# Amost homeless



## pgk453

How do you help an almost homeless alcohlic? He lives on social security but his loosing his apt. because he spends the money on booze and prostitutes. He goes days without eating. He had access to the Vets. but they kicked him out for violating the no-drinking rule. Next step is homeless. Any suggestions on how help him?


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## Chris H.

Go to al-anon, and introduce him to AA if he hasn't been before. Sometimes it's best to set firm boundaries and let the person be homeless if that is the path they choose.


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## 827Aug

My father had to deal with this same issue years ago. He had an alcoholic brother which basically got to the same point you are describing. Only he was living with their elderly parents when my farther got involved. He tried many things to get him to stop drinking. Nothing worked. My father finally took him to a psychiatrist on base. The psychiatrist basically said nothing was going to work until my uncle decided to quit the booze. And he was right. Nothing can make an alcoholic kick the habit until THEY want to. Sometimes all you can do is watch until that person is ready for help.....and sometimes it takes "hitting rock bottom".

Wish you the best with this.


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## Prodigal

It is awful to watch an addict completely trash their lives. Even homeless, they find ways to panhandle to get booze. I have a gf - now 30-plus years sober - who was living out of her car and on the streets. She still managed to get booze. Her bottom was having her heart stop. The docs in the ER could not bring her back for about 30 minutes, and she told me she saw "people" who told her, "It's not time yet." Hey, who am I to say what people see who are clinically "dead"?

It took that much for her to crawl into an AA meeting. And she had to want it bad enough to do it on her own.

You can give the alcoholic a listing of the local AA meetings and a phone number. Other than that, a drunk won't stop drinking until they reach their bottom. Sadly, some people's bottom is six feet under.


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## pgk453

I agree with your post. We have already been down the AA route and also what I would consider rock bottom. At this point the drink is just keeping him from convulsing until he dies. It is sad for my kids and I wish there was a place that took these kind of people in. Without being sober he has no options.


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## Prodigal

I believe a homeless shelter or any Salvation Army facility will take in an A, regardless of their condition. I'm sorry to hear that rock bottom isn't even bottom for this addict. My gf who got sober after her near-death experience lived at a Salvation Army shelter for months - and she was in very bad shape for the first year of her sobriety.

Sorry I can't offer more than that, but perhaps you could call homeless shelters in your area to see if they would give the A a place to sleep and a decent meal.


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## BleepingFamily

Gee I hate to sound pessimistic but what if I told you that there is absolutely nothing you can do to save him?

Some people chose this kind of life. In fact this guy spends money on alcohol and prostitutes. If he is an alcoholic, you can buy cheap booze and still pay rent. But prostitutes? Really?

Focus on yourself, not on people who you cannot save or change.

Good Luck!

Mike


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## ItHappenedToMe

*Re: Almost homeless*

Pkg, you describe someone that is important to me, too. And I know there is nothing I can outside of pray for him. It took us months to get his life in presentable shape, and within 6 months he had trashed it again completely. Incredibly heartbreaking for me. Currently, his LL is threatening eviction and he left his job for disability. Is he in treatment? No. Out screwing some woman, and her life, too.

Bleeping family, why don't you get his need for affection, even if it has to be purchased? These people are narssistic, and they want what they want, [email protected] be whatever they need.


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