Dear Queenie,
My father is an alcoholic and my mother asked me to get rid of all the alcohol in their home so he would have to stop drinking. I didn’t find all of it and now she blames me because he hasn’t stopped drinking.
I work a full-time job and support myself and pay my own rent on my own home. Worrying about them is stressing me out and I don’t know how much more I can take.
Queenie, what advice do you have for me?—Frazzled
Dear Frazzled,
As you do not live with your parents and you do not indicate that your mother is disabled in any way, it is her responsibility, not yours, to deal with your father’s alcoholic tendencies. Learn to say “NO” when she tries to make it your problem.
Also, I suggest both you and your mother attend some Al-Anon meetings for help in coping with your alcoholic father.
