Where are the DUI Support Groups?
The past few days following my DUI arrest have been eye-opening. I’ve dealt with a myriad of emotions including remorse, shame, embarrassment, humiliation and self-loathing.
Now aware of the gut-wrenching feelings that accompany a DUI arrest, I’m curious how others deal with these emotions. Please share your story by commenting on the following page. Obviously, people who drink may have a tendency to cope with such anxieties with alcohol. So surely, there must be something available for them as they wait for their court hearing, BAC results and sentence. It’s interesting to me that short of Alcoholics Anonamous, a readily available support group is proving hard to find. Just because someone has received a DUI after meeting friends for drinks does not mean they need to join AA.
I’ve found a number of groups for victims of DUI, but haven’t seen any groups for people who are coping with the emotions and pending financial burdens of being arrested for a DUI.
After hearing my feelings of anguish after my arrest, my friend told me she’s heard the same story over and over from different people — the emotions that follow a DUI are overwhelming; the label, the guilt, the anguish and shame.
But even writing about this makes me nervous, because I can already hear angry responses. “The person who drives drunk deserves to suffer.” “You should have thought about that before you got behind the wheel.”
While this is true, the person who has been arrested for a DUI will need emotional support. I’ve beaten myself up for days now feel the intense burden of shame that needs to be dealt with in a healthy way. Otherwise, people arrested for DUI run the risk of reverting to their familiar coping skills, which may very well include alcohol.
If you know of a DUI Support group, please comment below.