Treatment Of Alcoholics Outlined By Dean Sullivan

Press, Volume C, Issue 29511, 12 May 1961, Page 15

Treatment Of Alcoholics Outlined By Dean Sullivan

The progressive phases followed by an alcoholic were outlined by the Dean of Christchurch (the Very Rev. Martin Sullivan) in an address to the Canterbury branch of the National Society on Alcoholism last evening. Dean Sullivan, who is chairman of the society, described alcoholism as a disease that went through stages to “decent, rocky-bottomy depths; then the ascent to recovery. “Alcoholism is a disease that can so grip a person that in the end it can break him, disintegrate him, drive him insane, or kill him,” Dean Sullivan said.

“The disease is no respecter of persons or ages.’’ he said. “It is a ravage that is wreaking havoc in the world and in our community.” There were an estimated

20,000 persons in New Zealand suffering from varying degrees of alcoholism, said Dean Sullivan. Sufferers in Canterbury were aged mainly between 35 and 40, a situation that, for some reason, was peculiar only to Canterbury. “Not Hobo or Drunk” "The alcoholic is not a hobo, not just a drunk, or a heavy drinker; he is not someone you can tell, ‘cut your hair, brush your nails, clean yourself up.’ He is not a moral delinquent, or someone who can recover by will alone. He is a very sick man,” said Dean Sullivan. “The first symptom of the alcoholic is occasional relief drinking,” he said. “It then emerges into constant relief drinking. The relief may be from tension or lack of courage.” The next stages were the feelings of urgency about first drinks of the day, feelings of guilt bolstered by excusps, loss of interests, neglect of food, physical deterioration, moral deterioration, association with inferiors and admittance of defeat. “There is hope for the man who can say, Tm whacked’,” Dean Sullivan said. “One of the most difficult barriers is pride. No-onp wants to say, ‘l'm beaten’. Recovery To recover, an alcoholic first needed an honesit desire for help, he said. He then learned that total addiction could be arrested, and that alcoholism could be arrested. “These things help bring him back to normality. There is no cure for the disease, but it can be held in check. “We are trying to tell the public that a great deal can be done for the alcoholic," Dean Sullivan said. “The society tries to impress on the minds of the public that it is a malaise—not a disgrace or a stigma. He appealed for public help in the society's campaign. He said the issue was vital and concerned everyone.