Interview with an Alcoholic: A Personal Perspective

Background of the Participant

Provide an introduction that reminds the reader of your overall topic and then discusses the perspective of this participant. Provide me  with the basics about your participant and how you felt the interview went. Then, summarize what you learned from the participant about the topic. I do NOT want the list of questions and answers that you gathered; instead, I want you to interpret the information they shared with you in light of the source material you collected.  How does it relate to the source material? What examples can you provide the supports or refutes the specific information you gathered for them? Cite sources throughout. Make sure that I get the whole picture of what they shared, but in your words with sprinkles of their words and support from the literature you gathered. Your paper should have an introduction, body, and conclusion and be written in essay form. 
You will be connecting the three sources you gathered in Topic 5 and integrating those sources for the participant that you interviewed for this paper. Make sure that this paper has an introduction and a conclusion.

1.Looking back on your life, did you fear that you would become an alcoholic?
No, because it never accrued to him that he would be addicted. The word “never” came up. 
2.What was it like to grow up in an alcoholic home? 
He thought it was “normal.” It didn’t occur to him that it was not “normal” until the year 1964. Michael still didn’t know how messed up the family was until he went to college.
3.When did you take your first drink? 
Seven years old. When there was a celebration, my parents would offer a little cup of wine to me.
4.Did you like the taste of alcohol then? 
Yes, we lived in California, and there was nothing but a grape vineyard, and everyone drank wine.
5.What drove you initially to drink? 
Everyone was drinking. I thought it was “normal,” so I drank. It was free.
6.What age were you when you initially drank alcohol? 
15 years old. I was skipping school, and there was alcohol there where I was, and I liked the taste right away. 
7.Did you think of the consequences when you, or if you got caught? 
No, I never got caught. I guess I was sneaky that way. My father worked a full-time job, and my mother just kept food on the table, clothes on our backs, and a roof over our heads.
8.When did you stop drinking? Why?
I was 35 years old. I went to court, and the judge sentenced me to treatment instead of going to jail. So I entered a treatment program, and I finally saw what I was doing to myself when I was drinking.
9.Why did you decide to stop drinking?
While I was there in treatment, I had a spiritual experience, seeing what drinking was doing to me. I had a recurring nightly vision that I could not turn off while trying to sleep. Somewhere in there, I made the conscious decision to quit. I did not like what drinking was doing to me.
10.What do you think about your sobriety now? Why?
My sobriety is the best thing that ever happened to me. I am financially secure with a place of my own. I do not have to couch surf. I am confident with my life, and I am married to the most beautiful woman. I never thought I could have this life ever.
(10 questions for ‘Dakota,’ from Washington)
1.What age were you when you picked up your first alcoholic beverage? 
I was 13 years old when I first picked up my first alcoholic beverage
2.Why did you decide to drink in the first place?
I was in a bad place in my young life. I didn’t think I could go to my parents and talk to them, or instead, I did not want to tell my parents what was going on with me. I was running with a gang, and I did not want to say to my parents, I did not think they would understand.
3.Did you like the taste of the beverage?
I loved the taste of alcohol then, and I still do now. I drink to numb the pain that I was feeling then, and I numb the pain I am feeling now.
4.Did you think of the consequences if you came home, and your parents noticed you were intoxicated?
I had come home intoxicated a few times when I started drinking, and my parents did not notice. I should say that I would go home and go straight to my room. I would not give my parents a chance to ask questions. Instead, I would use the excuse of ‘I do not feel good. I am going to bed’, No, I did not think of the consequences, or do I care.
5.Why did you continue to drink when you were a (pre-teen)?
I drank to numb my pain. I do not like to feel emotions. I have tried counseling, and it was just a waste of time, I think. I would not open up to the person.
6.Why do you continue to drink now?
I like the taste of alcohol, and I do not care about the consequences, and no one can stop me.
7.Does your drinking numb your pain? Why or how come?
In my opinion, yes, drinking does numb my pain. I am tired of staring at the walls in my room, so I go out to my friends, and we drink to have fun.
8.Whatever made you decide to drink? 
I was in a place in my life where I did not think alcohol would not hurt me. One drink cannot hurt anyone.
9.Did you ever feel peer-pressured to drink? 
No, I have the right to say no to drinking, but I do not. I accept alcohol when I can.
10. Do you feel peer pressured to drink now?
No, because it is my life, and I will do what I want. My parents could not stop me.
11. Knowing your parent(s) do not like your choice of drinking, why do you continue to do so?
I love the taste of alcohol, and I have no plans of quitting drinking until I am good and ready.