How We Won the Fight Against Patty’S Alcohol Dependence

Betty, my good friend, was distraught and on the verge of depression when she learned that her daughter was addicted to alcohol. Over the past few months, Betty noticed that her daughter, Patty had changed drastically from the outgoing and active young girl to one who never left her room, and went around with her hair unkempt and her clothes in a shabby state. In the beginning, the changes had been less pronounced. The family noticed that she was irritable and could never seem to follow the conversations at the dinner table. She ate less and less and her skin changed from the rosy freshness of youth to wan and almost faded. She looked old.

Worried, Betty and her husband James brought Patty to the doctor for a checkup. That was how they discovered that Patty had become an alcohol dependent. The couple immediately went around looking for a drug alcohol rehab where they could enroll Patty and help her get over her alcohol addiction. She went through a series of assessments that measured the intensity of her addiction. The facility used a two-pronged program that addressed her alcohol dependence as well as the mental disorder that drove her to drink. Their family attended sessions and workshops that made each one of them aware of how they contributed to Patty’s degeneration and also helped them to identify what they can do to support and assist in her recovery. The experience brought their family (and friends) together, strengthened their familial ties and brought back the Patty we knew and loved.