FlyerFan

i attend at minimal 1 (my home group) but i like to try to hit 2 to 3 when I can. In between those meetings I log on here and I also have 2 email AA groups i am part of

NoelleR

I'm with MaidenNZ ..... very interesting results. It would appear that 55% of the folks who responded to the poll either never go to meetings, or go only occasionally..........hmmmmm

(o:
NoelleR

Joe Nerv

duh... didn't realize this was an old thread and I had already chimed in. just deleted previous post. was the same as the first anyhow, except I complained about not being able to vote for some reason.

afloatsober

4/5 a week for me. Results are interesting. When i was relapsing i would have voted never....but i would have voted anyways.
G

karate

None -I work 70-80 hours a week , plus study for future liscences.

Mountainmanbob

I found the % of never attending an AA meeting interesting also
my AA Sponsor would never believe these figures
but then again he's all about AA
he and I have gotten into arguments over that
I know that AA is not the only way in which to be sober
I look at AA attendance as just another one of my sober tools
I try to use all that I have found
I call it my Program
my Sponsor also does not like the term "Program"
he says that the term was founded in treatment centers
thus goes against the AA Big Book
one problem with Sponsors
they can be over riding at times
sure they are much help for the newly sober one
but for most sober ones there is a time to cut the apron strings
as they find there own way and learn what works for them

Mountainman

Joe Nerv

The results for this would be very different if it were posted int he 12 step section. Not sure why it isn't. It also doesn't amount to a whole lot because there's no way of telling how long the people voting have been sober, or if they're even sober at all. I felt the same way regarding the thread, "What method/program of recovery do/did you use?". Results would be very different if it were a poll for people sober longer than 5 or 10 years. And if it weren't limited to people using this forum as one of their primary tools. IME, from what I've seen in my years in AA, the real telling years for sober people come in the first year, and then again between years 7-12. I can only think of 1 person off hand that I know went out drinking again after being sober past the 12 year mark. 2, actually, but one guy had one drink and came back immediatley. I don't entirely get that, but that's what he shared.

I always have to keep in mind too, that this is the internet. Anyone can type anything they'd like and we've no possible way of knowing who that person is, or if they're telling anything even close to the truth. Noticing a lot of not so well veiled hatred for AA also these past couple of days.

fini

Joe,
just to go on a tangent for a minute here...i've heard the 7-12 year-thing before (though that guy said 7-11 ) and i'm wondering what you think that's about. or how to tell if i'm "going that way...". i'm just in that range, and interested in your view/what you've observed this to be about.

NoelleR

I'm with Joe Nerv on this one; many (if not most) folks go to fewer meetings the longer they're sober (life happens).

.....'n let's remember, we're talking about meeting attendance, not AA (as a whole) or the AA Program itself.

.....'n bob.....? Regarding the term 'program'......................:

"...my Sponsor also does not like the term "Program"
he says that the term was founded in treatment centers
thus goes against the AA Big Book..."

A term founded in treatment centers; Like 90 in 90, which did come from the treatment center industry.....? You might want to refer your sponsor to that self-same AA Big Book, page 59 specifically. You know, where it says..............:

"...Here are the steps we took, which are suggested as a PROGRAM of recovery..."
(caps provided by moi)

Just a thought.......

(o:
NoelleR

Joe Nerv

Before I start getting flamed by people on this, I want to reiterate that this is only what I've observed, and not backed by any statistics. And what I'm about to write now is my best guess based on my own thoughts, feelings, and experience.

1st year is the toughest for most people for obvious reasons.

Once people pass the one year mark, if they stick with it a few more months (I've seen many pick up right after the 1 yr. landmark) I believe the next landmark becomes 5 years. There used to be a lot of talk in AA about it taking 5 years to get your brain out of hock. This might have something to do with it.

At 5 years I believe many people feel settled in their sobriety, and drinking has become far from an issue. Things start going really well, there's no desire, and no need to drink. It's no longer a problem. And no longer treated as such. A lot of people wander away from AA at this point, but more importantly, they stop doing the things they did the first 5 years that helped them enjoy their sobriety and grow happily in a sober world. All goes great, until it doesn't, and lots of things can start to happen. I know some from experience. Crap can hit the fan in unexpected ways, or we fall into a crowd that enjoys their cocktails and start feeling a wee bit left out... things of that nature. Basically, we feel safe in our new lives and forget where we came from. Alcohol isn't the threat it used to be. And for some, a drink starts to seem like it might be an option again. I think this happens most during those years, though it could happen at any time for anyone.

As with 5 years being a landmark, I believe 10 to be the same. But I think once over that hump, another 2 years really settles people into their sober existence. We've been through enough to know what to expect over a long period of time, we've learned the lessons only time can teach, and for me at least it becomes beyond ridiculous to even consider picking up a drink. I do believe however that my contented sober life is contingient upon my spiritual well being, and I have no intention whatsoever to quit doing the things I've been doing. Humility works well for me. I'm human and I'm not perfect. I don't believe I'm immune from ever doing something stupid. And that doesn't mean I live in any kind of fear. That's a whole nuther subject though.

And in another derailing thought , as openminded towards others as I try to be, I'm having a rough time with a lot of the misconceptions people have regarding AA. I only get to hear about them on this forum, and I'm grateful for what I'm learning, but it just seems so way off. 2 biggest misconceptions are that we believe we are completely powerless, and that we live in constant fear of a bottle of alcohol suddenly ambushing us. That we're a shackled lot of people, and far from free. My experience is the complete and polar opposite, and I intend to start a thread on that once I get what I want to say organized enough to make sense , and not cause more harm than good.

fini

thank you, Joe, for being willing to share your observations and thoughts.
and yes, i think it DID take about five years to get the brain -thing tuned differently. not with regards to thoughts of drinking (which i haven't considered even once", or thoughts of "maybe i'm not really..."
but for a more "settled" way of being.
what you're talking about is close to what others might mean when they say complacency?
I don't believe I'm immune from ever doing something stupid. And that doesn't mean I live in any kind of fear.
yeah; and i just LOVE that part. the okayness with imperfection.
and i haven't stopped doing what i've done from day one, though that was not AA.

as for your last paragraph, i'm looking forward to the thread you'll start on that.
i was chock-full of misperceptions about AA, which is why i used to mutter to myself "i'll die a drunk before i ever go to AA", and i meant it. no way was i going THERE!!

contrary to your experience, it's been on forums (both here and LifeRing) where i've been able to meet/read/chat with people who've helped me see a very different AA not just from my preconceived ignorant notions but from mostly what i've seen and heard in the few dozen meetings i've now been to.
extremely grateful for the views people like you and others allow me to see and continuously show the sense in.

spryte

I go to 2 most weeks, some weeks 3 or 4. I go for the fellowship and, well, for something to do

I've got 12 weeks in now, so I'm settling in to 2 a week, or whenever I feel like I need one. During the first month I went to a meeting every day. It was a magic elixir! Go to a meeting today, don't drink today. Got me over that hump.

Mountainmanbob

true I got off the subject of the thread -- AA meetings attended
been harder to stay on track lately - thank God I'm not drinking
it would be impossible to focus then

anyway
that's the only Program my Sponsor recognizes
the AA Program as described in the Big Book
I refer to my Program as something just a little different
I do not work for myself the exact Program of AA
mine is a mixture of the Bible and the AA Big Book
with the Bible always overriding the Big Book
although we hear often that the Steps come from the Bible
there are many things in the Big Book that go directly against the Bible

when I was in treatment many years ago
best to my memory they stated that we all needed to get a Program
that worked for us
this is what my Sponsor does not like
a self picked and worked Program

back to AA
after many years of attendance still
I went to a meeting yesterday and think that I will go again this morning
sometimes I wonder why I'm there
then I remember something that I wish not to forget
this combination of my Program has been working for years now
let's not mess this thing up

Mountainman

BradJustBrad

Never.

thisisme

0

ru12

Zilch.

Mountainmanbob

hanging in with about three AA meetings a week average right now
all seems to be working well up top the mountain

coming to this site two or three times a day
I'm sure is also of great help in keeping me sober
reading stories of the newcomers keeps me very humble

I was asked to take over a Friday morning sectary AA position
I have been putting the offer off
I think that I had better say "I would be honored"

I need to step up in my sobriety
instead of stepping down

Mountainman

matt4x4

When I am bored and not working I attend more meetings. But on average I attend a meeting a week, sometimes 2 meetings a week, if I am not working I attend everyday. Idle time is bad, especially for the mind, where this disease is the primary resident.

I WORK THE STEPS EVERY SINGLE DAY NO MATTER WHAT, THIS IS HOW WE STAY SOBER IN AA. BY WORKING THE 12 STEPS AS ITS LAID OUT IN THE BIG BOOK.

Warhawk

If work & other commitments would allow I would go everyday.
9 months sober & couldn't do it without meetings.

Jade1224

I have never been to one... I have mixed feelings about wanting to go.