Being An Alcoholic In The Age of “New Sobriety”
I recently read the somewhat controversial New York Times piece called “The New Sobriety” and my head started to spin a little. On the one hand, I love seeing people grab onto the idea that you don’t have to get shit-faced to have a good time.
That feels like progress.
I’m also a firm believer that for many people (hopefully), cutting WAY back on drinking is not only good, but a realistic way to take their life in a healthier direction.
HOWEVER.
I worry.
I worry about the impact this “trend” is having on people who cannot cut back. The folks for whom abstinence from alcohol is the only solution.
I worry because I was EXACTLY the kind of person who would’ve seen this article and said, “hell yah!”
When I was an alcohol addicted mess, I hopped onto every moving health trend with comical consistency.
Green juice? You got it. Affirmations? For sure. Purchased A Course in Miracles and actually attempted to work through it? Definitely!
None of it made me better because it didn’t address the actual problem: I drank too much and didn’t know how to stop.
But I didn’t want to admit that. And in not wanting to admit that, I would’ve seen ‘The New…
