I'm the eldest.
I can relate to feeling a certain responsibility in the family, being the go to guy, and being reluctant to ask for help or let people into my problems.
Trying to fix myself on my own, and keep things a secret, really wore me down and probably made me drink more.
I have to be honest - my family haven't been much help at all - we don;t have alcoholics in our family...
but I think the principle is sound....learning to ask for help (here and elsewhere) and being honest with my loved ones were some of the main reasons why this time I stayed sober
D