The material presented
here is not Al-Anon Conference Approved Literature. It is a method
to exchange
information, ideas, feelings, problems and solutions on a personal
level.
Not only have an A-bf, but realizing a few of my nieces & nephews may be alcoholics, too. It scares me to think of the life that they are setting up for themselves... scares me to no end.
It's one thing to have an A-bf... but quite another when it is a person that you have known since they were an itty-bitty, sweet, innocent baby! (I know! I know! Some of you have your very own children who are actively addicted!! How do you do it???)
Heck, even the aunts & uncles & grandpa & cousins who are (were) all alcoholics.... pffttt... I grew up with that. It was a given. I never thought twice about it. Lots of dry alcoholics in the family, too.
These nieces & nephews though... why am I so shocked? I guess because I have been so wrapped up with my A-bf for the last 13+ years that I missed out a lot on their younger years... and now I see that they are grown (late teens, early to mid-twenties). God knows what all they are into (i.e. drugs, too, I am pretty sure). It just goes on, generation after generation.
How did I find out? MySpace! I got an account recently (still don't know how the heck to use it or how the heck to set up backgrounds, etc). I was looking up some of their pages. What an eye-opener it was for me! ACK! I cannot look anymore!!!
What I see in their faces at family gatherings is so different from what I just saw on MySpace. Man, do I feel stoooopid! I feel so old now for some reason! So out of touch with reality. Doh!
You can do so much for the kids/ young adults in your life just by being you and setting a good example and spending positive time with them when you get the chance. One thought: sometimes kids and adults kinda "carry on" on myspace accounts I think, just to seem cool so it may or may not be as bad as you think. I am not a big fan of those places- think it's fake and makes people think people are not what they really are, and sometimes make people become what they see on there. I kinda wish that stuff were outlawed but then we might not have this formum so where would you draw the line but I am convinced an impressionable person, teenager or even adult can really be affected by that stuff. Kinda like literally going and "hanging out" anywhere. You need to be in positive places and although there may be a few positive myspace pages what I have seen makes me nervous.
Oh myspace, you can find out so many things through "myspace" I founded that cousin gets "high" on the regular and she's proud of it.
What sad is that "some" people think its so cool instead of saying, I'm smoking weed or what ever there choice of drup may be, they say "I'm getting high" Then they sell blunts in the grocery store with all different flavors. Its crazy!
Now back to myspace...you can find out so many things through myspace because put all the information out there. It's crazy!
You did the right thing about putting your son in treatment. Unfourneatley my little cousin Mom could care less because she get's "high" as well. So sad!
