You may have already heard how alcohol abuse affects the body. In the short-term, it causes lack of coordination, lowered inhibitions, mood swings, memory lapses, and impaired judgment. But there are long-term effects too – including cancer, cirrhosis of the liver, permanent brain damage, and sometimes death.
Alcohol also increases the risk of accidental injury or death. In fact, one in three motor vehicle fatalities is caused by alcohol, as is one out of every four drownings.
What you may not realize, however, is that alcohol abuse doesn’t just affect you. It affects everyone you come into contact with, especially your children.
Cold, Hard Facts
There are an estimated 26.8 million children in the United States living with at least one parent who abuses alcohol.
If a woman drinks while she is pregnant, the alcohol may cause the fetus to develop serious birth defects. But the negative effects don’t stop there.
Children develop their behaviors, world views, and social awareness by watching and interacting with their parents. That’s why a parent’s abuse of alcohol can be so detrimental to the family. When parents have a drinking problem, they generally don’t interact with their children in a positive way. Drinking impairs their judgment and affects their responses to the daily stresses of dealing with children. Often the result is violence and neglect.
Children who grow up in such an environment can experience many different emotions, including:
- Guilt. Kids may feel that they are the cause of their mom’s or dad’s drinking problem.
- Embarrassment. Kids may be afraid to bring friends home because of a parent’s drinking problem. Often this is because the parent maintains a level of secrecy about his or her drinking. Kids may also be afraid to ask for help.
- Confusion. Alcoholic parents may change their behavior unexpectedly – going from loving to angry – often without provocation. Kids may be confused by their parents’ reaction to seemingly insignificant things. The family’s daily schedule may also be affected because mealtimes and bedtimes may be enforced differently depending on the drinking parent’s mood.
- Anxiety. Kids may constantly worry about the situation at home, about their parents’ health and well-being, or about the fights between their parents.
- Anger. Kids may feel angry toward the parent who has the drinking problem because the alcoholic parent has not supported or protected them.
- Depression. Kids may feel lonely and isolated when one or more parent abuses alcohol. They often feel helpless to escape or change the situation.
These emotions manifest in many ways over time. Statistically, children who grow up with an alcoholic parent are four times more likely to develop a drinking problem themselves than are children of non-alcoholic parents. They are also at a greater risk for emotional problems due to the abuse and neglect they experience. And because parents who abuse alcohol often let their children down or don’t follow through on promises, those children are often unable to form close, trusting relationships during childhood or later in life.
Get Help, For Your Kids’ Sake
Signs of a drinking problem include:
- Being unable to stick to just one drink
- Needing to drink in order to relax or feel better
- Regularly drinking more than you meant to
- Hiding or lying about your drinking habits
- Blacking out or forgetting what you did while drinking
- Feeling ashamed or guilty about your drinking
- Having friends or family members tell you they are worried about your drinking
Recognizing that you have a drinking problem is the first step to overcoming it. If you think that you or someone you love is abusing alcohol, it’s important to get professional help right away. Your kids are counting on you. |
