ABSTRACT
If alcoholism can be characterized as a disease, it can also be seen, analogously, as a contagious one-visiting allied troubles and misery on close associates. Alcoholism in a husband not only creates an untenable marriage situation for the wife, but also can create both physical and mental problems for her-often of equal magnitude (Steinglass 1981a). Thus, just as the husband's condition can deteriorate alarmingly as his drinking continues, so can the wife's. Worry about her husband and his changed behavior, compounded by the alienation of relatives and friends, creates an environment that can make sheer survival appear a very difficult task and initiative almost impossible.
