drgnfly30

I frequent another community board, unrelated to addiction... the subject came up from a mother who was very put off that their kids school had taught her kids (in a drug awareness class) that alcohol was a drug.. this parent couldn't believe that a school would put beer in the same category as a street drug & that if it needed to be mentioned, it should have been done so in the context of teaching moderation!... Of course I couldn't help myself... I climbed up on my soap box explaining that as the mother of two sons whose father, grandfather & greatgrandfather were A's there is no such thing as teaching moderation to my kids in my book.... another person responded by saying I was being prejudice against the "many, many" adults who can handle their Alcohol!

Grrr... it just got to me!! I explained myself using facts & not emotions but was I overreacting?!?! Do the "common folk" just not understand how damaging Alcohol can really be????

quietsins

people love denial. heck ask most people how tall they are on their drivers license or how much they weigh.. definately we love denial.

until you see up close and personal the devastation of alcoholism. you think its all good. remember how devastated you were when you really started to learn about this disease? i was 40 yrs old and getting an education about something i thought i understood already.

people teach their kids weird things. i have as a teacher seen parents tell me that "drinking is part of growing up" as their 15 yr old gets a minor consumption ticket. i have seen parents tell me (my exA) "i am going to smoke pot with my son to make sure he knows how to handle it". i have seen parents tell their kids "its ok if you dont do the work" yet want their kid to handle the responsibility of a car.

all you can control is yourself. and your kids. and support the school in teaching what is publically recognized to be good policy. that alcohol is a drug and addictive.

as a teacher and SADD coordinator for my district.. i know the data shows that if we can keep kids from drinking before the age of 18, the chance of long term problems drops significantly.

also.. say a prayer for the ignorant. its not that they are stupid, they are just ignorant of what alcohol can do

quietsins

historyteach

I'm not sure but, perhaps it was your self described "soapbox" that got the reaction from the normies???
Either way, you opened a dialogue. That's not a bad thing, in my book.
And I fully understand about the genetic effects of addiction - of any kind...
I hear you...
Shalom!

gelfling

I would have done the same thing. Being a part of an alcoholic family, we're a little ahead of the game. And wouldn't want to wish any addiction on anyone. You're a grand person for speaking up and educating them. Eventhough you know they walked away talking about the crazy lady talking about alcohol.

EternalHope

I'm sure most of us can remember when alcohol was a normal part of our lives, just another thing that didn't require a lot of focus, before we learned how horrible it can get. Thank God not every family has to endure this, but it would be nice to know people were aware that it always has potential for disaster and handle it accordingly.

knottedup

OMG! You sound just like me! It's comforting to know that out there, some where, there is another voice.

I've found that the people who have strong reactions with this truth generally have a problem. Is there a social drinker? Probably (though I don't think I know any). The problem is the way our society treats alcohol. To even look at beer adds, one could conclude using alcohol was a way to escape.

I have a five year old. When he had just turned 3, my husband was jumped (by his "best friend" and some other guy) in front of him in our home when I was not there. He started asking questions the next day (when we got home from the hospital) about why his "uncle" would do that so I told him:

1. Alcohol is a poison
2. It will make your brain do strange things
3. This makes you act stupid
4. In our family, alcohol has a good chance of killing you

A year later wwe spent a week at my A dad's house. He was having a BBQ and asked my son to run in and get him another beer and my son simply said, "No Grandpa, I don't want to make you act stupid."

Some of my friends say I took it to far but you know what? I have the chance to save my son's life and that is more important than what my friend's say. Stick to it!

Aquiana

Congratulations! It's good that you stuck up for what you believed. I would have said the same thing. Alcohol is a drug, and sometimes I think it's worse than a lot of them because it's so easy to get. I know many, many people who also use "street drugs" on occasion. Myself included actually when I was younger. Many of them don't ever become addicted, it's more of a once in a while deal so does that mean none of them should be called drugs either on the basis that some people can handle them? That makes no sense whatsoever IMO. It's totally the big denial.

A little rambling but there has been tonnes of talk here for ages about legalizing pot. There are so many people who have a fit when you mention the idea since it's a drug and it's well....wrong. Is it worse than alcohol? I really don't think so. Just not as socially acceptable. Society is so funny that way.