keithj

Hi Kirsty. It's real easy to fall into the trap of comparing your insides to everyone else's outsides. They seem OK on the surface and inside you feel miserable. Maybe that's true and maybe it isn't.

Also, some people can stop drinking and life just gets better. They feel happy. For the hard core alcoholic, however, oftentimes life starts getting worse. When I got sober, my solution to everything in life was to drink. The bottle was my solution, not my problem. Without drinking, life came up pretty fast and hard at me.

So I launched with reckless abandon into taking the 12 Steps on the first day I didn't drink. I needed a new solution for living and I needed relief very quickly. Otherwise, I doubt if I would have made it very long.

You're already failing at staying sober doing what you are doing. Are you taking the Steps out of the book with a knowledgeable sponsor? Or are you just going to AA? There are no promises associated with showing up at meetings.

You're not alone. Many alcoholics have found that the Steps are not optional to their well being. They are a vital necessity to a life without booze.