You Don’t Outgrow the Effects of an Alcoholic Parent

Case-control, cross-sectional and cohort studies focusing on protective mental health factors in COPAD were systematically reviewed. Only studies that were published in English or German were considered for inclusion. The systematic literature search of the peer-reviewed publications was conducted in four electronic databases (PsychInfo, PubMed, ISI Web of Science, CINHAL). To ensure that the results were relevant, the search in all the databases was limited to articles that were published between January 2000 and January 2017 using the keywords that are listed below. Epidemiological data on the number of children who are affected by drug-using or alcohol-abusing parents are largely unavailable. The number of minor children who live in families in which at least one parent has alcohol- or drug-related problems is mostly based on estimates and is highly dependent upon the applied definition of problematic alcohol or drug use.

Neuroticism/Negative Emotionality

MentalHelp may receive marketing compensation from these companies should you choose to use their services. The most popular is probably theLaundry Listfrom alcohol definition formula and facts Adult Children of Alcoholics World Service Organization. Groups like Al-Anon and ACA (Adult Children of Alcoholics) provide free support and recovery.

Personality Characteristics of COA’s: The Clinical Literature

1. They also have an increased risk of becoming addicted to drugs or alcohol themselves.
2. Children may blame themselves for their needs not having been met, which can lead to feelings of shame and unworthiness.
3. Studies were included when all the inclusion criteria were met (“yes”) or when information was missing or inconclusive (“unclear”).
4. A statistically significant association was also found between lower parenting stress and resiliency in children of illicit drug-using parents [27].
5. The dimension of extraversion/sociability (also sometimes referred to as positive emotionality or positive affectivity) encompasses traits such as gregariousness, sociability, dominance, and energy.

There are steps you can take as an adult to address the lasting impact your parent’s alcohol use left on you. Perhaps to avoid criticism or the anger of their parent with AUD, many children tend to become super-responsible or perfectionistic overachievers or workaholics. On the other hand, people often go in the opposite direction, mirroring the same bad behaviors they witnessed during childhood. If a child’s parent was mean or abusive when they were drunk, adult children can grow up with a fear of all angry people.

How Children Are Affected By Parents With Alcohol Use Disorder

If one or more parents continue drinking heavily as the child is growing up, this can also have negative consequences. Sherry Gaba, LCSW, is a licensed psychotherapist/author specializing in addictions, codependency, and underlying issues such as depression, trauma, and anxiety. In addition to judging themselves too harshly, some adult children of people with AUD constantly seek approval from others. They can become people-pleasers who are crushed if someone is not happy with them and live in fear of any kind of criticism. After growing up in an atmosphere where denial, lying, and keeping secrets may have been the norm, adult children can develop serious trust problems.

Interpersonal Effects

Hiding one’s negative emotions for an extended period of time can cause a shutdown of all emotions in adulthood. Positive emotions can become just as difficult to express as the negative ones. Children in households with alcohol addiction may have to mature at an accelerated pace. In these households, children may have to take on a caretaker role for their parents or siblings. Although assuming this type of family role at a young age can be a lot of pressure, some positive character traits can develop.

A person who is hypervigilant experiences an increased state of awareness that causes sensitivity to surroundings. This attentiveness can be excessive and may distract in work environments, family life, and other relationships. Knowing all the possible dangers is important to a hypervigilant person, even though these dangers may not be real. It is likely that hypervigilance stems from the shame and pain an individual experienced in their childhood with alcoholic parents. Because of this, children may have had to become aware of all potential dangers at a young age; this can turn into using.

Retrospective and Cross-Sectional Studies

However, this study was limited by the exclusionary criteria applied at the beginning of the study (i.e., neither men nor women with conduct disorder were followed) and by the narrow age range of the subjects at assessment (the participants’ average age was 47). Thus, with the notable exception of antisocial personality disorder, research on the relationship between a family history of alcoholism and personality disorder is sparse. Existing data suggest, however, that further inquiry in this area is needed.

When only one additional criterion was met, the studies were rated “low quality”. Growing up with an alcoholic parent fosters adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Studies have shown that 61% of adults have at least 1 ACE, and 1 out of 6 has at least 4. Having even 1 ACE can increase the risk of becoming a smoker, obesity, depression, and a substance use disorder (SUD). When an alcohol addiction is the cause of an ACE, there are specific outcomes that are present throughout adulthood.

For clinicians, researchers suggested that while medical intervention is not common, incorporating practices like screen and psychosocial treatments could assist adults and lower the rates of AUD. Children of parents with harmful alcohol or substance use practices report navigating emotional internal (and sometimes external) conflict around the roles of their parents. Navigating relationships with parents can be difficult, especially if they are navigating their own complex situations like addiction.

In general, these children are at greater risk for having emotional problems than children whose parents are not alcoholics. Alcoholism runs in families, and children of alcoholics are four times more likely than other children to become alcoholics themselves. Compounding the psychological impact of being raised by a parent who is suffering from alcohol abuse is the fact that most children of alcoholics have experienced some form of neglect or abuse. In one recent study, Gotham and Sher (1996b) administered a self-report inventory of codependent traits, along with measures of personality and psychopathology, to a large sample of young adult COA’s and non-COA’s. Although the codependency measure was significantly (but not strongly) related to having an alcoholic father, most of the association appeared to be attributable to a general factor of neuroticism/negative emotionality. Indeed, the codependency scale was strongly correlated with a frequently used measure of neuroticism.

This limits the amount of intimacy you can have with your partner and can leave you feeling disconnected. A sudden change of plans or anything that feels out of your control can trigger your anxiety and/or alcohol and seizures can drinking cause epilepsy or convulsions anger.Youthrive on routine and predictability. For example, if you couldn’t depend on your parent to feed you breakfast or take you to school in the morning, you may have become self-reliant early on.

You never knew who would be there or what mood theyd be in when you came home from school. Or you might have sensed all the tension just below the surface, like a volcano waiting to erupt. We would like to thank Julia Hellgardt for her assistance with the screening of the identified drugs brains and behavior studies. If this was the case with your parent, you may have learned to pay attention to small, subtle signs at a young age. Never entirely sure how they’d act or react, you might have found yourself constantly on high alert, ready to respond accordingly and protect yourself.

The researchers’ findings revealed that “in first-degree family members, alcoholism [was] more frequently seen for the primary alcoholism group, depression for the depression alcoholism group and sociopathy for the sociopathy alcoholism group” (p. 531). In other words, the alcoholic’s comorbid psychopathology was critical in predicting the psychopathological outcomes in relatives. Because of the instability in households with alcoholic parents, children often feel vulnerable and helpless. This lack of control frequently results in an unhealthy focus on having control over one’s life, situations, or the behaviors of those around them. An intense need for control can lead to problems with forming and maintaining intimate relationships.

Understanding the impact of growing up in a household that misuses alcohol is crucial for recognizing the need for targeted support and treatment. It’s essential for ACoAs and those supporting them to be aware of the resources available, including therapy, support groups, and strategies for developing healthier coping mechanisms. This brief overview addresses concerns regarding the impact of parental alcohol addiction on children, highlights the importance of support systems, and outlines effective treatment approaches for overcoming the challenges faced by ACoAs. In their life stories, the children understood themselves to be vulnerable victims. Parental alcoholism gave rise to various harmful experiences, including neglect of basic needs, verbal and physical violence, and sexual abuse by a family member. The participants struggled with feelings of abandonment, sadness and anger for lack of love and care, and anxiety and distress in dealing with the “two faces” of the alcoholic parent.

A major task in determining the etiology of alcoholism is to closely examine the interaction among the various environmental and genetic factors that determine a child’s pathway toward or away from alcoholism. Most likely, numerous such pathways exist, although only a limited number of critical variables may affect most of them (Sher 1994). The identification of these variables may help researchers distinguish “at-risk” populations that should be targeted for research and interventions aimed at prevention. To determine critical risk factors for alcoholism, particularly among COA’s, scientists have employed several study designs, including retrospective, cross-sectional, and prospective studies. Growing up with 1 or both parents dependent on alcohol can also result in symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in adulthood. These symptoms include hypervigilance, need for control, difficulty with emotions, and low self esteem.

In particular, debate stems from the fact that despite a common interest in COA’s, clinically focused literature and research-focused literature have resulted in two distinct bodies of knowledge. This article reviews important research results, with emphasis on findings generated by the alcohol-research community. Attention also is given to examining the empirical validity of concepts that have been advanced by several influential clinicians from the COA field. This category includes personality traits such as a tendency to experience negative affective states (e.g., depression and anxiety), a propensity for guilt and self-blame, and sensitivity to criticism. Cross-sectional studies of COA’s reveal mixed support for differences on this personality dimension. For example, studies using Eysenck’s Neuroticism scale yield contradictory findings.

However, even after statistically controlling for basic dimensions of personality and psychopathology, a small but significant association between family history and codependent traits remained. These traits included denial and feelings of having been cheated or “let down.” These findings were not unexpected, because many COA’s experience anger and resentment as a result of family disruption. Additional research is needed to determine whether the concept of codependency describes a cluster of traits unique to COA’s or represents more general issues of growing up in a disrupted home (Gotham and Sher 1996b).

Growing up with a parent living with alcohol use disorder can have negative effects on children, including mental health issues, such as depression and anxiety, and behavioral problems, such as aggression. No matter what role(s) you played in your dysfunctional family dynamics, its possible to overcome the effects of having an addicted parent and learn healthier coping strategies. Getting a clear and honest look at how your family of origin functioned is an important place to begin. Many adult children of alcoholics or addicts struggle with intimacy and trust in their romantic relationships and have difficulty expressing their feelings and loving themselves. I highly recommend working with a therapist who is experienced in working with adult children of alcoholics/addicts and codependency. Despite provocative findings concerning the link between parental alcoholism and childhood behavior problems, the existing database is limited.