Adult Child Concerned about Father

It is difficult to say if your father has another chance after 30 years of drinking. Sounds like his new health concern is motivating him to seek help. This is the first step in recovery, a willingness to seek help. Not knowing much else about your dad, I can't predict an outcome.....what I can predict is that if he doesn't stop drinking, any chances he may have to seek effective recovery will eventually fade. There are no success stories unfortunately, alcoholism becomes a disease larger than the individual can control on their own. Nothing short of changing everything in his life would be required. He's spent a lot of time and effort feeding this addition, it will take equal the attention to recover. All we can do is have hope and prepare for the worst.

Seek Al-anon to help you understand the disease and how you can help, but keeping healthy boundaries to protect you from the pain of watching a parent destroy themselves in front of you and his family.

Jeannie Cameron, LMHC, CAP

Naples, FL