The term "normy"
Greetings all,
I'm an addict in my first 6 months of recovery (clean date is 1/20/2005). I am grateful to have found a narcotics anonymous fellowship in my area and have been going to meetings to support my sobriety and stay clean. I feel like I have a new lease on life!
I've had some things kind of tugging at me and thought I would seek other peoples thoughts. More than once, I've talked with group members and in passing they've referred to my girlfriend as a "normy". I had to sit on that for a bit for it to start bugging me but now it is. I do intend on going to my group members and ask them for clarification but I wanted to do that here as well.
It bugs me and I think this is the reason that it does: I think that there are those that may think that if you are not specifically in a 12 step program then you will not/cannot grow and find your potential as a human being. They differentiate between sobriety and abstinence. I know that there is a difference, abstinence for me was when i used my own will to try and stay clean and not seek help from my god, program members and the step work.
However, I do believe that other people can, have and will attain enlightenment and a sense of spirituality outside of 12 step recovery. Long before there was 12 step there was spiritual practice around the world and I find that some in the group seem to believe that the only enlightened people are those that come into the rooms. When we read in our meetings we also read this, "There is one thing more than anything else that will defeat us in our recovery; this is an attitude of indifference or intolerance toward spiritual principles. Three of these that are indispensible are honesty, open-mindedness and willingness. With these we are well on our way." If we are going to be open minded about our recovery and how this program works for us, then we should and must be open minded about the fact that it may not work for others, and that there are MANY different paths to enlightenment and serenity.
I am not discouraged by this. I would hope that by writing here and opening this up to conversation that we, as loving open minded individuals can encourage each other and inspire each other to grow and have that open mindedness we speak of in our meetings.
This is my first posting here in this forum, and I look forward to a healthy, happy discourse!
God Bless,
Mark