4 Mentor Log: 1 hour 30 mins

I sat down and talked with my grandfather Saturday Jan. 31st about his line of work. He is retired now, but it wasn't long ago that he was counseling patient suffering from addiction. I decided to start with his past and why he got into counseling.

My grandfather used to be a heavy alcoholic. He is now 27 years sober. He got into other drugs, but alcohol was his main drug of choice. Addiction, like most mental disorders, is hereditary. It doesn't always have to be with alcohol, it can be cigarettes or addictive behaviors like always needing a cup of coffee to start your day. Almost everyone in my grandfathers side of the family smokes cigarettes, and most of them are recovering alcoholics. Even his sister was addicted to drugs.

My grandfather had a wife and took in her daughter, my mom, as his own. He is also a type 1 diabetic, which is the more severe of the 2. His health is already in danger just because of his diabetes and the alcohol didn't help. Regardless of this, and the fact he had a family he still continued to drink. It just goes to show that addiction truly is a mental disorder and once started cannot be easily stopped. It takes serious intervention and big support to help change an addiction patient. My grandfather finally realized there are more important things than alcohol and is proud to say he is 27 years sober, and many more years to come. He now wants to help other people reach their sobriety and can relate to them firsthand.