In a previous column Dr. Mooney and I looked at the link between genetics and the disease of alcoholism and the neuropharmacology that leads to the compulsion to drink. We saw that once there is the onset of the disease that certain neuro-chemical sequences occur in the brain each time alcohol is introduced into the […]
Posts Tagged ‘alcoholism’
AA and the Question of Anonymity
Posted bySome time ago, I had the opportunity to have an e-mail discussion about anonymity with a law student who was trying to decide whether he should disclose information about being an alcoholic and in recovery in connection with applying for a judicial clerkship. The conversation got me thinking about how we deal with this time-honored […]
Becoming a Better Lawyer: Identifying Addiction
Posted by“It’s just coke that you smoke,” the dealer said. “It’s direct.” John drew on the pipe and blasted off into the ecstatic edge of consciousness. This was John’s escape from the problems, as well as the responsibilities, of his practice and his relationships. Although it was not John’s intent to become addicted, he did. Within […]
Cave Paintings, Substance Abuse and Lawyers
Posted byOne of the most dramatic struggles in pre-history recorded in the Bible and myths of old was the conflict between the old order of hunter-gatherers and the new order of farmers. Gradually of course the farmers won, but not entirely. In a way the struggle still goes on in the neurochemistry of our brains. And […]
A Recovery Story: Darkest Before Dawn
Posted byIntroduction My name is Kent S. and I am a recovering alcoholic and drug addict. I am sober today through the grace of God and the fellowship of Alcoholic’s Anonymous. I am also a husband (married thirty-four years), father of five children, and an active member of the LDS faith. I have been a member […]
Alcoholism: Designed For Lawyers
Posted byIf I had to pick the quintessential malady to fit lawyers it would have to be alcoholism. No other affliction brings together the conditions under which law is practiced and the strengths lawyers have, and builds to such an extraordinary degree upon both the weaknesses of the profession and the strengths of those who are […]
A Recovery Story: My Life Is Ahead Of Me
Posted byThe Stories of fellow alcoholics are the fresh minted coins of survival. You pass yours to the next person in the hope he or she will see a gleam of their own life and find the reassurance of recovery. This is the story of a PALS member offered anonymously in that tradition. As I approach […]
A Recovery Story: Overcoming Barriers of Culture and Fear
Posted byDenial is a big part of addiction. The step from denial into recovery is a huge one, and for women lawyers it is very large indeed. As a young associate in a private firm, I faced a terrible fear. That fear was about addiction. I had gone straight from college into law school and from […]
Recognizing Denial
Posted byWe all struggle with denial. Denial is part of being human. It affects everything we do, the way we think, what we believe, and how we perceive our world. Denial is our ego’s way of dealing with realities that are painful or unpleasant. Denial shades our memories, prejudices our perception and manipulates our future. We […]
The Chemistry of Alcoholism and Other Addictions
Posted byAlcoholism is a brain disease. Brain research in the past several years has taught us much more than we have ever known before about the mechanics of how alcoholism affects us. At the same time, it has reaffirmed older wisdom about alcoholism that has too often been neglected. Seneca, the Roman poet, observed that some […]