On Suicide and Drunkenness

Abstract

This article presents a transcript of the lecture “Suicide and Drunkenness” delivered by Alexandra Adler in the British Medical Association Hall, Drumsheugh Gardens, Edinburgh, on June 29, 1937. Despite the seemingly narrow topic suggested by the title, Alexandra Adler engages listeners of her lecture in a much broader discussion of the various facets of Individual Psychology, from the progressive nature of melancholia to the relational purpose of morphine and alcohol use, to sleeplessness as a psychological phenomenon. Using clinical cases, and in a manner characteristic of 1930s-era discussions, the author addresses topics that are common in Individual Psychology: the typical pattern of life in neurosis, mistaken beliefs in alcohol and drug users, purpose of symptoms, and the role of social courage. At the same time, the lecture is punctuated by discussions that 21st-century readers likely consider uniquely contemporary, such as the use of medications to treat emotional maladies, telephone therapy, the ethics of paradoxical suggestions in psychotherapy, and the challenges of treating co-occurring conditions.