Originally Posted by
JeffreyAK 
I'm just wondering, is it possible that what you're missing, by reading links and books and thinking, is meetings and a sense of personal fellowship? There are lots of meetings that aren't AA, and AA wasn't my choice either, but for example SMART has lots of face-to-face meetings, and in some parts of the country Lifering does too. There are also outpatient medical treatment meetings, and I still occasionally (few times a year) stop by a drop-in meeting after 7+ years just to kinda remind myself of where I used to be so I don't forget. Online forums like this are great, but many (most?) people do better if they include face-to-face contact and a sense of accountability to other people they personally know. Just what I've experienced and seen with others, and sounds like might be missing from what you described above?
When I was in inpatient treatment I was exposed to 12-step recovery. There are many things that don't work for me. For starters I don't believe in a higher power and I feel that I am truly the only one who has the power to control my addiction. I also don't make friends very easily, so I have a hard time associating with people at meetings. It is a fine program that helps many people, but I just don't think I am one of them.
The IOP idea is interesting though. I have also participated in these in the past and found that it mostly consisted of filling out worksheets, most of which I had already done in inpatient. They were also very 12 step based. This was a number of years ago and it is my understanding that treatment models have changed quite a bit over the years. My ex-wife is the director of a large substance abuse program and she tells me that is not how they do things anymore, When I was in inpatient I found the group sessions to be the most helpful of anything (especially the mens groups) I appreciate the suggestion and am going to look into this. Unfortunately I live in a small area and SMART or Lifering groups are not an option, but I need to go out and do the work if I am going to find the answers.
Thanks again to everyone for their support and suggestions
