Well, I'm going to give the AA thing another shot. I've got 30 days clean from pot (yea for me!!) but have been drinking at an increasingly alarming rate. I'm not necessarily looking to "work" the 12-step program, but want to give it a shot with a truly open mind. Worst case, I go to some meetings, it's the same 'ol $hit, and I don't go back. Best case, I meet some people I can relate to, or at least aren't drug users or drinkers, and that would be good in itself. Who knows I may meet someone who I can "work the steps" with that I can relate to. I truly want to have an open mind to the whole thing.
The article that MG posted "The Addict's Dilemna" spoke to me in a way that was almost scary. It was like the guy was in my head. The last paragraph....well let me just copy it here:
The fellowship, interpersonal and social learning, and the spiritual and cognitive resources of 12 Step and other recovery programs can be of enormous assistance in helping the recovering addict to learn such new coping strategies. A kind of Catch-22 frequently develops here, however: many addicts are so impaired in their capacity to take care of themselves and manage their moods in a healthy fashion that even participating in an interpersonal recovery program may initially be beyond their resources. Thus it is often quite a challenge and stress for them merely to begin regular attendance at helpful support meetings – and many people who might benefit substantially from such meetings simply avoid them, offering as excuses for doing so a variety of familiar and predictable rationalizations. The characteristic addictive response is along the lines of "I’d rather do it by myself," an attitude that itself signals what is usually a longstanding difficulty in recognizing the need for help and in being able to request and accept it when it is in the best interest of the individual to do so.
I do all of that and unfortunatly 12-step programs are the only thing available to me here. So maybe I need to give it another chance. I don't guess it could hurt. So tomorrow nite, if you want to get ahold of me...I'll be at a meetin'!! Wish me luck, I'm gonna need it!!!