Bill Wilson Research Paper

The Life of Bill Wilson Alcoholism is a world-wide disease that affects millions of people. In the early years, alcoholism was viewed different, more of a weakness and disgrace. Any strong motivated individual could stop drinking if they wanted. Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, struggled mentally and physically with alcohol. The use of alcohol damaged Bill’s health, tanked his career, and brought upon anguish to his wife and friends. Alcoholism is a disease that infiltrates the brain and physically plagued the human body. The first effect of alcohol links to health problems that resulted in Bill Wilson having mental and physical complications. Wilson started drinking at the age of 21 while at a party in 1917. The amount ofalcohol that Bill consumed in his body led to him having blackouts. Blackouts occur when the blood is not circulating properly. Alcohol dilates the veins in the abdomen causing the blood pressure to go down because there is less blood circulating. The brain responds by a feeling of light-headaches, and the body shuts down. (Hadgraft). According to Professor Gordon Fulde, director of the emergency department at St. Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney, “Alcohol on its own is a toxin. We put it on skin to kill bugs. It kills your brain cells.”
(Hadgraft). As a result of the second effect Bill Wilson started having problems in his personal life. While drinking Bill Wilson’s mentality experienced a transitional cycle. He felt more relaxed, comfortable, and his social interaction with people improvement. He also felt like the world was lifted offhis shoulders. Wilson thought alcohol gave him a sense of purpose, and he believed finally that he belonged on the universe and was a part of something. On the contrary, after binge drinking his mind became flooded with negative thoughts. He started questioning his existence, accomplishments, and was feeling pity on himself. Wilson escaped from the world hiding in his home with a bottle of booze. Alcohol prays on your vulnerability and alienated you from the world. It also makes you become violent, vigilant, and confrontational. Wilson became violent and got into a lot of fights. He brought upo pain and suffering to his family. Wilson’s friends started worrying and one of his old drinking buddies planned an intervention. Wilson suffered mental complications his physical appearance came under attack. He was hospitalized in December of 1934 after a drinking binge. While in the hospital, he prayed and experienced a spiritual encounter. A “great white light” filled his room and piece fell upon him. Wilson was released from the hospital in the middle of December of 1934 at the age of 39, and he decided to stop drinking. (Frost)
The final effect of drinking results in the ruining of Bill Wilson career.
Wilson became a stock speculator and traveled the country to find potential investors. Wilson was making good money on Wall Street until the stock market crashed. Bill Wilson got a second change on life, and decided to start a therapy session. In May of 1935, he co-founded Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A) after he was released from the hospital with Bob Smith. At first, A.A was a small organization and then became worldwide. Wilson wrote a book titled “Alcoholics Anonymous,” which is about a Twelve Step program. Now the Twelve Step program is not only for the alcohol addiction it is also for a variety of recovery groups.
(Frost)
This essay is about a recovering alcoholic that overcame his addiction. Alcoholism is a disease affecting millions of people. Bill Wilson suffered from alcoholism for 17 years. He struggled mental and physically with alcohol. The use of alcohol damaged Wilson’s health, tanked his career, and brought anguish to his family and friends. What started as moderate drinking to relax, became more social, and soothes loneliness catapulted into a habitual thing. After losing his job, Wilson entered into depression, different mood changes, and was eventually hospitalized due to his heavy drinking. Bill passed away on January 24th, 1971 at the age of 75.

Works Cited
Alcohol
Frost, Bob. "Clean And Sober: How Bill W. Founded Alcoholics Anonymous And Helped Millions." Biography 7.1 (2003): 66. MasterFILE Complete. Web. 20 Nov. 2013.
Hadgraft, Beverley. "What the Experts Wish You Knew About Alcohol." Good Health (ACP Publishing PTY Limited) (2013): 56-59. Consumer Health Complete - EBSCOhost. Web. 8 Nov. 2013.