FreckleFace

My boyfriend has made a step in the right direction and decided amoung himself that he needs some kind of release of all of his wrong doings since his drug abuse. His drug of choice is crack cocaine and pills. He went to his first meeting tonight and said he enjoyed it and met a diverse group of people. He has meetings planned out for this week and will probably continue to go if he thinks its helping.

As his girlfriend of 3 years, I have seen him change and have came across too many people that I love that are battling with addiction. It feels like a huge burden to carry other people's problems on my shoulders plus my own. My father is a homeless alcoholic and I just found that out about 2 years ago. It was such a tragedy in that point of my life and just put me in a depressed state. I was very close with my dad but my mom divorced him and remarried when I was 3 so my stepdad has been a positive male figure in my life. My dad got laid off from his job and everything went downhill from there and I just lost touch with him. And 2 years ago I decided to call around and see if my dad is still even alive and he was.

Needless to say, I think I have been through so much and more then I have ever thought id be faced with. I talk to my friends about my feelings but they just don't understand. I want to attend an NA meeting with my boyfriend because I feel it might help to talk to others. There is a meeting tomorrow night and its an open discussion. I'm just nervous because idk what they do in the discussions and if its even a place I should go. Any tips or advice!

Faithlove

Hi!
What about al anon? That's for families/ friends who have been effected by an addict.

I've found that reading and posting here helps immensley! There's also the friends and family of alcoholics and adult children of alcoholics thread that you could post on in addition to this one.

Good for you for taking this step in your life! You don't have to carry everyone's burdens....just your own.

FreckleFace

Thanks for the reply. I kind of dont want to go to NA because I feel that is something my boyfriend needs to go to on his own. I dont want to make him feel uncomfortable having me there and holding back. And the same is for me, i dont want him to see me an emotional wreck at these meetings. Some things should just be separated and I believe maybe itd be better if I found a different meeting to go to alone. Decisions, decisions!

Faithlove

I agree! I think it's best if the two of you can go to separate meetings....at least in the beginning. Although you're both battling addiction, your battles are different.

Have you been able to find out if they have al anon or nar anon in your area?

FreckleFace

Yes there are both meetings around my area. Im just scared and nervous to actually go because I dont know what it will be like or who will be there. My boyfriend said he was suprised when he went tonight because there was alot of younger people and a mix of older ones. I guess I just keep holding off on the meetings because of my nervousness

Faithlove

I completely understand! No one likes to be "the new kid."
Give them a try though. Give them a few tries before you decide if the meetings are right for you.

LoveMeNow

NA can help a motivated addict who wants recovery. I fell into a false sense of "security" because my AH was attending 2 meetings a day, every day. He relapsed, I had no idea and was still going to meetings. Anyone can go, high or not.

Crack is one evil drug and hard to kick. Please take care of YOU first and foremost!