epskie

I've just found out that a family friend has been told she has a few days left to live. Her liver has failed completely and they've pulled all of her treatment as there is no hope left. She is leaving 3 daughters and a husband. She was told 1 year ago to quit but she started up again.

This has frightened the living daylights out of me. I have avoided AA (due to the religious nature) but now I feel I must try. Can anybody help me find online meetings for the UK please? I'd really like to start out with an online meeting before I go to a real meeting.

Thanks guys.

IndaMiricale

I am so sorry to hear about your friend.

And since it seems you have not been to AA, then you really dont know anything about it. It is not religious. It is from all and its a spiritual program there is a big difference.

And I am sure someone from your parts will be along with a link for meetings. Or you could just call the local chapter in Newcastle for all your info.

Best wishes to you keep us posted.

artsoul

So sorry to hear about your friend, epskie. I agree that it's scary - we always think it will never happen to us....

This is a cool site you might want to check out (it has a calendar for AA in the UK)....
Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) Great Britain

ACT10Npack

If you don't like the religious part of AA why not try SOS or SMART. You may have luck with that. Couseling is an other option too.

2granddaughters

epskie, we go to the Dr. with our life-threatening affliction and he says "This is the medicine that has worked wonders in cases like yours" .... and he gets his hypo out.
My immediate reaction, instead of "Oh, thank you so much for saving my life" is "Is this going to hurt?"
Can you identify with that ??

Bob R

2granddaughters

I worked with a plumber from Newcastle at Chrysler in the '60's

He had a strange way of talking .... great guy though.

All the best.

Bob

Dee74

Prayers for your friend Epskie.

D

sugarbear1

Prayers sent your way

aa online chatroom

InTheRooms.com

do a search: online aa meetings

epskie

Hi Guys, thanks very much. I attended an online meeting last night :-)

Yeah we are known as 'Geordies' over here and we are quite hard to understand :-S Some people think we talk like the Scottish but we don't think so.

Thanks for the thoughts. I feel for her daughters so much, so sad.

Pigtails

Hi. I am not in the UK but I just wanted to chime in that AA is helping me a lot and I am not religious at all, I'm agnostic. I can't say I understand/agree with everything, in fact it's quite the opposite, but I get such a sense of calm and relief out of attending meetings. I have been trying to figure out why, and I think it's a few reasons:

1. I am surrounded by people like me -- who used to drink and do not, or at least they want to not drink anymore.

2. Because they are like me, we can understand and relate to each other so easily.

3. Also because they are like me I guess, they do not judge me.

4. I feel support from positive influences who are on the same page as I am (in my situation, I am surrounded by people who like to drink/ don't think I should stop drinking/ don't get it, so, it is great to go to a place where people get it and support me in my goals).

5. Helping other people who want to stop drinking helps me feel useful and like I have a purpose.

Number 5 is rather new to me, as is number 6, which I just discovered very recently and which your post really hits on:

6. It reminds me that I am an alcoholic, and that if I don't stay stopped for good, then very bad things are coming my way. Denial is a really big part of this disease and I have lately sensed that my sobriety is so precarious. I WANT to stay sober but the disease-infested part of me "wants" to drink, it wants to say screw this, I'm fine, I don't have a problem, I'm not as bad as these people etc. But when I sit there and listen to them I can relate to so much and I know deep inside that I am just the same. So when I hear a scary story like the one you just shared (I am so sorry to hear of this by the way), instead of thinking, well that hasn't happened to me yet, I'm not that bad, I think, I am so grateful to be sober so that doesn't have to happen to me, and it might happen if I go back to drinking. So many people in AA have told me that the nature of this disease is relapse and that I might find that out... not to try to scare me but to let me know what they have been through and that I should stay vigilant about my recovery and sobriety so that I don't have to go through that. I am so grateful to AA (and SR) for this reason.

I hope this helps you. I'm sorry for your bad news. Best wishes.