Old 09-01-2011, 01:55 PM
  # 410 (permalink)  
onlythetruth
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Join Date: Mar 2010
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Originally Posted by HuskyPup View Post
Gosh, this section seems to have really dried up!

One thing I have found is that it is difficult to find social support for secular based recovery...both on and especially off-line, it is much harder to find meaningful human contact. Thus far the meetings I have gone to have served more or less as a stand in for this, but as time goes on, and increasing connections are forged, there is an increasing amount of cognitive and existential dissonance with AA and the underlying sin/redemption paradigm. As time has gone on the social aspects of this conflic have become more difficult to juggle.

I have started to look into starting a secular based group, and how to go about it...one that embraces a multiplicity of approaches. I have contacted several local churches, Unitarian, Episcopal, checking out room availability. But how to draw and attract a membership? This is one thing I have been exploring.
I really understand this, Huskypup. You are right--it IS a bit difficult to find face to face meetings of secular support groups.

I agree with you that it is important to build networks of secular recovery, but I've found myself preferring to do this by helping build an existing program rather than start a whole new one. That's one of the reasons I've gotten involved with SMART Recovery. It is the biggest and best organized of the secular support groups and it provides training and support for starting meetings.
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