SoberRecovery Chat Room Guidelines

[Forums Team]

We continually wish to improve the Chatroom so as to meet our member's needs.

Please keep in mind that, along with being a place to gather and talk about various subjects (this, in itself, is useful for recovery), its main strength is it's role as a valuable tool for our shared recovery process.

In SR we always emphasize our Newcomers: being there for them, listening to their concerns and trying to give them a helping hand. This value should be absolutely upheld and nurtured in the chatroom at all times. Offering help to Newcomers *always* come first.

The Chatroom's primary mission is twofold, as it’s often the starting point for newcomers who are actively seeking sobriety, as well as a meeting place for members of our community who wish to socialize and discuss topics related to recovery.


With this in mind, and in an attempt to accommodate every member's needs, we are actively promoting rational use of the chatroom system that will provide a positive atmosphere to foster individual recovery goals; we ask for your cooperation to help us keep the chat room running smoothly.


Chat Rooms

Please consider the each room's recovery goal when deciding which rooms you want to use and frequent:

• Recovery Connections: this room is, by default, the main chatroom entryway. As members log into chat, please cooperate by greeting Newcomers and guiding them to the "Newcomers in Recovery" room, or to other rooms to accommodate their needs. The recovery goal of this room is to provide a relaxed environment to discuss general topics that are not necessarily related to recovery. We encourage members to bond, socialize and to have fun. Casual conversations are allowed here, however this is a recovery website, so use proper judgment and common sense when choosing subject matters. Please keep mentions and/or graphic description of alcohol and drug abuse to a minimum, as they may trigger other members. Blatant or disruptive displays of intoxication –in any room- are inadmissible. Keep in mind that it *is* okay to discuss recovery here too! This is not the room to use for debates on recovery methods or different opinions on topics. Please move these discussions to the General Recovery Room.

• Newcomers: SR Newcomers usually arrive with many questions, concerns, and needing guidance. The recovery goal of this room is to welcome our Newcomers, listen to their concerns and help them as possible. With this in mind, use this room ONLY if you’re willing to greet and help our new members. Topics not pertaining to recovery are inadmissible here.

• Friends and Family: friends and family of alcohol/drug addicts have needs of their own that need to be addressed; the recovery goal of this room is to provide a space where F&F members can share their experience, strength and hope while dealing with their loved one's addiction.

• General Recovery: This room is to discuss recovery: sharing what worked for us and gaining insight, as well as receiving and offering support. recovery goal: recovery in action. Healthy debates are allowed, as long as they're civil. Topics not pertaining to recovery are inadmissible here.

• AA/NA 12 step: the recovery goal of this room for members who use the Fellowships as part of their recovery. This is a room where you can share your step work, discuss your progress in AA/NA, and engage in healthy and friendly discussions. Please note that attacking other methods of recovery is absolutely forbidden.

• Secular Discussions: the recovery goal of this room is to provide a space where people who use secular methods in their recovery can gather and discuss their progress. You can discuss different secular approaches to recovery and share your views. Please note that attacking other methods of recovery is absolutely forbidden.

• Mental Health: a room where members can discuss mental health issues: depression, anxiety, bipolar, autism and others. Its recovery goal is to provide mutual support. You can share your concerns here. Discussing medication is allowed, but please keep in mind that offering medical advice is strictly forbidden.

• Meeting Room: this room may only be used when there’s a meeting in progress. If you attend a meeting and wish to share, type “!” and wait for the chairperson to call you. When you’ve finished sharing, do remember to type “done”.

• Crisis Centre: this room is exclusively for members who are experiencing a crisis, and who need undivided attention and support. The recovery goal is to help members deal with their crisis. If you identify a crisis situation, don’t hesitate to immediately direct the person in question to this room. Likewise, if you see a gathering in this room and want to help out, don’t hesitate to do so. Please avoid interruptions and crosstalk in this room, remember that the focus is on the member who needs attention. Please report any situation that you feel needs emergency intervention and we will do our best to assist. We take suicide threats seriously and will attempt to find help for the member in crisis.

You can use the “Create a New Room” feature if you want to make a room to suit your specific needs. Don't hesitate to make use of this valuable feature. These custom rooms can be password protected, which is very useful if you wish to discuss a sensitive topic, or have a private gathering with other members. As mentioned earlier, this is a recovery website, so please use proper judgment when using this feature.

You are, of course, free to roam the rooms at will; however please remember and respect each room’s goal.

If you are a regular chat room user, please follow these simple guidelines: be proactive and responsible. Much of the spirit of SR involves friendship and companionship in recovery, along with sharing experience and hope for those who need a helping hand.

If you haven’t used the chat room yet, it would be great to have you.

Important Rules and Guidelines:

1. Please review the http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...ting-tips.html (Policies, Rules & Posting Tips) and keep them in mind at all times, including the principles of Tolerance, Intellectual Freedom, Responsible Behavior and Freedom of Speech. Breaching these rules may result in the termination of your chat room privileges.
   
   
   
2. If you wish to disregard a member, make use of the chat room Ignore option.
   
   
   
3. If you encounter a disagreeable situation, please contact a Forum Leader, Moderator or Chat Monitor immediately.
   
   
   
4. Sexual harassment and/or predatory behavior will have zero tolerance. Please report issues immediately.

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Chat transcripts are available for review at all times. not having a monitor around is not an excuse to ignore the rules and goals. like all things, chat takes some getting used to, but it's very very helpful once you get the hang of it. We trust that members will follow the rules, as we can't monitor every single conversation, nor do we wish to intrude on private exchanges. Please report any problems to one of the moderators immediately.

***When we investigate a problem and read the transcripts all Private Chat Messages are included in the transcripts. Be aware that we will read the Private Messages and there is no way around it. The forum Private Message System always remains private. Use that feature for privacy***