When I was in the tenth grade in high school, I took a drug abuse class. At that age, I did not comprehend that alcohol abuse in truth was a sub division of drug abuse. While taking this class and learning more about drug and alcohol abuse and particularly about alcohol side effects, I read a lot about Alcoholic Anonymous, their meetings, how their programs have twelve steps, and how successful the Alcoholics Anonymous recovery program has been for individuals all through the world. I also learned quite a bit about alcohol treatment and the diverse alcohol rehab facilities that are usually available to individuals who engage in hazardous drinking.

Harmful Effects That are Related to Alcohol Addiction and Alcohol Abuse

Some of the damaging consequences associated with alcoholism and alcohol abuse that I learned about in this class without a doubt terrified me. The ruined lives and countless difficulties experienced by most alcohol addicted individuals made me feel like I never wanted to drink alcohol when I became old enough. More to the point, I did not want to face the disaster and devastation that alcohol addicted individuals almost always go through.

Reflect on this for a moment. What fifteen-year-old teenager wants to face premature death due to his or her drinking behavior? What adolescent wants to become so out-of-control regarding his or her drinking that drinking alcohol becomes the object of one’s life? What young person wants to go to one of the local alcoholic rehabilitation centers to deal with alcohol-related difficulties before he or she becomes twenty-one?

What youth wants to go through alcohol withdrawals when he or she tries to quit drinking? Why would a person engage in drinking to such an extent that it would cause problems in every area of his or her life? Drinking later in life after a person has a career, a family, and develops personal responsibilities makes sense. But why would an adolescent want to sacrifice his or her education, employment, finances, and relationships for a life that focuses on abusive drinking?

These issues were so noteworthy that I talked about some of them in class during the school year. What was entirely astonishing to me was the number of students who essentially didn’t care about the negative outcomes of irresponsible drinking that I discussed. It was almost as if they couldn’t care less about the truth and how these consequences can wreck their lives. For the first time in my life I started to appreciate a saying that my grandfather used to tell me all through my adolesence: you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink.

It’s Beneficial, Important, and Energizing to Stay Away From the Debilitating and Unhealthy Consequences of Alcohol and Drug Abuse

And even at my young age, I also began to comprehend how important, liberating, and beneficial it is in life to remove yourself from the destructive and unhealthy end results of alcohol and drug abuse. And realizing this also led to some communication problems and conflict in the friendships and relationships I had in school.