A little over a week ago, my therapist suggested I look into The Complete ACOA Sourcebook by Janet G. Woititz, Ed.D. for additional assistance with some of my emotional problems. Eager to try anything at this point, I ordered it and received it two days ago.
I haven't been able to put it down since. I certainly haven't changed any negative self-beliefs or habits in that time, but it has given me hope by showing me that I am not the only one coming from an alcoholic/dysfunctional family that feels the way I do.
In the past, I have had encounters with personnel representing either AA or Al-Anon when I have been been in treatment on psychiatric wards, but I sometimes had trouble relating to those groups because I strongly felt that my story was not of the same extreme variety as the stories these representatives told on these occasions. I realize it is not helpful to compare the validity or severity of experiences in a healing context; still, I inevitably made those comparisons and would usually determine that my background had been too good to warrant any involvement with AA or Al-Anon. (I myself have had problems drinking in the past, but it has been over a year since I stopped buying hard liquor and keeping it at home. Since then, I have honestly only had maybe five glasses of beer on five separate occasions while having dinner out with a friend.)
In any event, if you have read my previous post and can identify, you may want to consider reading The Complete ACOA Sourcebook, or some of the other volumes written by Dr. Woititz, especially if you believe your childhood was unique or cannot be understood by anyone else. This book certainly is not a cure all, but reading it has given me some hope that I can identify problems and make positive changes. And I haven't felt hopeful in a long, long time.
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