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Quitting alcohol like any other drug of addiction is so easy yet so hard - easy because quitting is a decision which can be taken and carried out in an instant but hard as the need to make this decision is enveloped in a cloying, thick fog of myth, misinformation and stigma.
I am what is called a ‘survivor’ someone who has gone from being a ‘wet’ or drinking alcoholic to a recovering (abstinent) alcoholic and lived to tell the tale. That is why I tell my story at any opportunity. For it is only by telling our stories will us survivors get others to treatment. Otherwise thousands of Kenyans will die solely due to the stigma and ignorance surrounding alcoholism and other drug addictions by the public including most doctors.
In a bizarre twist, which is bad news to alcoholics, and their families the myths feed off the stigma while the stigma feeds and grows obscenely fat on the myths surrounding this most misunderstood of diseases.
For it is indeed a disease and this flies in the face of one the biggest and hardest to overcome myths and that is that alcoholism is not a disease but as the Supreme Court in the United States of America has termed it “willful misconduct.” Many Kenyans too believe that alcoholics are simply irresponsible people, totally devoid of willpower.
That if only they would drink responsibly they would not become alcoholic. The fact of the matter is that alcoholics even if they start out drinking responsibly will start drinking irresponsibly when they become alcoholic not because they are irresponsible but because it is the nature of the disease.
The fact that you or I would be unable to stop our hearts beating for even five seconds even if offered a desperately needed million dollars has nothing to do with lack of willpower but of physiology.
Easy then. All you have to do is not drink a lot and you will never become alcoholic. Wrong. Alcohol is a selectively addictive drug posing a threat to only about 10 percent of the population who are predisposed to alcoholism. So contrary to popular belief that if you drink long enough and hard enough you will become alcoholic this is not the case.
In fact for this minority 10 percent it is not the length of time or amount of alcohol consumed, but the fact of continued drinking which will lead them to progress into alcoholism.
Nor do people become alcoholic because they are trying to assuage psychological problems for alcoholics have the same emotional problems as everybody else. Possibly though these might be aggravated due to the excessive drinking as this further erodes the alcoholics ability to cope emotionally.
When they are ‘high’ their emotions are easily inflamed and they are prone to overreaction while as they ‘crash’ or become sober or are not drinking again their emotions again are raw and wildly fluctuating and exaggerated.
Enter witchcraft. This great myth is actually fed by another one and that is that an alcoholic cannot stay off the bottle even for a single day. This could not be further from the truth for most alcoholics can stay sober for at least one day. Indeed many stay sober for days, weeks or months.
It is during these periods that the friends and relatives believe the worst is over, a bad patch a nightmare ended. But it is actually just beginning. It is during these sober patches which convince all and sundry that the person is not alcoholic for as everybody knows "an alcoholic cannot stay sober for a whole day".
Thus when the brief but extremely pleasant interlude is shattered once again by another bout of madcap drinking, and someone whispers witchcraft all the drowning relatives clutch desperately at this straw.
Due to the high incidence of stigma attached to alcoholism and other drug addictions everybody tries as much as possible to avoid saying the ‘A’ word. Unfortunately this word ‘Addict’ is the key to unlocking the door to recovery.
When I finally said the ‘A’ word it got me on the road to recovery which eventually after many false starts got me to the doors of Asumbi Treatment Center in Homa Bay where I learnt what it was to be an alcoholic.
Suddenly it was like great burden had been finally lifted off my back. A feeling of relief so great as to make me almost hysterical washed over me. I was not useless. I was not a failure, morally depraved, weak willed, emotionally challenged wreck. I was an alcoholic and though the disease could not be cured it could be managed.
That was four years ago. Four years of living one day at a time, of rediscovering myself, my talents and most of all my family. Four years of becoming a useful, productive member of society again.
During the June 26th International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking held at Nairobi’s famous Kamukunji Grounds, the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan dwelt on this years theme "Drugs: Treatment Works."
Annan underscored that "one of the most damaging misconceptions about drug use is that it is a permanent problem. The truth is that treatment for drug abuse can work and can restore value and dignity to a persons life."
The speech was read on his behalf by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime - Regional Office for East Africa (UNODC-ROEA) Regional Representative Mr. Carsten Hytell who noted that "the theme for the coming 12 months is ‘Drugs: Treatment Works’. The goal of the campaign is to emphasise the importance and effectiveness of drug treatment - to drug dependent individuals, as well as the general public."
But perhaps the most notable point Hytell made was that the "UNODC hopes to diminish the stigma attached to drug users by showing the possibilities for a positive future using the stories of individuals who have successfully undergone treatment and are engaged in productive lives."
This was music to my ears as I am sure it was to other addicts then the UNODC Regional Representative added the icing to the cake when he reminded the huge gathering that "this is not merely a theme for the 26th. June, but a theme for a year long campaign."
Koffi Annans speech’s closing words are fitting at this point as he concluded, "when treatment works, it benefits us all."
David Ogot is a freelance journalist/producer with personal experience with alcoholism. He can be reached at goinghomedotcom@yahoo.com
David Ogot Sr.
Recovering Alcoholic
28th July 2004
Nairobi, Kenya
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