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Show The Most Popular - Alcohol Country In g (Reprinted in part from Ralph, a newsletter of the makes him feel good. It's a reasonable thing to do. However, Community Drug Crisis Center.) there are times when it is the duty of man to feel bad, to experience There are. very real the "slings and arrows of consequences resulting from outrageous fortune," to have the blues, pay his dues, notice the holes in his shoes, to suffer the turning of the screws; in other words to emit the existential moan. Man's condition demands effected first has control over judgement, discrimination and inhibitions. This effect is responsible for the exhilirating feeling that is sometimes experienced after the first few drinks. As more alcohol is imbibed, the motor center of the brain is depressed, causing impairment of it. coordination and reflexes. Most people would like to forget these times but realize that they have to deal with them. Alcohol causes delay of transmission of electrical abuse of the most popular drug the country - alcohol, including a number of statistics that indicate in the destructive potential of alcohol. Alcohol is associated with half the fatal traffic accidents that occur each year. Alcohol also accounts for annual losses of billions of dollars in lost productivity for the national economy. Statistics bear witness to alcohol as an affliction suffered by society. On an inidividual level, alcohol causes a personal affliction called alcholism. Alcohol addiction is characterized by heavy, uncontrollable and persistent drinking arising from a personality disorder. People are. motivated to drink in a number of ways: to be sociable, to loosen up, as a part of one's meal, to follow tradition or religious practices, or for medicinal purposes. Teenagers are motivated to drink for different reasons: it's the thing to do, it makes them adults drinking to alter status. The alcoholic drinks in order -- to modify reality, utilizing alcohol as a psychological Some people courageously gird up their loins and bravely persevere. Others sort of stumble along in muddled fashion, keeping together, however until the good times roll. Some pretend not to notice, playing Pollyanna, in this best of all possible worlds. Everyone needs an escape now and then. Instead of facing the blues, folks may distract themselves with all sorts of devices; music, movies, roller skating, eating ice cream, glorious visions of the hereafter, drugs (in the context of this article, alcohol). However, when the escape becomes a conditioned response, it would be a safe assumption that the escapee was copping out, as they say. The error in his ways lies in the fact that his troubles are not being solved, they are simply being ignored. interesting to note that parents who turn to alcohol for escape from their frustrations and pressures, are dismayed when their children turn to other drugs for the same reasons. Alcohol can be used as a It depressant. The Bible speaks of the psycheassuaging properties of fermented drink. In Proverbs the reader is entreated to "Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts. Let him drink, and forget his poverty, and remember his misery no more." The distinguishing characteristic of the alcoholic a is intellectual arguments, in light emotional of the nature of the problem, proves to deep-seate- d be an ineffective method against excessive drinking. Reinforcement from family and friends is also vital to the successful recovery of the alcoholic. The appeal that alcohol holds for most folks is its capability to make people feel good. A person really can't be blamed for doing something that alcohol can see, something to be treated with respect for its formidable powers. pain-relievein- g with joy, pleasure, revel, and applause, transform ourselves into beasts." problem is compounded. Also, Ms. Moore explains, there is the matter of language. "We have those who are Spanish-speakinand those who can't speak English and some unable to speak Spanish. It runs the whole garnet." (Barbara for her job, was hired in part, because she is Chicano and can speak Spanish.) A large number of Barbara's clients come to her through the courts. Chicanos or Indians arrested for public intoxification will appear in court. If they cannot speak for themselves, Barbara is on hand to interpret for the judge what their story may be. Most often, those arrested will be referred to Barbara for counseling and possible rehabilitation. In addition to the language barrier there is the difference in ethnic backgorunds. Often a drinker who seeks help enters a recovery house where he can There are other occupational hazards for alcoholics. They frequently suffer from deficiency diseases caused by nutritional and dietary defects. Alcohol seldom directly causes diseases except in extraordinary amounts. g Bad health usually results from Alcohol that has been distilled has no food value. Beer and wine, however, do. There are some frightening neglect. conditions that afflict the extreme alcoholic. The "DT's" or hallucinations, both visual and auditory, and convulsions. The use of alcohol also has a profound effect on the unborn child. The fetus will undergo all the effect; of alcohol that the become a problem. Thus goes the dialectic of drink, more or less. It may be useful, if not useful then edifying, to examine the physiological effects of drink. Pharmacologically, alcohol is considered an anesthetic. In various amounts it has the quieting effects of a sedative, properties, and produces sleep. Alcohol has a progressive, descending depressing action on the central nervous system. In other words, the higher functions go first. Alcohol removes the edge man has over the rest of the beasts on the planet. Shakespeare, in Othello, had this to say about that: "That men should put an enemy in their mouths to steal away their brains; that we should habitual drunkard must include a redistribution of the emotional forces in his personality. A great many alcoholics lack adequate emotional security, a condition that has plagued them since early childhood. The use of logical, most people is delirium tremens involve with hard times, drinking has e and psyches. Some people, as a cure for their troubles, go out and get "balmed." However, when this becomes a substitute for dealing his utter dependence upon strong waters to cope with the inevitable vicissitudes of his life. To "get some caring going around" is what Barbara Moore would like to do for Chicanos and Indians with a drinking problem. Barbara is a counselor with-thSalt Lake County Alcoholism and Drug Problems Division. Her position, funded through the Model Cities Social Services Task Force, was created especially to handle the high incidence of alcoholism among Chicanos and Indians. The primary problem of the average Chicano and Indian is poverty. They are poorer by far than the average Anglo citizen. Add a chronic drinking problem and freqeunt barriers to their treatment and care because of their poverty or because of their role as a minority and the circulatory brain centers become depressed and death ensues. As mother experiences. This is neither salubrious nor desirable. The usual procedures for rehabilitating the chronic to place him in a hospital setting so that he can dry out and also be checked for any organic damage. Counseling is then administered to get at the alcoholic receive extensive care and is treatment. Many Chicanos and underlying problems. The various agencies in Salt Lake County that deal with drinking problems are: Alcohol and Drug Abuse Clinic; Alcoholics Anonymous; The Cottage; Men's Rehabilitation Indians will not accept residence in the Salt Lake recovery houses because they feel uncomfortable in largely Anglo dominated facilities. Recently, the Jndian community established its own recovery house at 538 South 200 West. This facility can handle the Indian drinker with a better Salvation Army; Utah Alcoholism Foundation and the Utah Alcoholism Foundation understanding than Rehabilitation Centers accept help offered by one they identify with more closely. Ms. Moore has been trying to assist in the attempt to establish a similar shelter for Chicanos. Program - Problem Drinker the brain. These signals are essential for the proper motor response to visual stimuli. Next to be effected are eye movements and speech. Walking also becomes difficult. As alcohol in the blood continues to rise, stupor sets in. If enough alcohol is ingested, 0.5 or 0.6 percent, respiratory 2- Help For The in impulses soothing balm for battered is The rehabilitation of the The part of the brain The Page - -- Alcoholic Rehabilitation Center (for men). House of Hope (for women), and The Haven ( for men and women). he might receive elsewhere. It can make it easier for those admitted to Current legislation before Congress would make funding for such a place possible. Until then the Chicano really has little choice. Ethnic identity plays a part in how the client receives Barbara's counseling. There are those who react overly to someone like Barbara with whom they can identify. Often she becomes, as she puts it, "a mother figure" to those needing guidance. Others are not quite sure what to think of a fellow Chicano and woman, in a position to offer help. Outright rejection of her assistance also happens. With the relatively small Chicano and Indian communities in the area, many are embarrassed to receive alcoholic treatment, attending meetings and the like, for fear they might be recognized by some of their people. Barbara underlines the fact that all information and treatment is confidential and everything possible is done to keep any case from being known. A drinker doesn't have to be arrested before he can receive help. Barbara is trying to establish what she calls "a chain of referral" to let this be known. Barbara would like to locate a "walk-i- n center" in the areas where the drinker lives and moves about. The walk-i- n center would "not be for rehabilitation but a place to talk, rest, get off the street and stay warm." This center "would help" make Chicanos, in particular, "aware that their own people do care." At the same time "it would give them something to do, a place they could go to talk about the same problems." With the center as one of its major links, Barbara thinks a "chain of referral" could be established between the problem drinker and the help available. Word would circulate from one drinker to another about counseling, the recovery houses, the walk-i- n center. The drinker could become more aware of the fact that he doesn't "have to be arrested to get help." Special effort is made by Barbara and her counselors to work with the court judges. She is r the the by way encouraged judges cases. to handle drinking try ( (Con't. on pg. 3) |