonviolent pot smokers do we have to pay, what $100/day to keep in prison?
Why not leagalize marijuana? Have our Government grow it, sell it, control it, tax the hell out of it which will prevent the drug dealer as we now know it?
Just a thought! I will say that even if legalized I do not plan on smoking pot again just like I do not plan on drinking alcohol again, God willing! And I do mean God's Will which is how I stay clean and sober one day at a time!