Last night I invited a gentleman out. He spoke about no, due to the fact that he did not need to drive on New Year's Eve. I went out to dinner anyway, due to the fact that I hate the plan of being stopped in my life due to fear. But when I stop to ponder of it, the whole plan of New Year's Eve is bizarre. A huge portion of society is afraid to even leave outside, for fear that another huge portion of society- being drunk or high out of their brains- shall kill, maim, or otherwise dismember them. In some ways my friend was probably more sane than I was, possessing self-preservation at the forefront of his mind. But there is a saying within the rooms of therapy (where many of us land subsequent to loving an addicted person.) The saying is that "360 degrees from crazy is still nuts."So on New Years Eve, we do our thing by staying 360 degrees distant from New Year's Eve, or by defying them all by risking life and limb to leave out anyway. And they do their thing- drinking, drugging, driving, & fighting- that is 360 degrees from us. And we all ponder the whole skills development of New Year's Eve is pretty normal. Crazy, huh?So now that the shouting is over, those of us who can still function currently locate an special opportunity to look at our life. Many of us make resolutions to lose weight, leave to the gym, or beginning writing that book. (Hope springs eternal within the person heart.) And as for me, I settle in currently to a location of reflection. I think about that it is time to be honest, to leave with my gut- and even time to 'out myself' on something that I many times hide as an addiction prevention specialist. And what I hide is basically this...I need everyone on the planet to stop drinking and drugging. There. I spoke about it. It's out. And I can heave a sigh of relief.And I have knowledge of that whether you can be like most of society, you don't ever need to hear what I just said. You don't ever need to have this conversation. And due to the fact that of this, many of us who look as I do clam up on the topic. We cop out, talking about moderation, slowing down, etc. etc. We speak this even though many of us have knowledge of perfectly well that moderation is impossible for ever-increasing numbers of society. We speak this knowing that those numbers shall someday within the very near future exceed the numbers of those that can moderate. We speak this knowing that we can not by any means pinpoint with any degree of accuracy who can and who can not moderate.
But still we discuss moderation due to the fact that we have knowledge of you can listen to us if we speak that. But you will not listen if we tell you to stop. And this does not mean that current prevention efforts don't ever work- due to the fact that they do, make no mistake. But obviously prevention of substance abuse and addiction should work a thousand times better if we stopped drinking and drugging. (duh)The process as I envision it is that first those that should stop, should stop drinking and drugging. This should help those people who should not stop. They should not be alone. Society should have their back. They should seek and get the help they need. And subsequent to a while, most regarding the globe should have stopped. And this in turn should make a huge impact on criminality, domestic violence, child abuse, homelessness, joblessness and almost every other primary societal problem.But despite the inherent sensibility of this argument, whether you can be like most of society, you don't ever need to hear it. Subsequent to all, if you are someone who can stop, howcome should you stop? Howcome should you release up your glass of wine at dinner? It's not your fault that they are crazy out there. Howcome should you not have your Margarita? You did not do anything wrong. On the other paw whether you can be someone who can not stop, you don't ever need to hear the argument either. Why? Due to the fact that you can not stop. And furthermore you don't ever need anyone to have knowledge of that you can not stop. So you too should like to shut me up. And most of you, for one reason or the other, should like to stop this conversation. You should prefer to ponder that this woman talking to you from a minuscule little blog somewhere out in cyberspace is nuts, fanatical, and 'off her rocker.' Your first argument is that I am nuts due to the fact that I ponder it is compulsory for us all to stop drinking and drugging. (You speak this as you sit on the couch on New Year's Eve, wishing you were in Time's Square watching the ball drop.) Your other argument is that I am even more nuts due to the fact that I ponder it is likely for us to stop drinking and drugging.And there you may have me. I should be nuts.But crazy or not, I, like Martin Luther King, hold a dream. And currently is New Year's Day 2010, almost 12 years from the day that I learned that my near suicidal thoughts and depression at the time were stemming from living with an active alcoholic. (The plight I call 2nd Paw Addiction) But it is an special day, with resolutions and hopes for tomorrow hanging tantalizingly within the grey morning air. And so I am indulging in my dream.And in this dream I look people dancing around with lampshades on their heads, but they can be not drunk. I hear them singing at the top of their lungs with their arms entwined, but they can be stone-cold-sober. I look them dancing with wild abandon to heart-stopping music, but they can be not slurring their words. I look everyone as I was when I was six, kicking their ballet-trained legs over other people's heads with wild abandon- or watching, laughing gleefully at a friends' wild antics. I look them hugging their colleagues right in public with bear hugs that pick them up off of their feet. I look people loving the skills development of being alive. Such that when I tell people to stop drinking and drugging, I don't ever need to lessen the joy of people's lives. I need to heighten it. I don't ever need to take away, but rather to add. I seek to enhance good feelings in such a method that there is more fulfillment, and more downright happiness. I seek only that people replace the artificial pleasure of drugs and alcohol together with the true pleasure of life. And that those that can do this easily, also help those that struggle.Alcohol and drugs hit the pleasure centers regarding the brain, bringing us pure and unadulterated good feelings. Then they destroy us piecemeal, as people and like a society. We need good feelings, and there is nothing wrong with that. The only difficulty is that we turn to the poison of alcohol and drugs to obtain them. But as people locate their joy in life instead of drugs they shall locate that this natural happiness is better by distant than any other. And when we all locate our pleasure naturally, we can leave outdoors on New Year's Eve without fear.There are many powerful tools that I write about for helping people on their abt travels true happiness and fulfillment. The Landmark Forum is one. Alanon and the 12-step prograns are others. The journey does not happen in a moment. And the path should be rocky at times. But it is the journey of a lifetime. And it is the one journey that is worth taking. It is the journey to your life, your happiness, and your joy.
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