A Woman’s Battle with Alcoholism in Marriage and the Power of Recovery
How I’m learning to heal
So I went to Al-Anon.
I met others who have walked the same path I have, and I don’t feel so alone. All those in Al-Anon have lived with someone who has an addiction. They gather once a week to share their stories.
Yes, I have an alcoholic in my life. But I am not here to talk about him. It’s about my dance with trying to manage that addiction and how it nearly did me in.
Maybe I’m in a time warp or something because I am dealing with precisely the same thing I did exactly 15 years ago. Then and now, I told my husband to move out, or I was leaving him. His addiction had become unmanageable, and I was losing my mind. I guess I still have lessons to learn that I missed the last go around.
Fifteen years ago, all the kids were still at home. I had much to think through as I considered options for my future — and theirs. But looking back, I see that my fears and beliefs clouded my decision-making. I was afraid I would not be able to handle life on my own if I decided to divorce.
You see, I was trained to believe that women could not handle life on their own — and in fact, we were not even to aspire to that, for marriage and family were our goals. Don’t get me…
