Email 
Bookmark 
Print My Husband Drinks and Drives
Every night I get a phone call from my husband. He drinks and then drives home drunk. I cannot get him to quit, and I feel like its my fault because I have problems myself. He is very gifted, but sometimes sits at home very sad, like there is something missing in his life.
The first thing you need to do is to begin going to Alanon meetings. It's the AA meeting for family of alcoholics. They will give you local support and guide you step by step in how to get help in this situation. Call information for the number of AA or Alanon in your area. You will get at least one phone number. The people on the other end of the phone conversation have a lot of experience helping people caught in this web. If you are attending a church you also can call the pastor and ask for him to meet with you and with both of you, if your husband is willing. When you talk to your husband about his drinking, only own your part; what makes you afraid. "I am getting very anxious about your drinking. I am afraid for other people who are on the road when you drink and drive. People are killed everyday by drunk drivers. I love you too much to have you spend the rest of your life in jail for manslaughter." Then stop talking and pray that he will begin doing some thinking.
Dr. Ginger Gabriel, Ph.D., M.F.T., is an author and speaker as well as a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in California. With Master of Arts degrees in counseling and missions and a Ph.D. in psychology, she has traveled to Asia, the Middle East and throughout North American giving her four-to fifteen-hour relationship and counseling skill-building seminars.
Her favorite pastimes are kayaking, quilting, hiking and reading novels. She is married to Dr. Stan Gabriel. They have three children and three grandchildren.