Treating Adult Children of Alcoholics: A Developmental Perspective

A comprehensive theoretical and practical presentation on the assessment and treatment of adult children of alcoholics. In Treating Adult Children of Alcoholics, renowned psychologist, researcher, and author Stephanie Brown develops an in-depth, integrated theory linking childhood experiences with an alcoholic parent to developmental difficulties. She emphasizes the importance of the traumatic family environment and provides rich clinical descriptions, linking systems theory and literature of the handicapped to the experience of children of alcoholics. Dr. Brown connects environmental issues with individual development. She details the defensive maneuvers required to cope with an alcoholic parent and explores their impact on the development of the self. Finally, she outlines the process of recovery, continuing to emphasize the link between environment and individual development. She traces the recovery process from its first step--admitting parental alcoholism--through the reconstruction of personal identity based on incorporating the realities of parental alcoholism into a new vision of the self. For mental health professionals, alcoholism counselors, graduate students, recovering alcoholics and their families, and adult children of alcoholics, Treating Adult Children of Alcoholics provides a clear understanding of the impact of parental alcoholism on the developing child. It also opens the door to a solid, realistic course of treatment that offers hope to thousands of adult children of alcoholics.