Elizabeth Vargas is well known in the United States for her work as a television journalist on ABC News and 20/20. She has just completed a stint in rehab for alcoholism. The fifty-one year old star managed to keep her addiction out of the public eye but decided to get help after realising that she was becoming increasingly dependent on alcohol.
Elizabeth Vargas and High Functioning Alcoholism
Elizabeth Vargas, originally from Puerto Rico, has been a popular face on US TV since the early nineties. She has been very successful in her career as a journalist, and in 1999 her investigative skills were officially recognised when she won an Emmy Award. Elizabeth is highly respected, so it came as a surprise to many of her fans to find out that she had an alcohol problem.
Some individuals seem to need to suffer a great deal before they become ready to enter rehab. Elizabeth Vargas, though, admitted that she has been fortunate to be able to acknowledge her problem before it caused too much damage to her career, family, reputation, and health. She is very optimistic about the future and her bosses at ABC News are fully behind her; this means that Elizabeth should be able to return to what she does best in the not too distant future.
Elizabeth Vargas Shows it is Possible to Escape Addiction without Losing Everything
It is often claimed that alcoholics need to hit rock bottom before they are going to be able to stop. This claim does contain a great deal of truth, but the problem is that most people misunderstand what is meant by hitting rock bottom. This term often gets confused as meaning to lose everything, but this is not what is meant. All hitting rock bottom means is that the individual has reached a stage where he or she has had enough.
It seems that Elizabeth Vargas has had a high rock bottom, meaning she has lost relatively little before becoming ready to break away from addiction. She could see where her life was going, which gave her the motivation to get the help she needed. It also meant that she has spared herself a great deal of suffering, making it easier for her to repair any damage done due to her addiction.
It is always up to the person to decide when they have had enough of alcohol. As soon as they have done this then it means they have reached their rock bottom. Some make the mistake of believing that rock bottom is about something special happening to them. The problem is that too many individuals die waiting for this special day to arrive. The best time to give up alcohol is always going to be right now, and there is no advantage to falling any further into addiction.
Elizabeth Vargas Wants to Offer Hope to Those Struggling with Addiction
It would have probably been easy for Elizabeth Vargas to get the help she needed secretly, without every admitting to her problems publically. She instead decided to be open about her alcohol problems so that she could inspire others to get the help they need. This very brave move is likely to make a difference. Many believe that the stereotype of alcoholism only applies to those obviously struggling in life; those still functioning despite their alcoholism can use the stereotype as a way to deny their own problem. By speaking up, Elizabeth is showing how individuals may need help for their alcohol problems even if they are managing to function okay.
