Originally Posted by ShockedGF

I’m going to play devil’s advocate here and say that most of the responses I’ve read seem to validate opinions out there that AA/12-step groups in general are some kind of cult. Not everyone agrees with 12-step principles and despite what many of you may believe, AA is definitely not the only way to achieve sobriety and/or recovery.

I find it sad and counter-productive that most of you who follow the 12-steps lash out at those who disagree with its principals even if they appreciate the outcome. Statements like some of those I’ve seen in this thread don’t seem to be coming from “spiritually enlightened people” and seem to validate her assertion that AA/Al-Anon members do have an “us vs. them” mentality.

“Perhaps, in sobriety, he discovered what a self-centered b*tch you were.”
“Some people just don't want to recover.”
“Obviously she didn't spend enough time in Al-Anon if she is blaming AA for killing her marriage.”

Can I sympathize with a woman who instead of having to deal with her husband’s addiction to a mind altering substance she now has a husband so immersed in AA culture that he bears no semblance to the man she once knew? Absolutely! That may mean ”recovered” to many of you, but to some it seems more like a trade-off: booze swapped for endless meetings, speaking in slogans and the inability to function in life outside of AA circles.