Counsellors

There are many reasons why counsellors and therapists might feel it appropriate to refer patients to Al-Anon.

Whether you provide individual, couples or family therapy, consider the benefits your troubled patients might gain from attending an Al-Anon group.

Al-Anon may complement family and relationships work. Attending Al-Anon Family Group meetings can complement the work done with one-to-one counselling and provide a forum in which the person is encouraged to attend to their own needs
rather than those of the alcoholic.

Al-Anon does not provide counselling or therapy. However, you may find that the support and understanding your clients receive in Al-Anon meetings has a positive effect on the outcome of their therapy. Al-Anon members share a common experience.

All Al-Anon members will have experience of trying to cope with a relative’s or friend’s alcoholism. This can help those of your clients in a similar situation to feel understood and accepted. If you feel it is appropriate, consider pointing the way to a local Al-Anon meeting. A free and confidential source of support.

Al-Anon group meetings are free and take only voluntary donations, from members, to pay for group expenses and literature. Anything they choose to talk about in a meeting will be treated as strictly confidential.

Is a client or family member’s drinking affecting you?

Like anyone, counsellors can be deeply affected by a relative or friend’s drinking. If you feel you need support in coping with a problem drinker in your life, please consider attending an Al-Anon meeting yourself.

Teachers

Teachers are often the first to become aware of students affected by drinking in the family home. Signposting students to Al-Anon Family Groups can help them to find support free them to focus on their academic work.

Alcoholism is a family disease and it can leave young students feeling they don’t have a safe and secure home that is conducive to study.

Are you concerned about the home life of one of your students?

Has a student openly admitted to being upset or disrupted by another person’s drink problem? Perhaps a student has been struggling with their performance and you suspect there is alcoholism in their home.

By signposting them to Alateen, they could find the support and hope they need to turn things around.

Free, anonymous support for students affected by another’s drinking.

Alateen meetings are free and all members will protect the anonymity of any students attending. Should they decide to talk about their problems, everything they say will be treated as confidential.

Medical

As a GP, nurse, doctor or another medical professional, you will have seen the negative effects alcohol has on the family members and friends connected with alcoholics. Al-Anon Family Groups provides a free and supportive environment for anyone affected by the drinking of somebody else, regardless of whether the drinker is still in their lives.

Although alcoholics may turn to Alcoholics Anonymous or rehab or even end up in a hospital bed, their families and friends often have to cope with their problems alone. Given the limited time and opportunity for medical professionals to help family members, Al-Anon is a valuable resource. Signposting to an Al-Anon meeting gives those affected by someone else’s drinking access to comfort, hope and support.

Al-Anon Helpline

   Talk to a member in confidence
   7 days a week
   Free-phone

Contact Us

Al-Anon Family Support Groups

Dubai:
Shivani: +971 55 118 8532
Nicky: +971 58 546 0509
Alton: +971 58 594 3611

Email us: alanonuae@gmail.com

Alateen:
Elle: +971 52 268 9042

Useful Links

For free daily readings:
www.todays-hope.com

For free al-anon podcasts:
www.therecoveryshow.com

Alcoholics anonymous UAE:
www.aauae.net

What is Al-Anon?

Al-Anon is a group for people who are worried about someone with a drinking problem; who gather together to share experience, strength and hope with each other. It was started in the USA in the late 1930s and has since spread to different countries in the world. Al-Anon is non-religious, non-political and multi-racial. Al-Anon is available, free of charge, to anyone who is or has been affected by someone else's drinking, including adult children of alcoholics, parents, partners, spouses, other relatives and friends of alcoholics.

Who Are Al-Anon Members?

Al-Anon members are people just like you and me–people who have been affected by someone else’s drinking.

ALATEEN:

What is Alateen? Young people aged 8-19 who have been affected by someone else’s drinking are invited to share experience, strength and hope with each other. Alateen is a place where members come together to:

  • Share experiences, strength, and hope with each other to find effective ways to cope with problems.
  • Discuss difficulties and encourage one another
  • Help each other understand the principles of the Alateen program through the use of the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions

Alateen is not a place:

  • For teenagers seeking help for drinking or drug problems or a therapy program
  • To complain about parents or anyone else.
  • A social hangout.

How does Al-Anon work?

There is no magic formula that enables you to help someone stop—or cut back—on his or her drinking. Alcoholism is a complex problem, with many related issues. But Al‑Anon can help you learn how to cope with the challenges of someone else’s drinking.

It may be that you could help matters by changing some of your own behaviors and finding a healthier way to respond to these challenges. Again, there are no easy answers.  But Al‑Anon meetings offer the opportunity to learn from the experiences of others who have faced similar problems.

While simple problems may have simple solutions, the solution to complex problems is more difficult to explain. Al‑Anon simplifies a complex problem by suggesting a “One Day at a Time” approach, which takes things one step at a time.

At every Al‑Anon meeting, you can hear people explain how Al‑Anon worked for them. That may be the best place to start to learn about Al‑Anon—One Day at a Time.

Al‑Anon members come to understand problem drinking as a family illness that affects everyone in the family. By listening to Al‑Anon members speak at Al‑Anon meetings, you can hear how they came to understand their own role in this family illness. This insight put them in a better position to play a positive role in the family’s future.

Some research shows that when problem drinkers enter a recovery program, their chances for success are improved when they are supported by family members who are in a family recovery program such as Al‑Anon.