scarystuff

today is day 4 sober, and I'm going to my 4th AA meeting after work. But I'm going nuts trying to decide which meeting to go to. There are 2 meetings happening at the exact same time in the same neighborhood. 1 is an open discussion meeting, and the other is a beginners meeting. I'm not sure which to go to.
In the past 3 days I have been to 3 different meetings. 2 of those meetings were in the exact same place, although they were different meetings.
Today I have a choice between the open discussion meeting, which is in a new location that I haven't been to before. And in the same neighborhood, there is another meeting for beginners, but it is also in the exact same location is the 2 meetings I went to in the past 2 days.
Does any of this matter? Should I just go to the beginners meeting because I'm a beginner? The first meeting I went to was a closed discussion meeting and I really liked it. The second meeting I went to was a big book meeting. Also a good experience. And the third meeting was open discussion. Now that I think about it, I really liked them all.
So should I go for the beginners meeting today, or the open discussion? I'm sorry, but I can't help it. I'm obsessing over this.
at this point, I think i'm leaning towards the open discussion meeting, but I really don't know

ScottFromWI

I'd say go to the one at the same location you have been to, different meeting but same place and most likely a lot of the same people.

scarystuff

Possibly, but when I went to that same location 2 days in a row, there were completely different people.

LadyBlue0527

Hey There scarystuff!

Take out a coin and decide which meeting represents heads and which one represents tails. Now make your choice of heads or tails and flip.

One of two things will happen:

1. You'll be satisfied with the outcome and that's where you'll go.

2. You'll realize that you really wanted to go to the other one because the flip result doesn't sit right with you.

It's a strange way to do things but I've had it work.

Beginners or Open Discussion for me doesn't really matter. You can try one today and then do the other next week. It's actually kind of fun finding what you like.

AAAAAAAAAAAANDDDDDDDDDDD, look at you, focused on what meeting to try next!

scarystuff

I might be just massively over thinking this. Either meeting probably has its own upsides. I might just have to flip a coin....
at the same time, the reason it's such a big deal to me is because I'm worried that if I have a bad experience at a meeting, I'll be more inclined to give up on the whole thing. I definitely don't want that to happen

Nuudawn

I doubt you will go wrong with any of them : )

scarystuff

Or maybe I'll just have someone blind fold me and spin me in a circle 10 times and then push me in a direction. Kind of a pin the tail on the AA meeting type of thing

scarystuff

Thanks everyone for the advice! I'll post back later and let you know which one I went with and how it went.
THANKS!

LadyBlue0527

You're such a brat lol

However, that spin idea might just work!

Now, let's change that to

"If I have a bad experience at a meeting then I don't have to go to that one again and have successfully eliminated it from my list. Eventually I'll find all the ones that are right for me."

ScottFromWI

If you replace "might" with "am" I think you have your answer ;-)

I"m sure either will be fine. Drive by the one you haven't been to and if it feels right, go in. If not continue to the other one you already know about.

DisplacedGRITS

I'd recommend the beginners meeting. It's fine that it's in the same meeting place. Many meetings draw different people despite being held at the same location. For me, i enjoy seeing many of the same faces mixed in with new ones. It's good to diversify but i think making it to a meeting that is more geared to where you are in recovery is a good idea. Really though, either meeting is going to be a good call.

GracieLou

When you hear keep it simple, that is just what it means

No wrong choice really. Let us know how it went.

Notmyrealname

Two meetings, two different sides of a quarter. I think you can see where I'm going here

Louise82

Hi scarystuff. I think you are overthinking this. I don't think it matters which of the meetings you go to, as, in my experience, all meetings welcome the newcomer. However, as a beginner myself, I'd probably go to the beginners' meeting, just because that's what people in AA have suggested I do.

It's really good that you're going to all kinds of different meetings - big book meetings, discussion meetings etc.

noexcuse

Love this thread - it's all about the solution instead of the problem!! To think that there are so many choices about where to go for your recovery instead of wallowing in the anxiousness of the first week of sobriety. Excellent!

That being said, I've read my share of AA literature, alcoholic literature, self-help, etc., and one of the books that I read said:

"An alcoholic went to a meeting. He walked in and didn't like the discussion. A couple of the people said things that he didn't agree with. He became more and more irritated as the meeting went on. By the end of the Lord's Prayer, he couldn't wait to leave. In a rush, he stormed out of the meeting without saying goodbye to anyone, frustrated with the whole concept of AA.

Another alcoholic went to a meeting. He listened intently to the discussion because it was a topic he hadn't explored before. He listened to others share because he knew that he would be able to take something from the meeting. He walked around with the coffee and stayed after the meeting for some fellowship and conversations. He went home with a lighter heart and a better mood than when he had arrived.

Both men were in the same meeting. Both got exactly what they expected to get out of it."

There are rarely bad meetings, in my honest opinion. Hope you enjoyed whichever one you chose!

scarystuff

noexcuse... i like that. thanks

Grungehead

I would go to the beginner's meeting because you are guaranteed that the discussion will focus around the first 3 steps and early sobriety. While I have never been to a meeting that I didn't get something from it, in early sobriety some meetings may be on topics I have no experience with yet. I have 3 months and I have a beginner's meeting on my regular rotation of meetings and plan on keeping there. I also have one BB study meeting and an open discussion meeting (my home group) that I go to regularly. Then the rest of my meetings I go to for the week I like to mix up. BTW at my home group last night one of the regular members picked up a 39 year medallion.

thekl0wn

So far, I've yet to go to a "bad" meeting. Some have been better than others, but all have had their merits. Just as a matter of personal opinion, I prefer meetings where there is a lot of sobriety.

Mirage74

I would go to the one you want to go to. Can't go wrong either way. I think the important thing is that you want to quit drinking and are going to a meeting at all. GL

DisplacedGRITS

I've been to a couple of bad meetings. One was a Big Book discussion that is normally fun but that night this guy decided to make the meeting all about him and argue with every person who spoke and called one guy out on busting his chops from like weeks ago. It was uncomfortable and he was really intimidating. That being said, i hung out with people afterwards and really liked what went on after the meeting. So, yeah, there are "bad meetings" but you can still put a positive spin on it afterwards by hanging out and casually fellowshipping. It beats leaving the meeting in a huff and letting it spoil your day.