Alcohol contributes to 100,000 deaths annually, making it the third leading cause of preventable mortality in the United States after tobacco and diet/activity patterns.

Although there are fewer deaths from alcohol related causes than from cancer or heart disease, alcohol related deaths tend to occur at much younger ages.

I have a friend (C) who talks to me on a regular basis, and the last few months the subject has been about alcoholism. "C" and her husband have recently decided to take custody of a little girl "M".

"M's" biological parents have been dealing with alcohol and drug addiction, and have not been able to adequately take care of their daughter.

This is a subject dear to me as I also have had my own encounters with addiction, and am very familier with dealing with it from firsthand experience.

"Tough Love" is called that for a reason. Addicts or Alcoholics put people in a position to make hard decisions because they are too selfish or self-centered and caught up in their own BS. to do what normal people do and live life on lifes terms. They can't be bothered with that. They leave these decisions to others either by default or design.

Some of them have to lose everything. I was one of those. I didn't "Clean up my act" until i was pretty much destitute. The greatest gift I ever received was the "Tough Love' given to me by my parents and friends. I am a blessed man.

It was a terrible thing for them to have to do. I never understood it until I stood at the other side giving advice to my friend "C". She was facing hard decisions, and in the face of adverse conditions, she was tough enough to do what she had to do.

I was just informed today "M's" Biological mother was found dead in her apartment. She was young-in her late 30's I believe. She had a failing liver and hepatitus B. We still don't know if it was suicide.

My friend was beside herself, and so was I. Noone wanted this to happen. We all wanted M's Mom to get better.

Death is the ultimate choice.

Despite myself, I wonder did i give the right advice? I know I did. It was advice that had not come from me, but from those who are much more experienced and have dealt with these issues 50 years befoe I was born. It's the same principles that had saved my life as well. Its a human thing to second guess. Alcohol and drug addiction is a CHOICE. Suicide is a CHOICE. There is help OUT THERE, and even the most HOPELESS cases can get WELL if they want it bad enough.




I hope I never am the cause of (this kind of) pain in others again.