The troubling thing about Alex's story is how relatable elements of it are. I was a hopeless alcoholic for nearly two decades but now thankfully sober for nearly four years and what a dramatic difference my life is now. .css-14iz86j-BoldText{font-weight:bold;}In September 2016 at the Mater Hospital in Belfast I had to make a decision I never thought I would be faced with. When I wasn’t drinking, I was very anxious. The top documentaries on substance abuse and addiction include: A series called Addiction was aired on The Vice Channel, where several episodes dove into the reality of addiction in different parts of the world. Amy also thinks people need to “be more aware of addiction as well as the physical dangers of alcohol”, and says she is “sharing Carys’s story because people need to know.”, For Alex, it's about keeping the mental health conversation around alcohol abuse going. The AA, I got demands for sex from the males, told by AA that it could not turn a man away, so I was turned away. A documentary about women's alcoholism chronicles the progression of the disease in Bette VandenAkker-a nurse, wife, and mother-who died in the fall of 2007. This occurs when the liver becomes damaged by the chemicals in alcohol, which stops it from doing its job of clearing the body of toxins. "But, the more you drink, the more toxic substances are made resulting in permanent damage to the liver and DNA.". “There's a real lack of sympathy surrounding being an alcoholic,” says Amy. People think their liver is going to be organ that suffers but it's all of your internal organs. Read about our approach to external linking. I wish more people were aware of the very real damage alcohol can do in the short term as well as the long term. From speaking to people, including people in recovery, it becomes clear that talking frankly and openly about addiction is the best way to understand the profound effect it can have on people and families. It’s also saved the city of Ottawa millions of dollars in public services – one man was hospitalised 191 times in … When the doctor said that, yes, what he was describing did sounded like liver damage, Alex cut the appointment short before being examined – and left. I may not be as bad as Alex or some people in these comments but I do feel like I drink too much, too often. “Even though my sister was desperately ill, I didn't feel that I was able to share her illness with the people around me. “Two years before she passed away doctors told us that she was terminally ill,” says Amy. People don’t understand that and it makes them unsympathetic.”, It’s been six years since he last tasted alcohol. Last year, Public Health England described chronic liver disease as a “silent killer of young adults”. Reflecting on my dad's life and death has brought me on an unexpected journey and has helped me deal with our relationship and his relationship with alcohol. Did he intentionally hurt me and those around him? His clinic is “increasingly assessing people with irreversible liver damage in their twenties and thirties. Dad was always very social and liked a drink but I have realised I was somewhat shielded from what eventually became a problem. Filmmakers Sherri VandenAkker-Bette's daughter-and Josh WE Hays employ interviews, family photographs, medical records, and court documents to provide a personal and detailed look at the … Lost a few pounds and saved a few pounds in the process. The number of young people who are ruining their livers - and their lives - is on the rise. Amy isn’t sure exactly how much her sister was drinking, but says it was “way above the recommended amount”, and adds that she would “put alcohol in fizzy drink bottles and hide her empty bottles from us". But perhaps another factor is not only cheap booze but the fact that more young people in this country are going to university where, studies show, binge drinking is an ingrained and, sometimes, problematic part of the culture. Pathway to Prevention puts prevention principles to work. Despite this, Amy says most people didn’t realise the severity of Carys’ situation because she was so young, had gone to a good uni, and because she had a stable family. PBS Airdate: October 17, 2018. There’s a huge conspiracy of silence surrounding it. I tried and failed many times and just ‘cause I’ve been successful for the last 23 months I know that it’s something I have to consciously do and fight for everyday as if I start again it will probably kill me. And one of the more significant sentences in this story, receives no further analysis at all: "He’d been drinking and taking drugs for three days straight". BBC Three Both Amy and Alex say that their experiences of alcohol addiction and its effects have completely changed the way they see drinking. I was left with so many questions; Why couldn't he kick the habit for me? Despite making these 'rules' for himself, the warning signs were present that Alex's relationship with alcohol was having a negative impact on his life and his health. Trapped in a state of denial, Alex carried on drinking, but that weekend, in the middle of the club surrounded by sweaty ravers, he says, “everything hit home”. But, amongst Generation Z’s slightly older peers, millennials, who are currently in their late twenties and early thirties, there has actually been a sharp rise in cases of cirrhosis in recent years. 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