JÁN – multiple holder of plaques for abstinence Ján was born in 1953 as the third child of seven siblings in a working-class family. After graduating from elementary school, he enrolled in a vocational school, where he trained as an agricultural machinery mechanic. And because he was smart, he managed to get two learning certificates. He also did tests on a solid fuel smoker. He also got his driver's license. The time of compulsory military service has come. He spent two years as a soldier in a small town near Pilsen. At this start, a turning point in his life occurred.
Military service caused severe bullying for a physically smaller man. The soldiers treated him badly. This caused him to be on the verge of exhaustion. He doesn't like to remember it. Two of the then peers committed suicide. One of them for the military regime. Despite being bullied, he was exemplary in joining the military, obeying orders, fulfilling the duties of a soldier and, above all, without "prusers." Unfortunately, this was not without a "painful kick" from the ill-wishing and mocking soldiers. At first he was with the artillery. Then he was a searcher - a soldier, he watched the sky and the flight of planes. Later he was in the military administration of buildings. There he received a reward greater than a sergeant in the military. He earned up to 220 CZK per month. The first outing for the little soldier was not complete without beer. One innocent beer...
After the order, he returned to civilian life at the age of 22. He got a job as a worker in the Duclian barracks. There he practiced the trade in which he learned. The consequences of bullying began to show their first consequences. Ján began to drink more and more. This caused him to be fired from his job. So he had to find another job. He got a job in a tire service. He worked there as a machinist. He put oil in presses and machines. He was fired again. As he himself says - for schnapps. It was the second time he had been fired. He left for his third job. Alcohol addiction did not wait there either. After this last job, he only performed activation work.
Despite his addiction to alcohol, he got along well with his family. As a young man he went to discos and among people. Of course you drank there. Chučo, schnapps, beer flowed in the stream. A bottle of cheap wine for 10 crowns was possible. He drank such wine with two or three people. He liked to have parties where they drank together. If there was no party, he drank alone. What is a paradox, he never drank anything but sharp himself. He needed a batch for this kind of alcohol. Alcohol addiction caused him to stutter. Stuttering, he could not pronounce words and put them into sentences. Some of his siblings drank. Alcoholism affected part of his family. Individual members also suffered from it. One of the brothers, who also had problems with the aforementioned addiction, received probation. He had to go to a rehabilitation facility instead of prison.
The turning point for Ján was his mother's death. His family persuaded him to stop drinking. He voluntarily went to anti-alcohol treatment. He was there hard for three months. He undertook it responsibly and the first successes came. After the successful treatment, he went for two additional anti-alcohol treatments. During treatment, he participated in various therapeutic activities and competitions, in which he performed successfully. John is a believer. He did not use pastoral services during his stay at the charity. He likes to read history books. He is a multiple holder of plaques for abstinence. It has 6 gold plaques and 4 diamond plaques. A diamond plaque means that the person has been abstinent for more than 15 years. It can be awarded multiple times after obtaining the first diamond plaque. The goal is to motivate a person to continue abstinence.
During his stay at the charity, Ján was the longest abstinent alcoholic. Apart from the plaques, he is happy that he lived to retire. He was assigned a social apartment in the city where he was born. He is happy to live in his apartment. He wants to put the granted pension, granted additional payments and own savings into his own book and save. He stays in touch with his living family, nephews and nieces. He is a resident of the charity where he has been living for 14 years and has been successfully abstinent since 1994. He is on the right path in life. So much for Ján, a 27-year-old young man, an abstinent alcoholic who loves his life.
PETER – alternating abstinence
Peter was born in 1973. After completing the nine-year elementary school, he decided to learn the tailoring trade. Since there were no 4-year studies with a high school diploma offered at that time, he only applied for a three-year college. In order to be accepted, he first had to take talent tests. So he was accepted to the department of tailoring - creative sewing. There were 500 girls and only 7 boys in the whole school, including Peter. After graduating from the college and obtaining a teaching certificate, he spent two years completing his high school diploma. After graduation, he started working in a clothing production cooperative. There was a good team at work. And since he was good, innocent drinking was added to the camaraderie. Since he wanted to fit into the collective from the beginning, he participated in the so-called alcohol puzzles. He submitted to it. So he started drinking alcohol at his job and it started to add up.
After finishing his employment, he got a job in the security service as a gunman. Despite the fact that he was already addicted, that is, as he claims, he already drank more than the norm, he was able to pass psychotests. In the new job, he began to "put himself down" a little more. Peter was not alone. He found a partner with whom he lived for 14 years. Since she was an elderly woman, he did not have children with her. His girlfriend's daughter gave him a condition to go to addiction treatment and stop drinking. She no longer wanted to experience what she experienced for her own father. Together with his mother, he beat and tortured her with alcohol. That's why Peter went to a psychologist. The meeting with the psychologist went very well, but he did not go to treatment. Peter stopped drinking for a while. He was able to abstain for two years. He had to quit his job as a gunman because of his addiction. Alcohol and guns were incompatible. He joined a company where he worked as a foreman. He was the only man in the entire work team. Addressing him as Master, Mr. Master was good for him. Women have always honored him in some way. For example, a bottle. There, he really got down to business. It was then reflected in the relationship with the girlfriend, which began to decline.
Peter was a rebel. Under the influence of alcohol, he did an act that he no longer remembers to a neighbor in the apartment building where he lived with his girlfriend. The police had to intervene. He was banned from approaching his girlfriend's apartment for 48 hours. He contributed to it through his own fault. Peter is the youngest of the siblings. As the youngest in the family, he had a different upbringing compared to his older siblings. He was very sorry. Unless he lived with his partner at home, he lived with his mother and sister. There he was calm and his misdeeds were not talked about. After all, it was a shame that even the family did not want to admit. However, street shenanigans, fights, scuffles, arrests, police intervention, handcuffs and spending nights in police custody were common. He once committed a criminal offense of bodily harm. The victim of his crime eventually withdrew the criminal complaint, probably out of fear, according to Peter. He doesn't blame the family. He himself admits that he was a brawler and behaved like a crook.
He and his girlfriend eventually broke up. Thus began a new stage in Peter's life, which lasted two years - "hidden homelessness." Since there were tennis courts in the local housing estate and he knew the owner, he had a small "shack" where he was allowed to spend the night. Shower and hygiene were provided. He avoided begging on the street. His main goal was to make some occasional money and sleep. Of course, partying under bridges and sleeping on a bench happened during this period. However, it was impossible to tell from Peter's appearance that he was a homeless person. He looked completely normal.
However, one day he could not get out of bed. He thought it was a defeat. Lifestyle and alcohol addiction began to show its other negative aspects. He began to realize that this was not right. In a short time he met a field social worker, an employee of the charity. He offered him the services of a charity. On his advice, he came and tried it. It was difficult. He admits that his wild nature had trouble getting used to the charity's regime and demands. He couldn't adapt at first. He was alone among people. He had no one to talk to. However, he realized a lot during the charity's stay. Later, he found new friends there to talk to. And also a new friend, a charity client. As an addict, he was first in a rehabilitation facility for 8 months. He had a job there, where he sewed and did laundry. He didn't miss alcohol that much. However, by staying at the charity, he started drinking again. At most, he manages to abstain only with short breaks. At the end of the summer in a small town, he had a drink with his abstinent girlfriend. After two years of abstinence, the friend succumbed to the temptation. However, she reacted quickly and went for treatment. After returning from treatment, she started abstinence again.
With addiction, Peter went through a very cruel experience - delirium. Peter himself does not wish this on anyone. He saw demons sitting on his feet. When he ran from them, they started chasing him. Despite his tall stature, he was able to hide under a low bed, which under normal circumstances a person cannot do. He was afraid to get out from under the bed. The demons wanted to pull him out. Dark clouds, outlines, that was their scene. He has never experienced such madness and he does not wish it on anyone. One lucky thing was that a friend held his hand and talked to him. That was the only contact with reality.
Later, health problems happened to Peter. He was diagnosed with cancer, which had spread to several parts of the body. He drinks less though. Sometimes he doesn't drink when it's harder and he can't resist and indulges at least a small amount. According to the doctor, given the diagnosis, he had about 7 months left to live. Despite his drinking, he is undergoing treatment and taking medication. For a while, he took strong drugs that only increased his appetite for alcohol. He feels pain all over his body because of the disease. He compares it to being tired after digging a foundation for a building. Peter is still a resident of the charity. His girlfriend, who started to abstain again, encourages him not to drink and to abstain. He is happy with his new full-time job. According to him, he has an original job in his hometown - shift foreman. He cannot praise the family atmosphere in the work team and the salary, which surprised him with its height. Despite his illness, he wants to live for himself and his older girlfriend. Charity workers encourage him not to drink. He himself is surprised that the saying applies - what you want people to do to you, do to them. When he behaves badly, it is not surprising that sanctions come from the charity. It happens that due to the disease, his vision is sometimes weaker. He admits that God gave him free will. If he had thought earlier, it could have turned out differently. However, she is not angry with him. He doesn't want to talk about the sacraments yet, he doesn't admit it much. He considers it the last things in a person's life. He still wants to live himself. However, he continues to struggle with alcohol addiction, although he currently drinks less and is partially successful in abstinence.
Conclusion
If a person realizes that he has a problem with alcohol addiction, he can seek professional help that will accompany him in the treatment of this addiction. After seeing a doctor, the addict may be recommended for outpatient or hospital treatment. Such treatment may include a combination of behavioral procedures, psychotherapy, and pharmacotherapy. If the addict is a client of a charity facility, he can be encouraged by a social worker to undergo such treatment. Also, the family can create favorable home conditions for the addicted member, which will enable him to abstain and spend more time with his loved ones after returning from a medical stay. However, it is not within the competence of every family, as the alcoholism of its member may have disrupted family relationships. Often the addict finds himself completely alone in his problem. Alcohol addicts can also contact resocialization facilities so that they can return to abstinence by staying there and using the program. Support groups for people living outside rehabilitation facilities can also be helpful. As part of social therapy, these groups positively motivate to maintain abstinence or treatment.
Social workers should use all possible competencies of a social worker when working with alcoholics. Joint sessions, occupational therapy, social therapy and motivational interviews as well as patience are essential. Patience is required when communicating with addicted clients who do not yet admit their addiction. They can be provided with charity services under specified conditions. There, clients can be encouraged to undergo treatment. Over time, clients may accept such an option.
Cases of good practice in working with clients suffering from alcohol addiction can be recorded in professional literature and magazines and collections. In this way, they can inform the professional and general public with the necessary information. They can be so helpful for social workers in their work and also for those who suffer from alcohol addiction and are determined to do something about it.
Mgr. JUDr. PhDr. Stanislav Bujda, PhD.