Mrs. Marty Mann – First Woman to Join AA
A biography of Marty Mann – one of the first woman to join AA and a heroine in the fight to de-stigmatize the disease of alcoholism.
Mrs. Marty Mann – the first woman member of AA and a leader in the fight to de-stigmatize the disease of alcoholism.
I’m reading a great book by Sally Brown and David R. Brown – A Biography of Mrs. Marty Mann, The First Lady of Alcoholics Anonymous. Not only is it a great read based on the authors’ writing style and thoroughly documented research, but the subject – Mrs. Marty Mann – and the story of her life as one of the first woman to join Alcoholics Anonymous is fascinating. One of the enlightening finds is to learn how alcoholism was treated “back in the day.” Mrs. Mann tried psychiatrists, physicians and sanitariums in America and Great Britain searching for answers, convinced that alcohol was part of her problem. Yet, to a one, the advise was the same. Quoting from the Browns’ book:
“[t]he medical approach of the day was that uncontrolled drinking was a symptom of an underlying psychiatric disorder. Correct the disorder, and the drinking would return to normal. For alcoholics, however, ‘return to normal’ never meant ‘less,’ but instead that they could drink the same quantities again without suffering negative consequences or side effects.”
“None of the doctors Marty consulted, however, could identify an underlying psychiatric disorder in her, so they were baffled about why she drank so much. No one would take her as a patient because each told her honestly he didn’t know what to do with ‘people like you.'”
Can you imagine! But it explains so much of why society still views alcoholism as a moral weakness; a shameful lack of willpower. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to the founders of AA, Dr. Bob and Bill W., and its early members. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to Mrs. Marty Mann, who was one of the first woman to join AA and fight the additional hurdle of social stigmas (that also existed among male alcoholics) about women who drank too much.
This book is a fascinating read and offers a great deal of historical perspective that can help us fight this disease, today.
Lisa Frederiksen
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