Originally Posted by
Peter G 
Fast forward to a point when I was 'out of the trenches' (as it were) I revisited RR. Basically I have TU to thank for my renewed interest. Low and behold I saw something extremely important within the RR book that I had missed. AVRT.
I will grant that many people need to detox first before they will be able to understand much of AVRT. Trying to do so drunk or while going through withdrawal is a complete waste of time.
Originally Posted by
Peter G Of course I'm still learning the finer points, but I now use AVRT quite successfully, and it is never contentious and not once has it interrupted or caused a conflict with my inherent belief that I am powerless over alcohol. The dichotomy is just not present, ever. Recognizing my addictive voice and Beast and knowing how to shut the damnedable things up, it is extremely useful, and as such I use it almost daily to quiet any internal dialogues, making it dead simple to recognize and objectify what AA calls "stinking thinking".
To go back to desertsong's original question, at one point, I had to attend AA, and I did use AVRT while attending meetings for a while. With the exception of the "by the book" crowd, I didn't see much 'recovery' going on. It was more like a 98% relapse club. Bear in mind that I was trained by an old-school BB thumper who correctly surmised from my disdain for "sharing" war stories that I would be more receptive to reading and study. In the end, I concluded that since I did have an effective mental defense against that first drink (AVRT), that I was not a 'real alcoholic', and did not belong in the rooms.