mzawf.org • View topic - Pat Ritter. Books
Login

  • Advertisement

Pat Ritter. Books


An extraordinary writer
:read ENJOY READING THE PAGE PER DAY

  • Author
    Message

Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Thu Sep 27, 2018 10:48 pm

'Confessions of an alcoholic' - Page 98:

He’d had a pacemaker implanted and this was the reason ‘why’ he couldn’t continue on with his career in the police force. If he was suddenly injured in the area of the pacemaker, it could cause permanent injury or death, which was very risky.
He answered an advertisement in the newspaper for the position as an ‘Alcohol and Drug Counsellor’. What a joke, he thought working as a counsellor after all of the alcohol he had drank since twelve years of age. It was to be the start of a new career and direction for Bundy.
At the interview Bundy was surprised when he was asked if he’d ever had a problem with alcohol. ‘I’m an alcoholic. I stopped drinking when I was twenty-eight years old and haven’t touched the stuff since.’ He said in disbelief of them wanting to know about his drinking of alcohol, disregarding his service of twenty years as a Law Enforcement Officer.
He was further surprised when told he had the position. Bundy couldn’t believe his luck. All of the training he’d put into becoming an alcoholic had finally paid off to secure a position depending on the amount of alcohol he’d drank.
His life was about to make a turn of a one hundred and eighty-degree turn around. He didn’t realise it at the time, but he would go on and help many people overcome their own problems with alcohol and drugs issues.
It was a whole new beginning. Those years in the police force enabled him to ‘know the law’ this new position in his life made him think there must be a greater force ‘out there’ guiding his destiny. He never imagined the twist of fate placed on him at that very moment. His mind was about to open up to answer many of the questions he’d been searching for since that first drink of alcohol at twelve years of age.
To purchase this book: click here: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7688:
User avatar
patritter
mzawfer
mzawfer
 
Posts: 3522
Joined: Tue Dec 13, 2011 10:45 pm
Location: Brooloo - Queensland - Australia
Has thanked: 0 time
Have thanks: 1855 times

Advertisement

Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Fri Sep 28, 2018 10:50 pm

'Confessions of an alcoholic' - Page 99:

After the initial training period, Bundy commenced work in the ‘Detoxification Unit’. All Bundy wanted to do was to learn as much as possible about what he had to do. His first thoughts were of astonishment. Instead of arresting persons for drunkenness and placing them into a cell, he now accepted them as his clients to help them.
Medical staff initially assessed each client. These clients were similar to the same people he previously arrested and placed into cells during his career as a Law Enforcement Officer. He now was caring for them. What a turn around. These people literally staggered into the Detoxification Unit for help. He didn’t recognise any of them for he hadn’t worked on the streets for many years.
So he wouldn’t be identified by any of the clients, Bundy worked with nursing staff and other counsellors on the first floor of the unit, which was an in-patient facility. If by chance he were to be identified as a Law Enforcement Officer by a client who was admitted for detoxication, the grapevine throughout the clients would quickly spread. It was always thought if the clients knew the ‘Detoxification Unit’ employed a ‘Law Enforcement Officer’ there was a chance the police would be informed. However, it never happened.
To purchase this book: click here: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7688:
User avatar
patritter
mzawfer
mzawfer
 
Posts: 3522
Joined: Tue Dec 13, 2011 10:45 pm
Location: Brooloo - Queensland - Australia
Has thanked: 0 time
Have thanks: 1855 times

Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Sat Sep 29, 2018 11:59 pm

'Confessions of an alcoholic' - Page 100:

After each client was medically assessed by a doctor, and cared for by a nurse, they were stabilised before proceeding upstairs to level one for a time to ‘detox’ the poison from his or her system. This period of ‘detox’ was between three to seven days depending on the state of intoxication of the client at the time of their admission. Bundy’s role was to assist the nursing staff with making of beds, which he had never done in his life before. He also accompanied clients to the meal room with a nurse, in case one of the clients happened to have a seizure or a fit. This was all new and was personally challenging and worthwhile.
These changes to Bundy’s life were a complete new experience. Until working in a ‘Detoxification Unit’ Bundy had no knowledge of ‘what happened’ to a person when they were completely intoxicated. He never knew the person suffered from ‘withdrawal symptoms’ and never before witnessed a person suffering from delirium tremens (D-T’s). It was a shock when he first witnessed a person having a seizure.
Many a time in the police force, he’d arrested people for ‘drunkenness’ in a public place. The thought reminded him about the time, when he started his role as a detective in the city. He worked on the ‘grave yard’ shift, which was from ten o’clock at night until six o’clock the following morning.
Shortly after starting his shift he was driving a police car and saw a person lying in the gutter outside of a hotel. Stopping the police car near to this person, he got out of the car to place this person into the rear compartment of the car. When he leaned over to take hold of the man, the revolver he was carrying inside of his coat in a shoulder holster, fell out of the holster and landed on the ground next to the man lying in the gutter.
To purchase this book: click here: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7688:
User avatar
patritter
mzawfer
mzawfer
 
Posts: 3522
Joined: Tue Dec 13, 2011 10:45 pm
Location: Brooloo - Queensland - Australia
Has thanked: 0 time
Have thanks: 1855 times

Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Sun Sep 30, 2018 10:49 pm

'Confessions of an alcoholic' - Page 101:

Luckily, for Bundy this person was so drunk, he was passed out and didn’t comprehend what was happening to him. Bundy retrieved his gun replacing it into his holster. He drove the drunken man to the watch-house where he charged him, placing him into a cell, until he was sober enough to be released. Bundy had performed this procedure more times than he cared to remember.
After charging the person at the watch-house, he thought no more about what he had done. His only thoughts were, at least the fellow will have a bed for the night. He never understood the ramifications of placing people who was drunk into a cell. He was soon to find out.
How lucky for me to stop drinking at twenty-eight years old, he thought, I would’ve certainly ended up like one of these chaps here had I not stopped drinking alcohol. At least he’d experienced drinking alcohol.
Bundy experienced ‘blackouts’ when he couldn’t remember what happened to the time between eight o’clock and ten o’clock at night while he was drinking alcohol at the hotel. Thinking back to that period, Bundy was in total shock to realise how fortunate he was to stop drinking alcohol at that time of his life. When he now witnessed people suffering a seizure – shaking all over twisting and turning without self control, only to be sedated by medical staff. Some clients convulsed up to a dozen times before their seizure stopped, causing untold damage to their brain.
To purchase this book: click here: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7688:
User avatar
patritter
mzawfer
mzawfer
 
Posts: 3522
Joined: Tue Dec 13, 2011 10:45 pm
Location: Brooloo - Queensland - Australia
Has thanked: 0 time
Have thanks: 1855 times

Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Mon Oct 01, 2018 10:29 pm

'Confessions of an alcoholic' - Page 102:

His memory reflected back to the many times a person was arrested for drunkenness and placed in a cell. He imagined how lucky he had been never to witness a person having a seizure whilst in custody. He knew of investigations of ‘deaths in custody’ when people had taken their own lives or died whilst in police custody. He could now only imagine WHY these people would have taken their own lives or died from swallowing their own vomit.
His outlook on life suddenly changed. He couldn’t correct the past, but he certainly could try his best to make improvements for the future. All he wanted to do was to learn as much as he was able to learn in the shortest available time for him to understand this new strange phenomenon.
He consistently asked questions from nurses and doctors for information, so he could understand reasoning, why people allowed themselves to drink alcohol to just a degree to make themselves so sick and helpless. A common reply was, ‘they’ll do something about it when the ‘penny drops’’
He thought back to when he stopped drinking alcohol on the 13th January 1977 when ‘his penny dropped’. His decision to stop on that day was a milestone to acknowledge for the remainder of his life. He realised how lucky a person he was to have had Ada, who’d shown the courage and personal conviction to tell him she was going to leave him with their children if he didn’t do something about his drinking. No person should need to put up with that type of behaviour or lifestyle.
To purchase this book: click here: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7688:
User avatar
patritter
mzawfer
mzawfer
 
Posts: 3522
Joined: Tue Dec 13, 2011 10:45 pm
Location: Brooloo - Queensland - Australia
Has thanked: 0 time
Have thanks: 1855 times

Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Tue Oct 02, 2018 9:31 pm

'Confessions of an alcoholic' - Page 103:

He saw for the very first time, what long-term effects, alcohol had on a person, who drank it continually over a long period of time. He saw for the very first time, how people similar in age to him, had developed brain damage from drinking too much alcohol. People also developed ‘liver damage’ causing their personal health to deteriorate rapidly. Until he saw the damage people suffered through drinking alcohol, he would not have believed it.
Day after day more clients presented at the front counter for ‘Detoxification’. It was likened to a ‘revolving door syndrome’ when shortly after a client was discharged; only one week later they’d reappear to again seek admission for ‘detoxification’. It was madness.
Each time another client presented for ‘detoxification’ it was likened to being thrust into a ‘hell hole’. People from all walks of life and occupations presented. There were no differences between engineers to the ‘drunk’ from the street. Everyone was treated equally.
Bundy couldn’t understand ‘why’ all of these people had allowed themselves to deteriorate to the level they were at. He so wanted to ‘rescue’ them from themselves and help every one to rise above their dependency as he’d done and live a quality and healthy lifestyle. It was going to be an impossible task but he was determined to do whatever it would take to help them.
It was pleasing to know, there was a place for people to ‘detox’ from alcohol and other drugs, and they had become dependent. His fellow workers constantly feed Bundy important information to know so he could better understand ‘what’ he was dealing with. He thought at one time, he was being punished for his drinking behaviour by having this position at this time of his life. How far from the truth could he have been. It was to be a very steep learning curve not only dealing with his personal values but also changing his perceptions to life. His whole life had changed so dramatically. For the past twenty years he’d served as a Law Enforcement Officer, suddenly he was cast to the opposite end of the spectrum by helping people through a very tough period of their lives with alcoholism. He could only do his best.
To purchase this book: click here: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7688:
User avatar
patritter
mzawfer
mzawfer
 
Posts: 3522
Joined: Tue Dec 13, 2011 10:45 pm
Location: Brooloo - Queensland - Australia
Has thanked: 0 time
Have thanks: 1855 times

Re: Pat Ritter. Books

Postby patritter » Wed Oct 03, 2018 9:58 pm

'Confessions of an alcoholic' - Page 104:

At least one thing was for certain he’d been there and done that, experiencing the state of intoxication together with the withdrawal symptoms of vomiting, blackouts, diarrhoea and nausea. He had plenty of personal stories to share with his clients and them with him.
There was one particular client Bundy wanted to take special care of. This person was an engineer who’d presented at the unit for ‘detoxification’. He’d recently lost his job with a large construction firm for ‘drinking too much alcohol’. His family left him had hit rock bottom.
Unfortunately, ‘the penny had not dropped’ and Bundy felt in a no-win situation to help. No matter how hard he tried to help this person, he wasn’t ready to stop drinking alcohol. Most of the staff cautioned Bundy about what he was trying to do. Within six months Bundy saw this person deteriorate rapidly from first presenting dressed in a suit, wearing a shirt and tie, to seeing him present wearing clothes only seen worn by ‘street drunks’ who slept under bridges and on the street. He was finally diagnosed with ‘cirrhosis of the liver’.
Bundy could not offer any further help to this person. No one could help him only himself, which he wasn’t prepared to do. It was a bitter result for Bundy who couldn’t have done any more for this person in supporting him to change. Bundy thought he had failed in his attempt to change this person’s life.
He possessed skills in ‘problem solving’, which he acquired from his training as a detective but didn’t have the appropriate skills in counselling which he so much needed to acquire for his present position. He returned to school.
Over the next few years he studied ‘counselling’ finally receiving the ‘piece of paper’ at the end of the course. He knew what was needed now to go out into the community seeking out those people who needed help with their alcohol and drug problems.
What was happening to those clients who’d been through their ‘detoxification’ and afterwards where were they going to correct their dependency? Throughout his life he always wanted to help people. Many times he’d search into his soul trying to ‘come to grips’ within himself why many times he couldn’t help people. He wanted to know some answers.
It happened one evening when he was attending ‘counselling’ classes. His lecturer asked if any of the students would like to perform ‘a role play’ in the confrontation section of counselling. Bundy didn’t know if all of his fellow students stepped backwards from their line when volunteers were asked for. He was left standing on his own so it appeared he was the only person who volunteered to perform the role.
To purchase this book: click here: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/7688:
User avatar
patritter
mzawfer
mzawfer
 
Posts: 3522
Joined: Tue Dec 13, 2011 10:45 pm
Location: Brooloo - Queensland - Australia
Has thanked: 0 time
Have thanks: 1855 times

PreviousNext

Return to The Author, Pat Ritter