Alcoholics can experience real transformation -- debunking the idea that "There are no second acts in American lives."

Glow Images: Model used for illustrative purposes

For almost a month her family held its collective breath. T.W. (not her real name) had enrolled herself in an alcoholic treatment center for detox that included intensive clinical and spiritual guidance.

Like a balloonist in a free falling hot air balloon, T.W's life was out of control; humanly, things looked hopeless. Under the nightmare of alcoholism that included a perfect storm of downwardly spiraling troubles - legal, financial, and professional - anxiety, self-hatred, resentment were just some of the mental baggage that hurtled her inexorably towards the ground.

Today, things are looking very much on the up and up for T.W. She wakes up each morning feeling refreshed, invigorated and alive. She is not looking back. "I am proud to be an alcoholic; it changed my life" she says. The alcoholic identity means that she actively has to bid defiance to the crosswinds of temptation that cause so many alcoholics to crash and burn. "Recovery is a lifetime thing" she says, "yet in a split second, you can decide to have a beer. It's a vicious cycle." Nonetheless, she feels that Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and its well-known and respected 12-step program have given her a new life. In her case, having a supportive family was also a big help.

A 12-month snapshot of alcoholism's destructive reach in Missouri looks like this "35,450 Missourians were charged with alcohol and drug related traffic offenses of which 10,094 were repeat offenders." [Courtesy of Southeast Missouri Community Treatment Center]. At one time, T.W. was in the repeat DWI category herself, facing two years of jail time. An alcoholic for over thirty years, she never wanted to be identified as such. She would hide behind little lies as if "living on an illusory pink cloud where everything would be fine until you crash and burn."

It's hard to penetrate what seems like a heavily fortified, mental defense system of an alcoholic. Those who offer help sometimes feel like they are trying to startle someone who is sound asleep; a dreamer resistant to end a pleasurable dream of artificial happiness. Unlike T.W., alcoholics who don't face an impending crisis, are not motivated to seek help. And, when they do hit "bottom" they often land in a program where the help includes spiritual counseling of some kind. Spiritual Advisor, Marty Faraguna, works with alcoholics in a leading alcohol treatment facility in the United States. Mr. Faraguna feels emphatically that a core element in recovery is a spiritual awakening. To illustrate this point, he told me that "spirituality should be a priority in life instead of an asterisk at the bottom of the page."

Can an-all powerful sense of God lead to a permanent solution without being in recovery, in denial or somewhere in between? How does an individual really change his negative outlook on life and embrace spirituality sufficiently to permanently get the upper hand on his craving? Ordained Baptist minister, Harry Fosdick, is reported to have said "God is not a cosmic bellboy for whom we can press a button to get things done." Fosdick, who reviewed and gave his approval to the first edition of the AA textbook, seems to be saying that prayer, individual effort, perhaps a mighty struggle are required for a complete transformation.

If you're an Old Testament reader, says Steven Salt, a health writer in Ohio, "you may recall Jacob struggling alone with the demons of doubt and guilt when an angel message from God comes to him. After some mighty wrestling Jacob's spiritual strength is aroused within to knock out the self-induced anxieties that were haunting him and the subsequent loathing of his own character. His entire nature goes through a metamorphosis as a result. He's a new man."

Rock Star Alice Cooper credits God for propelling him through the seemingly impenetrable wall of addiction thirty years ago. This may surprise you, but other than two weeks of detox in a hospital, Alice never participated in AA or any other formal treatment program. The defining factor in his victory over alcohol was the power of the Divine simply removing permanently any craving for alcohol. Doctors told him it was impossible. Yet, he experienced it. The Bible tells us "with God, all things are possible", and Cooper describes it as something akin to just becoming a new man.

Wholeheartedly embracing one's spiritual nature is a necessary component for the recovering alcoholic to thrive. "A.A. gave me my life back" says T.W. of her newfound spiritual freedom. Those of us who have a checkered past can trust that we can find second acts in our own lives.

Steve Drake is a Missouri health writer who enjoys watching the field of health being transformed, showing that spirituality and health are linked. He is also the media and legislative representative for Christian Science in Missouri