Dante was a fifteen year old high school sophomore who was exhibiting numerous alcohol-related problems at school. For that reason, the principal told him that he had to see Miss Johnson, the school therapist, before he would be allowed to come back to class.
Later that afternoon when Dante went home after school, he had to explain his school suspension to his Mom and Dad. His Mother and Father were “relatively conventional” and informed Dante that getting discharged from school was not a workable educational plan of action. They told Dante that failing to graduate from high school would probably be like a lead weight around his ankles that could quite possibly impair his educational attainment for the remainder of his life. Not only this, but Dante’s parents were very let down that he was drinking in the first place and drinking with his buddies in the second.
His parents explained to Dante that even though he may be young, he has to comprehend fairly swiftly that drinking is the path to failure, financial problems, ill health, and pain.
It was obvious that his parents were absolutely in concurrence with Dante’s principal and told Dante that he had better make plans to see Miss Johnson, the school psychologist. After his dialogue with his Mom and Dad, Dante at last agreed to see Miss Johnson the next school day. So Dante called the school and made an appointment to see Miss Johnson the next day during his first period class.
The Counselor Asks Dante if He Understands Why His Recent Alcohol-Related Activities Signaled Such Alarm By the School Administrators
When Dante got to his scheduled appointment with Miss Johnson, she immediately reviewed all of the alcohol-related difficulties Dante had gotten into and asked him if he comprehended why his recent alcohol-related actions caused quite a bit of anxiety by the school administrators.
Quite honestly, Dante was not sure why the principal told him he had to see a school therapist. As he expressed to Miss Johnson, why should he see a professional therapist about his drinking behavior? In view of the fact that almost all of his buddies drink as much if not more than he does, basically, drinking is no big thing. Stated differently, if almost everybody is drinking, why is this such a major concern?
Miss Johnson asked Dante when he started to drink alcoholic beverages. He said that some of his older friends introduced him to drinking wine coolers when he was twelve or thirteen years old and getting ready to enter junior high school.
Miss Johnson told Dante that while his peers may indeed drink more than he does and that they may be an unhealthy influence on him, the facts are that he is the one who is getting removed from school due to alcohol-related absenteeism, fighting, and delinquency, not his peers. Moreover, Miss Johnson also stressed the fact that Dante, and not his pals, is the one who is failing and who is missing at least one day of school per week due to his alcohol related difficulties. Finally, Miss Johnson stressed the fact that due to his drinking behavior, Dante is getting into a destructive cycle of alcohol abuse that can in the long run wreck his dreams, hopes, and aspirations.
In a word, Dante’s involvement with teenage alcohol abuse was beginning to short-circuit his ability to act like an accountable young man. As stated by Miss Johnson, “Just because most of your buddies drink wine coolers, hard liquor, wine, or beer does not mean that it is the right thing to do for you.”
Dante Learns That Eventually He Must Claim Responsibility For Himself In Order to Keep Away From Destructive, Unhealthy, Dangerous, and Damaging Circumstances In the Future
Miss Johnson informed Dante that one’s friends can certainly influence an individual in a negative way, but that the individual himself or herself has to in due course be accountable for himself or herself in order to steer clear of destructive, damaging, dangerous, and unhealthy consequences in the future.
Fortunately, Miss Johnson was very organized for her scheduled meeting with Dante. She showed him reports and research studies she had underlined that outlined various drinking facts and statistics that targeted most people in general. Then she showed Dante quite a bit of figures and reports that applied chiefly to teens.
For example, Miss Johnson explained the difference between alcohol abuse and alcohol dependency and informed Dante that individuals who continue to drink in a hazardous manner frequently become alcohol dependent.
Miss Johnson also went over the concept of binge drinking that she defined as follows: drinking five or more drinks in one sitting for males and consuming four or more drinks in one sitting for females.
The Counselor Lists A Number Alcohol Addiction and Alcohol Abuse Facts and Statistics
Then Miss Johnson verbalized various alcohol facts and the following eight alcohol abuse statistics:
1. The 25.9% of adolescent drinkers in the U.S. who are alcohol abusers and alcohol dependent drink 47.3% of the alcohol that is ingested by all teenage drinkers.
2. Fifty percent of U.S. homicides are related to alcohol.
3. In 2002, U.S. alcoholism statistics and facts demonstrated that 2.6 million binge drinkers were between the ages of 12 and 17.
4. It is projected that more than 3 million adolescents in the U.S. between the ages of 14 to 17 are problem drinkers.
5. In the U.S., more than forty percent of those who start drinking at the age 14 or younger become addicted to alcohol.
6. Very few of the more than 18 million U.S. alcohol abusers receive the alcohol treatment they require.
7. Adolescent drinking costs Americans nearly $53 billion per year. If this cost were shared equally by each congressional district, the amount would total more than $120 million per district.
8. Alcohol-related difficulties are unevenly found among both juvenile and adult criminal offenders.
Dante Gets A Meaningful Jolt of Reality About the Long Term and the Short Term Consequences of Teenage Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
After Miss Johnson presented the aforementioned alcohol dependency and alcohol abuse facts and statistics, it was apparent that what Miss Johnson made known to Dante was a real jolt to him. Why? Because for the first time in his young life, someone not only took the time to articulate the short term and the long term outcomes of alcoholism and alcohol abuse, but she also made the effort to demonstrate what she was saying with alcohol abuse and alcohol dependency statistics and facts that related to everyone, and principally to young people.
Without a doubt, it was almost as if a light went on and Dante at once realized why he should not be engaging in hazardous and abusive drinking with or without his classmates any longer. Dante thanked Miss Johnson for her concern and for the information she discussed.
Miss Johnson then asked Dante how he felt about getting a physical exam and an alcohol appraisal for the alcohol treatment he would probably need. Dante thought about this for a minute and then agreed to get a complete physical and to go through an extensive evaluation of his drinking behavior so that he could start an alcohol treatment program promptly. After meeting with Miss Johnson, not only did he think that he had established an enhanced relationship with her, but it was also apparent that Dante’s self esteem and personal happiness had been boosted as he began to address his excessive and abusive drinking.