Temporary Child Custody

For the past twenty-three years Jenny has been a nurse at a small rural hospital. In addition she has also been teaching Sunday school at the local Baptist Church. Although she lived in a small country town where it seemed like every person knew everyone’s business, very little was known about Jenny. For sure almost every person in town knew that she had worked numerous years as a nurse practitioner and that she taught Sunday school for as long as she was a resident of their town. Other than that, nonetheless, it almost appeared as if Jenny was simply a visitor in their town.

You can visualize the commotion that was created when it was revealed that one Sunday morning Jenny had lost consciousness because of excessive drinking. Indeed, the article in the neighborhood daily paper claimed that Jenny not only became unconscious, but that she also was arrested for driving while drunk due to the fact that her blood alcohol level was significantly higher than the legal limit for intoxication. This is obviously one of the alcohol effects on the body that no Sunday school teacher wants to have publicized by the entire town. But this is specifically what happened, much to the disappointment of Jenny.

Jenny Gets Very Distraught About Her DUI

Obviously, Jenny was extremely depressed about her arrest for driving while intoxicated. Not only should she have known better about driving while intoxicated because of her nursing profession, but she also should have held herself accountable to a more lofty benchmark because of the simple fact that she taught Sunday school.

After her DWI arrest, Jenny was tempted to move out of town so that she would not have to feel unhappy about her arrest and also so she wouldn’t have to go over her actions for the five hundred thousandth time to the people in town. After meeting with her reverend, then again, she made up her mind that she would get alcohol rehab at a local alcohol rehabilitation hospital. She did this for two precise reasons. First, it was relatively easy for her to drive to a local rehabilitation clinic. And second, she frankly wanted the word to get circulated among all the individuals in town that she was truly addressing her excessive and hazardous drinking.

Jenny Goes Through Detox and Gets an Extensive Exam

After Jenny went through detoxification, she was extensively checked by a doctor at the rehabilitation facility. She then underwent a couple of laboratory procedures where it was verified that she was not an alcoholic but rather was involving herself in abusive and irresponsible drinking. In a word Jenny was engaging in long term alcohol abuse.

Jenny was provided with the option of getting alcohol treatment as a residential patient or getting alcohol rehab as an outpatient. Jenny, nonetheless, believed that she could still work as a licensed practical nurse and continue with her Sunday school teaching job if she were to be registered as an out-patient and this is precisely what she did.

According to her rehab plan, Jenny went to two treatment sessions every two weeks, she learned quite a lot about alcohol info, she worked on her homework “projects,” she got treatment for her depression and other mental health issues, and she learned how to involve herself doing things in life that did not have anything to do with drinking.

After twenty weeks, Jenny thought that her abusive drinking was under control and so she got released from the drug and alcohol rehab center under the specification that she would return for follow up treatment once every three months for the next nine months. Jenny agreed and followed through on her “promise.”

Jenny Makes up Her Mind to Abstain From Any and All Drinking Situations and Discovers That Her Sense of Worth Increases

After she went through her rehab Jenny reasoned that she would be able to drink more responsibly and in moderation. After pondering her situation for a short while, then again, she concluded that she would absolutely abstain from any and all drinking circumstances.

When Jenny arrived at this determination, she learned that her positive attitude about herself became stronger the more she was in charge of her life. And as her self-respect grew more pronounced, it seemed like she became more gregarious and began attending more local events such as local high school basketball and football games, music festivals, carnivals, Christmas tree lighting ceremonies, flower festivals, rib roasts, and strawberry festivals. Jenny also began to develop longer lasting relationships and friendships for the first time since she was in high school.

Jenny Addresses Her Abusive and Hazardous Drinking, Makes up Her Mind To Do Something Constructive About It, and Rediscovers Her Faith

Over time, the individuals in the town exhibited more affection for Jenny because she was involving herself with them more routinely and also because she addressed her careless and abusive drinking and made up her mind to do something beneficial about it. It may have been her imagination, but it also seemed as if her Sunday school students showed more respect and admiration for her.

Jenny is a living illustration of someone who faced a serious issue and who did something positive about it. She is also a person who found out that her religious faith is not only something that is intrinsic, but that it is also something that affects the way in which an individual interrelates with other people.

Barry used to boast to his drinking pals how he could maintain a demanding and fulltime job and get smashed almost every night. Regrettably, after engaging in this unhealthy lifestyle for just about three-and-a-half years, he began to observe various alcohol related difficulties.

Barry Begins to Manifest a Variety of Alcohol Related Issues

As an illustration, he had a real difficult time getting up for work because he felt so tired when he got up. Not only this, but virtually every morning Barry suffered from a dreadful hangover. Without a doubt, the combination of his hangovers and his lack of energy did not make it easy for him to get up and feel inspired to go to work. To add fuel to the fire, he just received his third driving under the influence citation in the past four months.

To complicate things further, at his place of employment his last two work evaluations were not up to his usual high standards. And lastly, his four-and-a-half-year relationship with his girlfriend had worsened due to his depression, angry outbursts, financial difficulties, and his lack of patience.

Though Barry was only twenty-eight years old, he simply began looking like he was in his mid thirties. Sadly, this is what abusive and irresponsible drinking can do to a person. And in all candor he grasped the fact that he was going through the negative effects of alcohol abuse or alcohol addiction and that he was too young to fritter away his life to unhealthy and irresponsible drinking. So initially he tried to drink responsibly and in moderation. Sadly, he soon grasped the fact that he lost his self control after consuming his first drink. Stated another way, after his first drink he invariably proceeded to get smashed. Due to the fact that this was an event that was repeated every time he went out to drink, this obviously concerned him a great deal. In truth, he started to wonder if he was manifesting some of the signs of alcoholism and alcohol abuse.

Barry Makes up His Mind To Schedule an Appointment to See His Family Doctor

After going over his excessive alcohol ingestion and his excessive and irresponsible drinking with his girlfriend, he finally made up his mind to schedule an appointment to see his doctor. When Barry saw his family doctor, he frankly declared that he has been abusing alcohol, that he may be manifesting alcoholic signs, and that he wants to stop drinking. He then mentioned that drinking responsibly and in moderation doesn’t work well for him and, as a consequence, he wants to learn how he can live without drinking alcohol.

Barry also told his healthcare professional about his depression and how this mental health issue was adversely affecting his relationship with his lady friend. His healthcare professional referred Barry to Doctor Gordon, a drug and alcohol addiction psychiatrist, who motivated Barry to enroll in a drug and alcohol treatment facility as an in-patient for alcohol detox and alcohol rehab. Fortunately, Barry would also be able to get medical attention for his depression at this treatment center.

Abstaining From Drinking Was the Best Decision Barry Had Ever Made

After five months of rigorous rehab, Barry left the in-patient rehab center and continued his recovery via going to local Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and via outpatient therapy. Encouraged to change his life in a more productive manner, Barry bought some vitamins at a health store and a cookbook. He then joined a fitness center and began working out three or four times per week. Within four months Barry was a new individual. He was eating nutritious meals, he wasn’t depressed anymore, he now looked younger than he was, he was in shape, and most significant of all, he remained sober for several months. He also became more patient, he didn’t resort to angry outbursts, and he became a more caring individual in his relationship with his girlfriend. In short, quitting drinking was the best decision Barry had ever made.

About seven weeks ago I met a twenty-five-year-old woman named Rachael who is bipolar and who is also dependent on drugs and alcohol. I remember hearing that in such situations, a person needs to get treatment for both medical situations and that mental health issues and chemical dependency commonly take place in the same person. Additionally, I remember reading that a history of unhealthy and abusive drinking, drug addiction, and/or mental health concerns frequently take place in the same family.

Evidently, Rachael is so overwhelmed by both of her medical conditions and her relationship difficulties that she in essence has little or no reason to accomplish much of anything. What is particularly unfortunate about this is that earlier in her life, Rachael finished three-and-a-half-years of college. Rachael’s circumstance makes me wonder if she is an illustration of an individual who has to hit the bottom of the barrel before he or she gets alcohol and drug addiction treatment that leads to lasting sobriety.

The Need For a Physician She Trusts and a Rehab Regimen She Can Believe In

If I were in contact with Rachael I could suggest a number of websites and blogs that could possibly help her locate information about addiction and alcoholic behavior, pertinent chemical dependency information, facts about alcoholism and drugs, info about addiction symptoms and alcoholism warning signs, and relationship information. In my honest opinion, however, Rachael needs to locate a therapist she trusts and a treatment regimen she can believe in and follow over the long haul. I could be in error but it seems to me that Rachael more likely than not needs to acknowledge the fact that she cannot drink responsibly or abuse drugs if she wants to get sober, stay sober, and start on the path to long-term recovery.

I am aware that there are quite a few recently discovered physician-prescribed medications that can help Rachael through her withdrawal symptoms, through the alcohol and alcohol detox process, and help her avoid a drug or an alcohol relapse. Clearly it would be in Rachael’s best interests if she learned about these meds.

It is apparent that Rachael needs to acknowledge the fact that there is utterly nothing productive about excessive and careless drinking and chemical dependency and that engaging in one or both circumstances is the map to a premature death, shattered relationships, deteriorating health, legal problems, financial difficulties, and poor work and school performance.

The Relevance of Support Groups Like Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous

There are probably a lot of persons such as family members, other individuals, and friends who would want to help Rachael but she more likely than not would experience greater understanding from a recovery group such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous rather than listening to people who drink just a few times per year or who have never taken drugs.

When People Accomplish Things They Like and About Which They Are Dedicated

There’s a psychological attitude that affirms that individuals who do things they love and something about which they are passionate arrive at a fantastic place in life. Stated more specifically, when people do what they love, they hardly ever go through boredom or an uneventful life. If they involve themselves in something that is satisfying, moreover, they become more complete and experience more contentment and delight in life and in their relationships.

To me, this sounds diametrically opposed to a life that is centered in alcohol and drug addiction because such a lifestyle removes the contentment and joy that life has to offer.

Because Rachael doesn’t have the fortitude to succeed at doing much of anything in her life, it is apparent that she definitely needs some hope for a better existence. And the sad thing is that hope is almost everywhere around Rachael if she could only get to the point in life to get the counseling she requires for her manic depression and chemical dependency and remain in her treatment protocol.

More Meaningful Relationships, A Wonderful Life, Self Esteem, and Positive Change Are Possibilities

Rachael is simply too young to be crushed in life. She doesn’t realize this at the moment but if she can learn how to abstain from drugs and alcohol through alcohol and drug rehab and get the counseling she requires for her bipolar issue, she can redirect her life and start living with direction, passion, and with self-respect.

Stronger relationships, a meaningful life, self esteem, and positive change are certainly possibilities for Rachael if only she could get inspired to seek the medical rehab she needs, follow through with her treatment protocol, live her life in a drug and alcohol-free and healthy way, and acquire a more positive attitude about life.