tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7821345570811107481.post4074379987983152784..comments2024-03-17T00:13:44.599-07:00Comments on Marty Nemko: How to Stop Your Alcohol Abuse, Drug AbuseMarty Nemkohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14850388752934193821noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7821345570811107481.post-13652300938065335472010-05-03T23:11:15.976-07:002010-05-03T23:11:15.976-07:00Dear N. Morgenstern,
Thank you for your excellent...Dear N. Morgenstern,<br /><br />Thank you for your excellent addition to my list of approaches.<br /><br />MartyMarty Nemkohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14850388752934193821noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7821345570811107481.post-86323699012050227272010-05-03T23:00:44.376-07:002010-05-03T23:00:44.376-07:00Pharmaceuticals can be a very helpful tool for ove...Pharmaceuticals can be a very helpful tool for overcoming addiction. As a ten-year alcoholic, I'd been to AA numerous times, always relapsing shortly after. No matter how many relationships I ruined, I couldn't stop drinking excessively. Blackouts were common and the shame of my drunken behavior didn't stop me. The THIRST was just too damn strong to quell. <br /><br />Then, a very persistent (and indefatigable) girlfriend persuaded me to seek therapy, and that lead to visiting a psychiatrist. I was diagnosed with severe depression and anxiety disorder. I was prescribed an anti-depressant (Effexor). The theory being, as I understand it, I was uncomfortable with myself and around others and self-medicated with booze,<br /><br />I had never thought of having a problem OTHER than drinking. Now there was a new insight, my brain was faulty. Now, three years later, I feel completely better, and I still have drinks from time to time, but never like before. The THIRST no longer runs my life. No more nagging anxiety and shame and uncertainty of what I did the night before. The change wasn't instantaneous, the drugs don't work like that. You don't wake up happy one day. But slowly, you gain resilience. Enough to hold off on the sauce. <br /><br />I was never one to believe in "mental problems." I'm one of those guys who was raised by a Vietnam Vet and urged to be fiercely self-reliant. Pull yourself up by your bootstraps, no one's gonna help you. Even after starting medication and therapy I was doubtful. More brain mumbo jumbo to get money from me. But it has worked, at least for me. And it might for you.<br />To those men out there that feel the THIRST, if you want to alter your ways, I recommend trying all the options. AA didn't work for me (it might for you), but medication and therapy did.<br /><br />To the afflicted who want to change, good luck.N.Morgensternnoreply@blogger.com