If I had been paying attention when I was a teenager I would have known from my very first drink that I was an alcoholic and an addict. But at the age of 15 my thinking was that alcoholics were all old men who lived on the street and drank alcohol out of brown paper bags.

My brother took me to my very first party in the summer before my first year of high school. I was very excited. I thought my brother's friends were cute. When we got to the party I immediately found the wine sitting on the counter. You know the kind, Boonesfarm, a teenager's favorite. I sat on that counter next to that wine and I did not move until the wine was gone.

My brother was so embarrassed and angry with me. He swore that he would never take me to another party again. That was the beginning of my alcoholic downfall. Whether drinking or sober, alcohol has been in the center of my thinking since that party. And it began when I was only 15. So if you think you are too young to have a problem with alcohol, think again.

In the summer of my sophomore year, a friend and I went to a fourth of July party. The crowd was older because they were friends of her eldest brother. There were quite a few people at the party. They were playing volleyball in the backyard. They were drinking and cooking food on the barbecue.

I felt out of place. I was too young to be there and I wanted to drink. But I was afraid. I had already had my share of hangovers and I was afraid of what would happen if I drank too much. And I knew I'd drink too much because I always did. I found a book on a shelf in the living room and I sat down in a big chair to read. I felt safe. I planned to sit in that room and read until it was time to go. But I was an alcoholic. That beer started calling my name from the moment I sat down until three hours later when I heeded its call. I began to drink.

The evening was mellow. I never did anything I'm ashamed to talk about. What shamed me was the fact I could not say no to that beer. I was not able to go anywhere alcohol was served without getting drunk. Now that I am older, I understand the disease of alcoholism. When I was in High school I didn't. I was not able to have a good time without drinking and I could not drink without getting drunk.

I know teenagers who have sobered up. I am happy someone showed them the way to sobriety at a young age. I wasn't so lucky. I was thirty when I first saw the advertisement for recovery on TV. But that's not important now. What is important is I am sober today. For every situation I went through as a teen, I have a story that might help another teen to get sober sooner.

Learn more about this author, Lacy Enderson.
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