I'm glad you have decided to live a sober life.
And, you're right that early recovery is a difficult time because we have no choice but to deal with everything we dulled with alcohol. All the emotions, sadness, loss come at us and we have to learn to cope in healthy ways.
For me, I would focus first on myself, secondly on my relationship with my spouse and at this time, friends would come a distant third. Many of find that our friends can't/won't support us. Our newfound sobriety is often a threat to our friends who drink and others just don't understand addiction and what we're going through.
I don't use meetings, but I have found that journaling has been enormously helpful to me.