Before I came to Al-Anon, I thought my son’s drinking was never going to end. I was either going to have to find a way to stop it or totally give him up and never see him again. That’s how it was in my mind—all or nothing. When I got desperate enough, I found my way to Al‑Anon. You showed me that there are other solutions and that if I kept coming back, I might learn to look at the situation in a different light. I did keep coming, and you were right.
I found a glimmer of hope, and when I surrendered to a Higher Power, that glimmer grew into a ray of sunshine. I started by using the slogans, reading the literature, and working the Steps. By changing myself and my attitudes, I found hope—hope for a future with my son in which I could love and respect him whether he was drinking or not. I could detach from the disease and care for him unconditionally. I “Let Go and Let God” until my son’s Higher Power got him into recovery and sobriety. I also learned, with God’s help, a whole new way of living—the Al-Anon way. Now, instead of feeling powerless and helpless, I am filled with hope, faith, and trust.
By Carol H., Florida
The Forum, August 2022
Feel free to reprint this article on your service arm website or newsletter, along with this credit line: Reprinted with permission of The Forum, Al-Anon Family Group Headquarters, Inc., Virginia Beach, VA.
Alcoholism exists in my family. I’m an only child of immigrants, so the relatives in my family were uncles, cousins — in other words not in my immediate family. I witnessed how alcoholism destroyed my uncle, who alternated staying at our home and at my aunt’s home — when not at sea or sober. I saw how it caused stress for my parents and my aunt — especially during Christmas and family events. That uncle ended up in the morgue. Nothing we said or did for him saved him. I raised my own children to beware of alcohol, not to… Read more »