needs to be made. Men born before about 1950 have much greater difficulty surrendering to the disease of alcoholism. We were raised by fathers who knew first hand the experiences of the Great Depression and WWII. These men lived through circumstances that forced them to mature to self-sufficiency very early, and therefore they had little sympathy for "cry-babies." A man does not do the following: cry, complain, ask for help, admit defeat, or quit...ever. 

   Al-Anon is so absolutely the opposite of our upbringing, that it is TERRIBLY difficult for some men to unlearn their early training.

   Because of this early conditioning, after all of the "John Wayne" modeling, a man over fifty taking the first step has to have reached a bottom that has ripped all personal self esteem from him. The first step says;

 

"We admitted that we were powerless over alcohol and that our lives had become unmanageable."

 

   I have sponsored many men during the years, and I can tell you that these men tried everything imaginable to "manage" an alcoholic wife. They spent sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars on treatment centers, begged and pleaded, sought out countless counselors, called the police, and hauled their wives to the offices of one physician after another as their wives' bodies deteriorated from the inexorably slow physical and mental decline caused by swallowing alcohol.

If you are such a man, or know one, just direct them to Al-Anon. There this "john Wayne" man will learn to listen, contemplate, accept help, grow, and overcome his early conditioning. We guarantee that he will not become less manly!

Call: 1-888-4AL-ANON or access: www.al-anon.alateen.org

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a private party with 1,000 closest friends, drugs, and alcohol - then declare success and rehabilitation from addiction.  This is ludicrous and not the way in which real drug rehabs operate.  I have no doubt that the large majority of these celebrities going into drug rehab have no real interest in staying sober, and that kind of attitude won't bring about recovery in any treatment center.
But for those who believe the actions of the few represent the behaviors of all drug rehab centers, this is simply not true.  With the dedication to get and stay sober, most treatment centers work absolute magic in maintaining sobriety, keeping substances out of the center, and keeping order and structure.  Drug rehab is not a vacation and at the same time, it is not a prison. 
Good drug rehab centers employ means to make sobriety fun with a variety of activities and exercises.  Most drug rehabs are good treatment centers and no amount of money will provide special treatment to give means for relapse and inappropriate behavior.  No level of celebrity can override the rules and regulations of the rehab facility.  No one addict is any more entitled than another, just as no one human is more entitled than another.
It's a shame to me that drug rehabs are getting a bad rap because of  a couple who have bowed to celebrity and money over  the gift and blessing of sobriety and if it were up to me, I would have the licenses of these drug rehabs revoked.  People should not be in this industry unless the number one priority is always helping addicts to heal.
Reocvery is possible with devotion to sobriety and a treatment center who shares the same vision of healing. 

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