Originally Posted by
Gottalife 
Respectfully in reply, my experience is that until an alcoholic of my type has found an effective 24/7 defence against the first drink, the obsession can and does return.
The AA program is about permanent recovery which means staying stopped, not stopping for a spell. And the spell can be significant, sometimes ten years or more. I've seen it happen far too often.
If the insanity of the first drink returns, we are as helpless as the guy who never stopped. My friend Zac is a case in point. Drank after ten years. I thought all his AA experience would save him. I couldnt have been more wrong. He was dead in three months. Helpless and hopeless.
If we are sober today, certainly we have the opportunity to take whatever action is needed to remain that way. But if we don't take the action, if we delay or avoid, we can pay an awful price.
I think we're saying the same thing. AA states "if you are willing to go to any length to get it"
Any length doesn't imply not staying in front of the addiction. Time under your belt is meaningless if no growth persists.
This is why there is a huge distinction made between "white knuckling" and "living sober" in the big book.
We can agree to disagree in splitting hairs. but in the end, the choice is always ours to live sober. Nobody is pouring it down our throats.