good on ya for 6 months!!
just my opinion but the compulsion returning isn't so much about life circumstances as it is about not having the tools to handle the life circumstances.
you DO NOT have to open up to a group fo strangers at an AA meeting, but think about this:
you open up here to a group of strangers.
nothing screws me up more than being left to my own devises and having a meeting in my own head. THINKING I know whats best for me got me to the doors of AA.