sweetnlow77

I got sober by turning to AA in 2015. I've been on SoberRecovery for quite a while too. I've been wondering about whether some of the sober people on SR got and stayed sober by using only the recovery community on SR. Some aspects of AA are beginning not to be right for me at this time. Could anyone please share if you got and stayed sober by using SR?

ScottFromWI

I've been to AA and Smart meetings. I've also been to couselors, doctors and done a lot of reading. SR has also been a large part of my sober life - probably the biggest part from a recovery community aspect.

Bottom line though, we get and stay sober because we decide to do so. No sobriety plan or program or website can make that happen unless we do the work. I view SR as a collection of many different theories and ideas, and indeed there are subforums dedicated to many of the other mainstream methods.

So absolutely - one could get sober using SR as their primary source of support - I have and many others have too. But it was only because of the time, effort and work that was put in to get there.

The fact that you have remained sober since 2015 is quite an accomplishment - and evidence that you have taken the effort to get there. There's no reason you can't still use the things in AA that DO work and also SR at the same time.

Reid82

I have a love/hate relationship with AA. Went for about two years after my first Treatment in 2014. Found a lot of toxic people and groups, crazy stuff being shared, fist fights outside meetings, oh jeez.....

Went to Life Ring for about 8 months after leaving but then my local meeting finished up due to poor numbers. No group support for a few years then and my bingeing started getting bad again.

I'm going to 2-3 AA meetings again after my second Treatment in May. Found a few small, rural meetings with less egos and crazies!! Hoping that SR will be a great addition to not going back drinking again!

Grateful09

I found an AA group that was women only, and that was just what I needed at the time. I learned that other women have a lot of the same questions, fears, challenges that I had. The whole environment was very supportive, welcoming and nonjudgmental. I have since learned that a lot of it has to do with who is leading/sponsoring any given group, which makes sense. I stopped for a variety of reasons, no need to go into that here. Ultimately, I needed to build on what I learned there, stop being in denial, and find my path. Since recovery in isolation can be hard though, and full of the AV voice, I have found community for this "path building" in SR and elsewhere. I do understand why people keep up with AA though, and I admire the great good it has done for many people.

Scd619x

My mother dragged me down to AA when i was 17, worst thing she could have done for me as i hadn't even started drinking at that stage and was more than happy to misunderstand the message and declare myself alcoholic and powerless to stop drinking lol. This madness continued for most of my life.

Steely

Yes, in the early days, but like you some things just did not fit for me. It kept me sober for 5 years tho. Relapsed. I just use SR now and have been sober 16 months. It's a better fit for me.

Agree with those who say they knew they'd had enough, negative consequences too great, so I stopped. Best decision of my life.

Mizz

I attended but no longer attend. I am sober and content.

tdshawn647

I feel the same. Go to early AM meetings of AA.

Boondock

I went to AA for around 7 years before a nasty divorce amongst other things sent running back to the bottle for a 5 year pattern of binge, dry out, binge ,dry out. I had a good experience with AA. I used to go to a 7am meeting on a porch of a old building right on the inlet our motto was "may the porch be with you" lol.....There is also a club near me with a cafe in it and has meetings round the clock 7 days a week. They also have weekend BBQ's. I will be returning.

Steely

There used to be a meeting at Bondi called "Cliffhangers", Boondock. Perched at top of cliff overlooking Bondi beach. With a name like that, it was the meeting for me. Lol.

Boondock

That sounds awesome I'd be there. You should start a new meeting there....I've been going back to that 7am meeting since I wrote that I love it, such a nice spot in the morning. Also at 7am every Saturday there's a meeting on the beach here, bring a beach chair kinda thing I think I'll try it tomorrow morning. But my home group will always be the porch.

aasharon90

The first 7 to 10 yrs I saturated myself with the program
of AA that was taught to me in a 28 days rehab facility
back in Aug. 1990.

From there, I continued on each and everyday incorporating
the tools and knowledge of recovery taught to me and learned
over the past 30yrs.

Going to AA meetings, surrounding myself with like minded
folks, sharing similar to the same victories and struggles before,
during and after addiction, gave me the courage and willingness
to stay connected with recovery.

After moving with family, then relocating back to my hometown,
I decided that it is just as important to share my experiences,
strengths and hopes with others here online. There are many
who for one reason or another find it hard to make a face to
face meeting and need to hear those who have found success
themselves in remaining sober a day at a time in places like this
here online.

As long as I stay connected to my recovery lifelines and help
others struggling with addiction, even if it is here on my laptop,
my faith and support will grant me another day healthy, happy,
and honest on my sober journey in life.

Never stop learning and never let go of your recovery lifelines.

Notch8

I never did. There's a group within a few minutes of home that meets Tuesday evenings and wouldn't mind trying it if it suits. Since I'm not much of a 12 stepper, I was told that I may be resented a bit, just what I was told.

Heh, if it works for you, go for it.

Evoo

No I didn’t do AA. I did most of my hard work here in SR and reading a lot about Rational Recovery and Addiction Voice. I also processed a lot with my wife. I saw a doctor, I changed my diet, I got my health in order.

There are many roads to recover. Find the one that works for you and keeps you from drinking.

sugarbear1

10+ years sober here mostly through AA. I still come to SR, which I attended for 11 years before I could stay stopped!

nandm

Just celebrated 20 years sober in March through AA. I would not be alive today without the program of AA and someone who took the time to reach out to me in the last days of my drinking, giving me her phone number and telling me to call if I felt I had a problem with alcohol. It never crossed my mind that I might be able to go to treatment as I thought that was only for under the bridge, drinking out of brown paper bags alcoholics and I still had a job, a car, my kids, and a home. Although I was on the verge of suicide as I knew I could no longer continue drinking but had no idea how to live without drinking. That is what AA taught me, it gave me the life tools to not need to drink at problems, and to not create drama around myself. I do recognize that AA is not for everyone and that is the beauty of other programs being out there. What truly matters is that people find the help they need to change their lives for the better.
As far as anonymity and/or the fear of people finding out about me being an alcoholic or being in AA, I did have some concerns initially because I was a paramedic and nurse and did not want my employer to find out that I was an alcoholic. But, what I learned was there is a wide variety of people in AA; from doctors to lawyers to fry cooks to janitors to the disabled to the unemployed. What one's career is, is not what is important in AA, what matters is, do you have a desire to stop drinking as that is the only requirement for AA. As far as someone seeing you in a public setting and outing you as being an AA member I have never in the 20 years I have been sober had that happen.

Dee74

Great to see you nandm and congrats on 20 years
D

nez

I was a successful business owner when I first started to go to AA and was worried about gossip and what it would do to my business if word got out. Many years later, I now laugh and think what could they have possibly said??? "OMG he is going to AA. He is doing his best at trying to get better." How horrible!!!

tursiops999

I participated actively for a year, then left. I learned a lot and will always be grateful for it. In the end, though, I experienced too much cognitive dissonance with things that didn't make sense for me. I found SR and have continued to be happily sober. I think there are many ways to achieve happy sobriety, but the key is a deep commitment, and taking action. I had to actually change my day to day behaviors... find new ways to spend my time, new ways to manage stress, new ways to feel relaxed and at peace. There's a million better alternatives to drinking, but I had to actually start doing them.

Ken33xx

Today I mainly attend AA meetings on Zoom or Skype. Although I have enjoyed the AA fellowship over the years I like saying good-bye and clicking off when the meetings ends. No need to feel guilty because I don't want to hang out for coffee.

Also I find the on-line meetings more diverse. A lot of new-comers, old-timers and members with various backgrounds.

As for those worried about anonymity... just turn off the camera.