tomsteve

im thinkin ya meant just dont drink and go to meetings.
I used to hear from an old timer," put the plug in the jug."
well, no crap, but how to I keep the plug in the jug? that's what I needed to know.

I agree,tho. going to meetings and not drinking don't treat alcoholism.

I think the bb says something about we cant transmit something we don't have.

Centered3

So well said tomsteve. "Don't drink, put the plug in the jug, and go to meetings" doesn't treat the problem of alcoholism (and some of us learned that the hard way when we felt worse instead of better). It only treats the problem if the problem is alcohol. If your life is better when you put the plug in the jug and go to meetings, then your problem ain't alcoholism; it's alcohol.

MIRecovery

I am of the belief that alcoholism is a continuum not an event. It starts when alcohol starts to gain control and ends at death. The only real difference is where on that continuum we find ourselves. At what point do we decide that the consequences of drinking out weigh the perceived benefits. Some of get off the elevator to hell relatively early many others much latter but most never get off and alcohol kills them

People say, "I'm not that bad." What they don't realize they will be

Ken33xx

When I am asked to do the honors at a speaker meeting my speech is basically written out. Not that I simply read it but glance down to be sure I stay on track. I spend a fourth of the time on what it was like and the rest split between how I utilized the AA program in early sobriety and how I utilized it when I ran into major difficulties later on.

With regards to discussion meetings I'm not interested in hearing about someone's bad week anymore than I want someone hear a member parrot AA platitudes/BB.

However, in my experience a majority of such meetings fall somewhere in the middle.

And as long as members are respectful of others in the room (read: keep your shares to under five minutes) it's all good.

Ken33xx

When I got sober at the age of 35 I assumed everyone in the rooms was at least 30 when they joined AA. For me by the age of 23 the signs were all there but when you're young people will often buy your act.

I see it this way: On one side of the coin I wish I had gotten sober at a younger age. On the other side because I played the drink out don't have any nagging doubts I can drink socially.

KAD

This is exactly why I often avoid getting into specifics like the quantities we drank, how long we drank, horror stories, etc. While it can sometimes be helpful to remind us of details of our own pasts, because it is so easy to forget, it can also lead some to think they have more room to run since they weren't "that bad."

Yet.

Db1105

I have to remember that many of us die before we hit the so called low bottom.

NYCDoglvr

Thanks for sharing. I just learned that my sister-in-law's brother died at 40 of alcoholism alone, in extreme poverty and misery. It's all too common.

LadyBlue0527

I'm not saying that I haven't felt like any of the posts in this thread but I've come to an understanding.

I'm grateful for every story.

For those worse off I'm grateful that I made it to my seat at the meeting without having to go where they did.

For those who haven't made it to the idiotic acts that I've done I'm grateful that they found their way to their seat at the meeting without having to go where I did.

For those who ramble I'm grateful that they're in that seat rambling rather than out doing more of what they're rambling about. They too are trying to get well.

I didn't always feel this way. It took a lot of work with the steps and my higher power to get here. I think we all have enough to deal with working on being sober and happy about it without the fear of being judged at a meeting. I know what you guys are saying is real. I'm just trying to convey that how you choose to perceive it has a lot to do with how much you'll get out of it.