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Prakash Chandran: As many of us know, April is National Alcohol Awareness Month here in the United States. Since 1987, this month has been used to increase awareness of one of the most serious public health issues in the country, alcoholism. We're going to talk about it today with Walter Patton, a substance abuse counselor at Ridgecrest Regional Hospital Rural Health Clinic.

This is the Ridgecrest Regional Hospital podcast. My name is Prakash Chandran. So Walter, really great to have you here today. Thank you so much for your time. Now, I think people might be aware of what this is, but could you start by giving us a definition of what alcoholism is?

Walter Patton: A lot of people don't know that alcoholism is a disease. It's usually characterized because once you take the first hit, you lose all control. It's a disease of the mind, it's a disease of the body and it's a spiritual disease. One of the main issues of alcoholism is guilt and shame, because the idea that, you know, everything that a person has been taught by parents or caregivers, they feel like they've not been able to sustain that. And so they feel that they can't go to God, they can't go to anyone. As far as the physical part, I'm 31 years sober. I'm not an alcoholic until I put the first drink into my body. And of the mind, sometimes we have selective amnesia and we forget how bad it really gotten.

Prakash Chandran: Yeah, so that makes a lot of sense. Thank you for that breakdown. One distinction that I wanted to ask you about, what is the difference between alcoholism and alcohol abuse versus alcohol misuse?

Walter Patton: Alcohol misuse is usually associated with people with co-occurring disorders. And the reason why is because they've experienced some kind of trauma or they have some kind of emotional issues. And because of that, they self-medicate. They feel that, you know, "If I'm feeling depressed, I'll drink this drink and I'll feel better." And because alcohol is a depressant, it'll usually make you feel worse. So a lot of times, with misuse, it's just the expectation that it's going to fix something and it's not going to. Whereas in abuse, the alcohol abuser, a lot of times, I like to say that he uses for escapism. In other words, what'll happen is life will become too stressful. And when I say stressful, understand not just bad stress, good stress. An example of that is you win the lotto and the first thing you want to do is celebrate with a drink. Well, why do you need that drink? Because the stress of being happy is a little bit overwhelming.

Prakash Chandran: Wow. That's interesting. I didn't even think about that. I think I always associate alcohol with trying to subdue potential pain feelings. But you're even saying that when someone feels maybe anxiety around happiness, they can use alcohol to suppress that as well. Is that correct?

Walter Patton: That's correct. And you think about it, if you were to propose to a lady and she says yes, you're going to celebrate with a glass of champagne. It's just a thing. Now, that is a mood stabilizer. You have euphoria and all of a sudden you're getting stable again. Yeah, sure.

Prakash Chandran: Hmm. So, you know, in talking about alcohol abuse, can you tell us how many people are affected by it?

Walter Patton: Family, your spouse, children, parents, friends, coworkers, neighbors. Unfortunately, loved ones, they feel a lot of times that they have to be enablers because of it. My son, you know, he's drinking and you know what? I rather he drink at home than to drink out in the streets. So what I'll do is I'll let him drink at home. He's 14 years old. Instead of me saying that he can't drink at all, I'm enabling him to drink at home. And that's not a good thing a lot of times, especially, you know, he's a young kid.

Also, a lot of times, children, they feel issues of abandonment. "Why does mommy or daddy have to drink all the time? How come they can't love me?" A lot of times, they alienate themselves from family. And also, you never know who you're affecting. Personally, I had experience where there's a guy in south central where I used to live. He's non-verbal and every time he sees me, he shakes his head, you know, he nods his head because he remembered when I was that guy on the street drunk all the time, which means I affected him and I wasn't even aware of it. So you don't know who you're affecting when you're drinking.

Prakash Chandran: You know, I didn't realize the number of people that an individual drinking by themselves could affect. It really is crazy. And I really appreciate you sharing that personal anecdote. So, you know, you mentioned that you're 31 years sober. So I guess I'm trying to figure out what are ways to treat it, how did you get better and what actually works.

Walter Patton: Okay. Treatment involves counseling, such as behavior therapy. Sometimes medications might work to reduce desire to drink. Some people have to be detoxed. I mentioned, sometimes if you stop drinking, you can have seizures or DTs so sometimes you need to have a medical detox.

Sober support groups are very helpful. And I like to say, it's the only place in this world where I know where they really don't want me to drink. I mean, even in church, I mean they have communion and you're sipping wine. Twelve-step programs are a very good tool to use. Also, I think family unification is a great tool. But mainly, the main thing that a person needs for help is the willingness to live alcohol-free. And that's the biggest step, because the alcoholic needs to want to live alcohol-free.

Prakash Chandran: I know people that are going to be listening to this are going to be wondering how you got that will. You know, you talked about some programs that work, but you personally, if you don't mind sharing, what was it that made you want to be alcohol-free?

Walter Patton: It's funny because the first time I was hospitalized, my eyes would turn jaundice from the liver damage, darker than bananas my eyes would be. And after the fourth time, I realized, a guy died in front of me at a general hospital in Los Angeles, and the doctor looked over at me and I was only 27 at the time. And he looked over at me, said, "That's you. That's you." And that last time really, really affected me to the point where I became willing. And was I that miracle that just stopped? No, it took five inpatients. But, again, I think the last time I went, I was ready. I got the information. And one of the things that I did was a lot of times in the readings, it'll say "We, we," instead I put "I". I admitted that I was powerless over alcohol. I need to find a power greater than myself. And when you personalize it, well, for me, it made it more receptive for me.

Prakash Chandran: Thank you for sharing. That's extremely powerful. And I think a lot of people are going to resonate with the fact that, you know, it doesn't happen overnight. It's something that sometimes takes a number of times, but it absolutely has to come from within. It has to come from that willingness to want to make that change. And it's not an immediate change, but it's something that if you work at and you have support, then you might get through it.

Walter Patton: And understand for a lot of people, you know, that's the only way they've been able to cope. You know, you think about the only way you've been able to manage your life, good or bad, is with an evening drink or when something was stressful, you know, you took that drink. Now, all of a sudden, that goes away. How do you manage your life now?

Prakash Chandran: Yeah.

Walter Patton: And so that can be very, very difficult.

Prakash Chandran: So let's say that I have a friend or a family member that is suffering from alcoholism or the alcohol abuse that we're talking about. And, you know, we would rather not see them kind of hit that rock-bottom place. We want to give them help and support. How am I as a bystander able to do that for them?

Walter Patton: Again, Alcoholic Anonymous or other 12-step organizations, I'm telling you they work. You know, it's funny, I tell a lot of people this, "Two things I truly believe in, I believe in the magicJack internet phone, because as long as I have internet, it's going to work, and 12-step meetings, because they work." Do you have to do some work? Sure. But they do work. So 12-step meetings may be Alcoholics Anonymous. Now, understand they also have Emotions Anonymous. You know, they have different 12-step organizations. So it doesn't necessarily have to be Alcoholics Anonymous because, again, there's always a stigma about being an alcoholic. But sometimes I suggest people to go to, you know, other 12-step organizations like Emotions Anonymous.

If someone really needs immediate help, the Kern County Gateway Team, you call the Gateway Team. It's part of the county of Kern County. And what they'll do is they'll give you an interview and they'll do a phone assessment right there, and you can get help like that. My personal number is 760-499-3358. And that's my number and feel free to call anytime. But the main obstacle a lot of times, you know, is wanting to ask for help. A lot of times we feel that, "Hey, you know, I can't ask for help because then I'll be bad one more time." Well, you have to ask for help. Momma shouldn't do it for you, brother, wife. You have to ask for help and you'll get it.

Prakash Chandran: Well, that's amazing. And so generous of you to offer your own personal cell phone number. I do hope that people take you up on it, because you have the experience. You've already helped so many people, you continue to do it. And if anyone can relate and empathize with someone going through the situation, it's certainly you.

Just one clarification, you know, I wanted to say that if I were watching a close friend or family member going through this, what can I do or say to them to get them on the track to recovery? Like for example, I can't enroll them in Alcoholics Anonymous without their consent. So what is something that I personally can do?

Walter Patton: They actually have family support groups out there. Al-Anon is one of them. I'm not sure if the folks have ever heard of Al-Anon, but it's a very good support group that can help with people with substance use disorder problems. Also, your pastor sometimes or for sure someone who the individual truly respects.

Prakash Chandran: Yup. Now, I think one question that always surfaces when we talk about substance abuse and especially when it comes to alcoholism, is can someone ever truly recover? You know, this is something that I hear all the time, because you see kind of the news people that relapse over and over again, you hear stories. What might you say to people that don't think that recovery is possible?

Walter Patton: Well, first of all, I come from south central LA and then later on, I was in Skid Row and I was living in a box, okay? I recovered. I believe in recovery, but it all starts with you. If you have the willingness, if you really, really, really want change, it will come. You have to want it though. And you deserve it.

Prakash Chandran: And for those that are listening that might struggle with alcohol abuse, but don't necessarily see the benefit to becoming sober, is there anything that you want to say to them around how your life changed once you were able to become alcohol-free?

Walter Patton: Well, I became the best person in my life as far as where I was, when I thought I didn't care. By the way, that's the reason why we do the things we do. That's probably the reason why we drink, because we're so caring that we can't fix the world, so we just rather just not feel at all. And today, one thing I thrive on is being responsible for Walter, okay?

Another word for sobriety is personal responsibility. Check this one out. Another word for being an adult is personal responsibility. And the reason why is because if I'm still trying to grow up, that means I don't have to be responsible for Walter.

Prakash Chandran: Powerful. Well, just before we close here, I think that this has been a fascinating and powerful conversation. If there's one thing, Walter, that you know to be true in your 31 years of sobriety, just something that you could share with our audience, what might that be?

Walter Patton: Today, I'd rather live. I don't want to exist. I want to live. And life is good, but you know what? Life is also bad. That's where serenity comes in. "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change." I can't change you. I can't change me. And that's what I focus on. You can't change the world. And also happiness, sometimes it might be overrated, you know why? Because it's always a "Yeah, but..." So again, focus on serenity, focus on peace of mind. That's what I do. And it's the greatest life I've ever lived.

Prakash Chandran: Walter, thank you so much for your time today. I truly appreciate you.

Walter Patton: Okay, thank you very much.

Prakash Chandran: That was Walter Patton, a substance abuse counselor at Ridgecrest Regional Hospital Rural Health Clinic. Thank you for checking out this episode of the Ridgecrest Regional Hospital podcast. To learn more, you can visit rrh.org. Walter also was generous enough to give his personal phone number that is (760) 499-3358 or you can reach him at walter.patton@rrh.org. That is W-A-L-T-E-R dot P-A-T-T-O-N at rrh.org. If you found this podcast to be helpful, please share it on your social channels and be sure to check out the entire podcast library for topics of interest to you. My name is Prakash Chandran. Thanks again for listening, and we'll talk next time.