The sinister aspect of alcoholism is the generational effect that the disease can have on families. I didn’t fully understand that until I grew older.

As a kid, I survived the difficult times of my early childhood and thought that I had made it out in the clear.

I prided myself on how I didn’t drink much and that I never took any drugs.

In college, my peers experimented with alcohol and marijuana, but I never had a desire to do any of that. I would drink socially and felt comfortable with my relationship with alcohol.

But I noticed a pattern that in my failed relationships that inspired me to go to therapy and to Adult Children of Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.

The realization that what I had fought so hard not to be was what I had become.

How was this possible if I wasn’t drinking?

Growing up as an Adult Child of an Alcoholic had affected me in ways that I had to come to terms with, and initially, I felt deep shame.

I noticed behavioral patterns in myself that matched what I had experienced as a kid.

The Adult Children of Alcoholics Anonymous’ laundry list frightened me as I recognized much of my behavior in there.

Learning new behavior takes time, work, and isn’t easy.

But it’s also not impossible.

Decades have passed since I lived in an alcoholic home, and my truth is that there’s no magic solution on my learning healthier behavior. I compare the work I do in life like exercise: You don’t just exercise once and then you’re good for life. Instead, a health regimen throughout each week helps keep your body strong.

The same is true with the work I need to do to keep me healthy in relationships.

I shine a light on this point because I choose not to have my past define me.

I know that many have lived in alcoholic homes and don’t know how to break out of the cycle of dysfunctional behavior.

The good news is that you’re not alone.

The choices you make each day will put you on a path toward fulfillment, love, and health.

If you have healthcare, why not go to a therapist who specializes in adult children of alcoholics?

And if you can’t do that, try an Adult Children of Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. There might be several meetings within your town, and you never knew it.

Try reading the twelve steps of Adult Children of Alcoholics Anonymous.

And if you don’t think that the twelve steps with work for you, there are alternatives to them.

Let today be the day that you take your first step or get back up and come on the journey.

Each of us has a choice on how to live and whether we want to break the cycle of dysfunction.

What will you choose?

Like what you’ve read? Be sure to check out my other posts in my Let Go and Be Free blog.