Ted Kennedy Jr. Ought To Apologize To Patrick Kennedy For Ridiculing Him Over His New Book On Addiction And Mental Illness By Alexandra D. Datig

Available on Amazon.com

By Alexandra D. Datig, Oct. 5, 2015

The Boston Globe published an article on Sunday about an interview Patrick Kennedy gave regarding his new book “A Common Struggle: A Personal Journey Through the Past and Future of Mental Illness and Addiction.”

It may come as a surprise to some that Patrick Kennedy, who is in recovery more than four consecutive years, found himself being criticized by his own family for courageously talking about his battles with addiction and mental illness.  In the Boston Globe article Kennedy’s brother Ted Jr. is quoted as having said about his brother’s account that it is an “inaccurate and unfair portrayal of our family.”

The Kennedy Family is one of America’s most prominent families that has seen the dark side of public life in the most devastating ways imaginable.  The prolonged suffering resulting from shooting deaths of his brothers, President John F. Kennedy and Senator Robert Kennedy are without a doubt a lifelong reflection of sorrow for Patrick Kennedy and the Kennedy family as a whole.  Many Americans can probably understand how such devastation can result in finding comfort in the bottle to numb out the reality of what took place.  The question is however; can Americans understand with the same level of empathy how Patrick Kennedy found solace in recovery to deal with the reality of the devastation he is reminded of for the rest of his life?

Beating addiction is the toughest thing I have ever done.  Even after 16 years of recovery, I realize I know very little about addiction, especially someone else’s.  What I do know is addiction is a daily reprieve. It is a second chance at life.  A chance every addict deserves.  Why is it then we don’t see the kind of family support people in recovery deserve?

While drinking and drugging is a conscious choice, the progressive brain disease resulting from addiction is not.  Bottles of alcohol do not warn drinking may cause lack of impulse control that cause behavior which may be harmful to the user and may cause the user to become a danger to him or herself and others.  Families should to be educated to become more understanding of the helplessness and hopelessness addiction brings. 

Patrick Kennedy is courageous and brave to take on the issue of addiction and mental illness at the government level.  His work to bring about much needed change in how we view addiction as a health problem instead of a moral failing and a criminal justice problem ought to be strongly supported, especially by his family.

Lack of family support can further devastate and even trigger harmful relapse in an addict.  Family support is essential for the mental health of the entire family as addiction affects those around the user in ways that warrant treatment.  In essence, the entire family becomes ill when having to defend the addict’s actions because we don’t know enough about the type of mental illness addiction brings as each case is uniquely different.

Patrick Kennedy is working on behalf of so may to bring change to understanding the intervention process, so we can begin to fight addiction and mental illness with love, empathy and understanding, not merciless shaming and ridicule.   

Ted Kennedy Jr. should apologize to Patrick Kennedy for ridiculing him over his new book on addiction and mental illness, instead of making him more vulnerable by criticizing him for doing the best he could.