Controversial author Anne Fletcher stopped by campus yesterday to discuss a familiar topic to many college students -- alcohol.
Fletcher, who is best known for her widely successful dietary self-help book Thin for Life, spoke and focused on her most recent publication, Sober for Good.
Through this human-experience based book, the dietician said she aims to increase awareness regarding available treatment for those suffering from alcohol dependence.
"My primary goal was to let the world know that there are many different ways to overcome drinking problems. In this country, we are led to believe that Alcoholics Anonymous is the only way," Fletcher said. "I wanted to heighten awareness of the many different ways of overcoming drinking problems through the stories of people who have been there."
The author gathered the experiences of more than 500 people through information provided by recovery groups, free advertising in the New York Times and other publications, postage-paid flyers, the Internet and simple word-of-mouth communication. She was able to include 222 of these accounts within her work, in addition to her own story of recovery from alcohol dependence.
Sober for Good recounts the experiences of those who have maintained sobriety for five or more years, focusing on the means through which they discovered, treated and have continued to control their drinking problems.
Fletcher's unconventional view toward alcohol dependence treatment in this country, specifically her opinion concerning the widely used program of AA, has landed her interviews on popular television programs such as The Early Show on CBS.
While many critics believe that Fletcher's book depicts traditional 12-step programs like AA in a negative manner, the author strongly maintains that she does not disagree with this type of treatment.
Fletcher argues that as a result of the overwhelming concentration on 12-step programs in this country, Americans believe that AA-style treatment is the only route toward recovery from alcoholism.
But Fletcher doesn't agree.
"AA doesn't work for everybody," she said. "Not everyone can connect to this type of treatment. Whatever works just works."
In Sober for Good, the author is able to highlight alternative methods for recovery from alcohol dependence, which she says are often overlooked in society. She focuses on widely used but under-emphasized treatment groups like Secular Organizations for Sobriety, Women for Sobriety and Self Management and Recovery Training.
In addition to alternative treatment, Fletcher addresses widely-believed myths regarding what indicates a drinking problem, how to handle those who suffer from dependency and the notion of recovery as a never-ending process.
In the end, however, Fletcher strongly maintains that "there are not right or wrong answers, there are only different ways to overcome drinking problems."
The Drug and Alcohol Resource Team, in partnership with the Office of Health Education, sponsored the event.
