Lately, I’ve been seeing a lot of stories about a rise in alcohol abuse in women. In the January issue of Good Housekeeping, they profiled Rachael Brownell–a mother who was downing a bottle or more of wine each day while watching her young daughters. This morning, I read a story titled “So many women under the influence: Drunk and disengaged, they put themselves, others in danger”.
Locally, we all know the story of the mother last summer who killed 8 people while allegedly driving under the influence (I don’t know if the case has been prosecuted yet). Last year, a different mother in Rochester left her children at home alone when she ran out to get beer and came back to her house ablaze. One of her daughters died from her injuries.
At 21 years old, I’ve been raised in a world where women have more rights then any previous generation. The one place that significant progress remains is in the work place, where men continue to make more money doing the same jobs that women do. So it is difficult for me to think that this may be the source of our problem.
The ‘modern’ woman is expected to look great every day, go to work, and then come home to make dinner, do the dishes, do laundry, plan their childrens’ social activities, etc. etc. While it is true that many couples are improving the balance of household duties, the stigma that we are supposed to do it all has not magically gone away. And it may be driving women to drink.
That is certainly what all of the stories that I’ve been seeing have led me to think. The pressure to try and do it all, even if we don’t ‘have’ to, is overwhelming. And since no one notices that you’re suffering under this stress, maybe you think that no one will notice you’re having a few more drinks then normal, a few more days a week.
Well guess what ladies. Its not a secret. Your children notice that mommy is different. Your co-workers notice that you look a little haggard. Your significant other probably senses something is up. They just don’t want to upset you by asking and making it worse, when really asking might help you accept that you have a problem.
Its incredibly easy for the extra drink to become extra drinks, and the extra day of the week to become every day. You might think that you would never be stupid enough to do something that could hurt another person, but guess what–thats what everyone thinks, and yet we still have these tragic accidents.
If this is the situation you find yourself in, take the first step to get help. Once you’re in too deep, its hard to do it on your own. You need to reach out to the people that love you and professionals to get help stopping. If you sense this problem in someone you love, show that you care for them by intervening before something happens.
Check out these links to get help now:
Women for Sobriety organization
Substance Abuse Treatment Locator
That was a different thought track. I admire your quality that you put into your work. Please do move forward with more like this.
[…] Some say this could be the result of changing gender roles. “We are seeing a lot of women come in doing relief drinking; they are under a lot of stress and pressure at home, working a full-time job and doing the majority of the child rearing,” said Sansone. This is an issue I’d previously discussed in my post ‘Women of the 21st century struggle with alcohol abuse’. […]