As mentioned last post, the growing rate of binge drinkers is, in my opinion, becoming an epidemic in Australia. Worse still is the younger age of onset, with 14 year olds being given addiction counseling for drinking habits. Despite previous posts implying that the vomiting, wasting our time and resources as well as the physical discomfort associated with working with the soberly challenged being the bad parts of heavy drinking – the really bad parts are things I’ve never really mentioned.
I’ve seen families being torn apart following a member binge drinking, with often fights spilling out into the street as they leave whatever venue they’re in. I can only imagine what this must be like at home. I’ve seen ‘normally quiet, fun-loving and calm’ (friends testimonies) people swear, spit and bite and those trying to help them – including their friends. The toll taken on the private lives of binge drinkers, their families and friends is phenomenal.
Add to that any medical costs for ambulances and hospital care, police fines for drunk and disorderly, public nuisance and the financial toll becomes enormous, on top of the funds required to actually purchase the alcohol. To make this final step easier, liquor suppliers are more than happy to provide you with cask or clearskin wine at a fraction of normal costs and budget spirits and beers to keep you happy. Thanks.
Add to that the cost of a liver failing on you. Kidneys can no longer keep up with the demands being placed on them. Eyesight can fail as the small vessels that supply blood slowly waste away. Internal organs die as they’re literally preserved (and not in the good way) inside the living body. If you try and stop you might go into alcoholic seizures, your body going through withdrawal of its vicious routine. This doesn’t just happen to every-day-and-night drinkers, this can happen to those who binge drink only one or two nights a week. The physiological cost is your life – in every sense of the word.
When I recently got called to a young woman who felt the need to drink an entire bottle of spirits I wasn’t laughing about it like her friends. It’s almost a given that at parties like the one I was at there’s at least one person in this state – it’s a joke that they’ll be teased for over the next few weeks, but nothing more. I usually treat in a ‘kids… *sigh*’ attitude in these situations, which truth be told I did in this case. And, as usual, I gave a brief spiel about the dangers of drinking in excess, both the kids and myself knowing full well that it fell on deaf ears but that it had to be done – as if this too was part of the ritual. I’ve done it enough times now to know it isn’t going to change anything.
I wanted to grab the girl and scream at her – she was a university student, bright and with a good future ahead – was this how she wanted to live her life? It only takes one mistake to ruin an entire life. What if her friends hadn’t been there when she fell? What if she was alone, and started choking on her vomit? What if a sexual predator had found her instead?
A parent came later and took her home, a look of mild amusement on their face behind their outside ‘anger and disappointment’ as if they were internally reminiscing on when they were that age and got drunk. The cycle continues.
God I wish it would stop.
No comments:
Post a Comment