Originally Posted by
NEOMARXIST 
Hey man, just an observation to this terminology. Is this strictly true? I know that for this alkie and druggy then alcohol and drugs play no part in my life anymore and I am far from hanging on... However, I still think from my own experience that I will always have to value my sobriety as a precious gift i.e- I couldn't be hanging around with heavy drinkers or around drugs. Maybe it's different for drugs, but despite alll the recovered status in the world, then I wouldn't want a line of coke under my nose. Not that I would want to do it, but I have to remember that I will always be an addict and an alkie. Of course I wouldn't want to be hanging with them characters anyway but I think the impression can be that you can literally go anywhere and hang out with anybody, for this alkie and addict then that simply will never be the case, as hanging around heavy drinking and drugging as an alcoholic myself would not be something I'm sure I'd feel comfortable with. I will always be one drink away from the next drunk the same as anybody else.
For me then sobriety is my clean time from drink and recovery is the daily work of healing and growing as a person. I'm happy to always be a recovering alcoholic, there will always be room for improvment, and that to me is what is so great about recovery. I will always be an alcoholic and I must never forget that fact. Like anything in my recovery though I am open minded and this maybe liable to change, I'm sure it will reveal itself in good time, if at all...
Peace
Thanks for picking me up on that, my post gave the wrong impression...
Part of being recovered means that the alcoholic/addict has been restored to sanity, that is why NOW he/she can go where they want, when they want and with who they want...
Give you an example, lets take a balanced, sane person of our age who isn't an alcoholic/addict...what would they say if we said i can go anywhere but i wouldn't want to hang around in a smallish bar with heavy drinkers in case i was tempted or wouldn't want to hang around with guys doing coke for the same reason...they would look at us like we were insane, right?
This is because a sane, mature adult wouldn't even consider going to these places or doing those things...so being recovered means that you have a big inner change which turns you into a sane, mature adult...so it wouldn't even dawn on me to go to those places, or hang around with those people...
See the difference in recovering and recovered?
Look man i know people in AA that are 20 years sober and still, when they go to stay at a Hotel, get the mini bar taken out or get it locked by reception...either im recovered or im not and i had enough insanity in my drinking years...i wasn't prepared to live sober by avoidence or with self imposed restrictions...
Remeber this is if you are recovered, whilst recovering a person should be nowhere near people, places or things thateven remind them of drinking...
Anyone can get recovered, its just a simple matter of following the suggestions of AA with a sponsor...it took me about 3 months to finish and it wasn't like a full time job...was it worth it...defo:-)
It's not complacency its just the result of the work in AA...alcoholics have been getting recovered from alcoholism for 75 odd years, i didn't do anything else but follow their lead.