THE EIGHT GUIDELINES FOR HELPING ALCOHOLICS 1. Acquire proper ATTITUDES. It is difficult to help people who sense that you despise them.
2. Learn the disease through a KNOWLEDGE of its symptoms. You can't help a person with alcoholism unless you see that he or she has it.
3. Alcoholism is ADDICTION to a drug. Willpower is not enough; proper therapy is needed.
4. CONFRONT the alcoholic with the fact of the disease, and offer a possible solution. Alcoholics never get well unless given a chance.
5. Make alcoholics RESPONSIBLE for their actions. Every time you make excuses for the alcoholic, you have just paid for the next drink.
6. Use all the alcoholism RESOURCES available. It is a complex illness; it needs a network of people to treat it.
7. Never give up hope; NEVER BE DISCOURAGED. Even if the alcoholic does not recover at this time, the seed has been planted. It may bear fruit sometime in the future.
8. Alcoholism is a FAMILY DISEASE; all family members are affected; all need treatment.