Weekly AA Thread - Week of July 26 - Aug. 1

[rebirth]

Weekly AA Thread - Week of July 26 - Aug. 1

Cherbear – Yup I did believe you were talking about real grapvines. I have to be the most guillible person on the planet. Keep thinking I will improve with age but I seem to be getting sillier! Glad I know what virgin drinks are.

Phil – I am going to try and get to an AA meeting when I am in India. I did go to one in Barbados. Same format, same problem but different people. Someone asked me for change after the meeting!!

Mary- I know what you mean about drunk people being boring…and I use to think I was SOOOOO interesting when I was drinking.And I rhought I had the hot moves on the dance floor. AL is such a terrible addiction.

Hi DG – It’s always good to hear from you. I love your wisdom! I need it! I think any type of charity work is a good way to wake up your soul. We forget that others are suffering and need help. India will be a good wake up call for me.

Hi Amelia congratulations on your medal! That’s now four on this thread with 30 day medals. Wonderful!

Just to let you guys know that I am travelling to India and will try to log on when I can. I have not disappeared! x

[Doggygirl]

Weekly AA Thread - Week of July 26 - Aug. 1

rebirth, travel safely and soberly! I can't wait to hear what your experiences in India are like - both AA and otherwise!

I too thought I was interesting, funny, a good dancer (right up until the part where I fell on my rear), etc. when drunk. *shudders*

DG

[Doggygirl]

Weekly AA Thread - Week of July 26 - Aug. 1

Hello everyone. I went to the Women's 12 Step meeting today and am so glad I did. The topic of discussion today was related to Step 2. We discussed the issue of trust. (came to believe that a power greater than myself could restore me to sanity implies trust in that higher power - not just the belief that there IS a higher power in my life.)

I felt a connection with a woman based on our discussion today that I probably never would have connected with pre-AA. In fact, had we met in a bar somewhere she probably would have kicked my $*%^. It was a very good feeling to connect. I am constantly amazed at the diverse people in AA and the fact that I can find common ground with all of them to some degree or another.

I wasn't too sure about studying from "A Woman's Way through the Twelve Steps" which is what these women read and discuss. Some AAers would consider this non-AA material. (and they would be correct) I am liking it though. I will always keep the Big Book as my main guiding text. But some other study materials are helpful I'm finding in relating the 12 steps to my life. This is the book in case anyone is interested. There is also a work book and it was a Step 2 exercise in the workbook that guided our discussion today.

Amazon.com: A Woman's Way Through the Twelve Steps (9780894869938): Stephanie S. Covington Ph. D.: Books

The question was "List 5 things you trust"

The first thing on my list was AA. I have come to trust that if I do the work suggested as a program of recovery and do the work as suggested by my sponsor, I can enjoy contented sobriety. That is huge for me. I also trust my sponsor. A woman. Imagine that.

I found that many women around the table today mentioned issues they have had with trust that I can absolutely relate to. It was a much better meeting than I expected. I'm learning to NOT pre-judge meetings and how they might go. There is always something good to be had in any meeting. And sometimes they just wildly exceed expectations!

DG

[marriedgirl29]

Weekly AA Thread - Week of July 26 - Aug. 1

Hello everyone,

Just back from my Saturday AM meeting. I am about 40 days sober. Still feeling pretty good about things. No bad urges to drink. I heard an expression I like yesterday, "Meeting makers make it." I have really tried to stay on point with 90 meetings in 90 days even if I have to walk in late to make it.

I got a text from my best friend yesterday who was asking me to come over and hang out, I replied that I was going to a meeting after work, so by the time I made it there it would be awfully late, she does not live close to me. Then she wrote back, an AA meeting? Are you still not drinking? I said yes, then she wanted to know how long and I told her a little more than 5 weeks. Then she didn't write back. She and I did a lot of drugs and drinking together. So, I havent been seeing her bc I want to keep my recovery first. And I feel like she texts me once a week or so and she's feeling me out bc with all my relapses my sponsor pointed out that I've conditioned her to expect that "This won't last long" and she has lost her drinking buddy and she's waiting for her return. She also has a lot of prescription drug Adderal and I wrote out what happened in different times of relapse and one was smoking pot with her-ended up drinking that day later....and one was doing an adderral with her....ended up drinking that day... so I can see the pattern and I realize I was trying to find a way to use something besides alchohol to change how I felt but it always led right back to that drink. And fast. It's insanity to think I can safely use any mood altering anything without returning to my drug of first choice-AL.

Just some thoughts, I guess that kind of goes back to what we were looking at in the beginning of the week...acceptance. I have to accept that the way for me to be ok is to completely avoid mood altering ANYTHING...there is no ok buzz because I will surely drink again, and in my experience it doesnt take more than a few days to be up and running full steam with drinking. And even though sometimes that makes me feel sad its a lie to romanticize the fewer and fewer "good times" they were really only just occaisional good moments by the end...followed by more bad moments and mental slavery to AL and I don't want to live that way anymore.

I also like the idea DG brought up about the consequence list. I may do that to shed some light onto missing or romanticizing drinking and put it in perspective. I love gratitude lists for when you're feeling negative or depressed but I think this list could be really useful if you're not unhappy, just thinking about fun things associated with drinking, or feeling a why can't I drink like he/she can?,mentally projecting about future events, or going down the road your mind spent years building about AL associated thoughts that are NOT reality but can still seem real.

[retteacher]

Weekly AA Thread - Week of July 26 - Aug. 1

Speaking of the consequences of drinking: I just spoke to one of my AA friends last night before our meeting. We both had an awful ER visit at the end of our drinking career, & we both said that we try to never forget that experience. We revisit it in our minds frequently in order to deromanticize drinking.

A few members last night spoke about getting back together w/the friends they drank with. I really think that can be a slippery slope. That said: I didn't cut out all the old friends from my drinking life. I mainly drank alone. The friends we have are all normal drinkers. Some don't drink at all or very negligibly. For me, there's really no temptation there. I have to watch out for stresses in my life. I drank to relieve myself of stress. Now, I'm dealing w/stress differently.

I hope all is well w/all of you out there in MWO-land.

Mary

[dancelot]

Weekly AA Thread - Week of July 26 - Aug. 1

On the topic of the consequences of drinking - I agree Mary about keeping that non glamorous version in my mind always. It's not that I constantly think of it, but more like I try to keep my brain programmed for that image when the idea of alcohol comes up. Or the "poison" idea, as a one word quickie.

I went to two women's meetings this week, and at both were people who had relapsed just before 2 and 3 year anniversaries. One did the "I deserve it, I've been good", when offered it and another said it was just an impulsive action. Neither one planned it as far as I could tell, but some degree of complacency had settled in in at least one of them (not working the program as seriously, etc). Seeing this in person really gets the point across to me. Never, ever pick up that first drink. Today is all you have. Never get complacent. Always at least check in at MWO every day at the very minimum, and take it seriously. Go to meetings to see it in person and learn a better way. Whatever it takes.

In the past two longish AF stints I had, what I was lacking was both a commitment and a plan. One time was an impulse (why not?), the next time a just one, just today, this is a stressful time (9-11). I always knew I needed to be AF, and did try to take advantage of any extra nasty hangovers to get started, and managed 8 and 10 months the longest times - then started back up again for 6 and 8 years respectively. I know I probably won't have 6 or 8 years if I did it again. Remember the consequences.

Hope everyone's enjoying their Sunday - have a great week everyone! :h

[ready2change]

Weekly AA Thread - Week of July 26 - Aug. 1

Hello fellow AA'ers! I havent contributed to this thread in a while, but I do read often. Great posts, lots of inspiration.

Today I went to a Speaker meeting I frequently attend at a men's sober living facility. The speaker was great and he had quite a history. The one thing that stuck out with me was him telling how he wanted to feel like he "fit" in with society. He noticed how the people at Starbucks always appeared to be having fun. Dressed up in suits sometimes, standing around conversing and laughing. Well, he decided to join them, but having no money, he went to a trash receptacle and got an empty Starbucks cup and filled it with wine! (Yeah, guess he had money for wine?) Then he decided that smoking would make him look cool as well, so he dug through the butt cans and found some half smoked ciggies. But he made sure to only search out the ones with lipstick on them, cause then he would be protected from any diseases???

It never ceases to amaze me how we delude our thinking while drinking! Now every time I see someone with a Starbucks cup, I'm gonna wonder if that is really coffee in there?

We are having our annual AA conference here at the end of August. For whatever reason, I didn't attend last year (I'm sure I was drinking or some such thing). But this year I am volunteering, so I know I will be attending. Looking forward to it. We have a meeting regarding the volunteer responsibilities next Sunday.

Anyone contemplating attending an AA meeting, I can only say from experience, it will be a humbling and welcoming experience. The hugs are real, and the compassion and hope you recieve are real as well.

R2C

[retteacher]

Weekly AA Thread - Week of July 26 - Aug. 1

R2C: Thanks for that uplifting post. I too find the AA members so real & so welcoming. 2 years ago, I never, in my wildest dreams, thought I'd ever join. Now, I don't miss a meeting if I can possibly help it.

Mary

[Cherbear]

Weekly AA Thread - Week of July 26 - Aug. 1

Hi Everyone!
guess I'll close this weeks AA thread with a big hooray for me!!
I just got home from a weekend at the beach with dear friends that I always drank heavily with.
Told them I was Done drinking and they were very supportive!, They still drank a little wine and I was fine with my sparkling water. I also retreated occasionally to open up the big book to keep my grounded and lots of praying!! I am soo much more committed this time thanks to AA. I couldn't even call my sponsor because the beach cabin had no cell service.
I missed my meetings this weekend but I am really glad I went because I don't want to stop seeing people that are dear to me just because I am afraid I might drink.
Got home and was soo thankful for this thread so I could have my cozy at home AA meeting with all of you! So welcoming just like all the AA meetings.