EndGameNYC

There ya go. I was having some fun with you, but I was also interested in knowing whether or not you endorsed the part that I've quoted from your comments.

My bias (and we all have them) is that we cannot know what "works" before we actually make an effort to try it. No one's gotten ahead in life, grew or progressed as an individual, by ruling out everything they couldn't or wouldn't do. No one wants to be in treatment for anything, and this is especially true when it comes to getting treatment for alcoholism. It's important to decide whether or not we decline certain types of treatment or support based on unwavering personal convictions, or based on something else, including a camouflaged desire to continue drinking.

Social settings are difficult for many people, especially when getting help requires that we acknowledge our addiction in public. More private methods work for many people, but they often don't carry the weight of face-to-face support. I know people who've used SR as their primary means of getting sober. All of them are good people who have a great deal to contribute. How does science explain that? Text interpretation as remedy? Gotta be more than that.

I do tend to get a little ornery when I get a sense that people are dismissive of different kinds of support and/or treatment because of some or another personal discomfort. Or, again, because of a personal bias. I hated the fact that I needed to go to AA when I first got sober in 1983, but I had no other viable choices. Since that time, I've added individual psychotherapy and a range of healthy activities and personal goals, not just to stay sober, but to live a better life.

I have very high standards for myself when I'm sober. Someone else might describe my standards as "exacting." No matter. I'm not content with just putting down the drink. If I'm not doing something to improve myself, other than for entertainment, joy, or pleasure (which, one could argue, are acts of self-improvement), then I need to challenge myself so as not to get stuck in the same place. And I generally do what I do very quietly.

I appreciate that, for some people, it's enough just not to pick up a drink. I don't carry any judgment around that, or hold any criticism for people who aren't interested in improving themselves. It's none of my business. But I have a difficult time in reconciling their apparent choice to stay still with my desire that they have more for themselves than they already do. That stuff is all mine.