JustAGirl1971

What are the pros/cons of each? Anyone have experience with both?

Our city just now (like this week!) finally has an Ala-teen. The bad thing is it interferes with teen small groups at our church. Our church does have Celebrate Recovery and all the various branches (for families, jr high, & high school students.) The kids may be more comfortable attending at church but I kind of prefer the anonymity of Al-Anon?

honeypig

I looked at the site after someone else mentioned Celebrate Recovery, and it specifies "a Christ-centered recovery program." Alanon, on the other hand, draws on a Higher Power of your understanding, which may or may not be Christian.

Since you mention belonging to a church, I don't imagine that Celebrate Recovery having a Christian focus will be a problem for you, but for some folks it could be a deal breaker.

Here's a link to their site Celebrate Recovery

Sorry I can't offer any more than that...

hopeful4

I have attended both but have been a regular to Celebrate Recovery for almost 4 years. From what I have seen CR can vary greatly from place to place in how well the program is offered. The church I go to really has their stuff together and has had the program in place for quite a while so it is smooth and well managed. They certainly do not stuff religion down your throat and folks of all different demoninations go. Non believers go also.
They also offer free childcare, a free meal that is really good and a program called Celebration Station which is for children. It is age appropriate. Many of them have what is called The Landing which is a program for teenagers.

If anyone is near Saddleback church that founded CR it is AMAZING. I went to what is called The Summit there and it was absolutely amazing. Their programs are amazing. They have it down to just how it should be.

CR has a large and a small group time. Large group has music, either a lesson or testimony and a general time where everyone is together. You then break out into small groups of women and men. Our groups are: Chemical Dependency, Codependency and Everything Under the Sun. Women with women, men with men. There is also different times of the year that a 12 step study is offered which I have completed.

When I went to Alanon here it was not for me. I will say I only attended the meeting at that same time, had I went to other meetings at a different time with different people it may have been better. At the same time I attended CR and it was very good for me so that is what I have stuck with.

That is about all I can say. The important thing is to try them out and see what group of people work for you. No one should be alone.

JustAGirl1971

Thank you both. I'm going to an ACOA meeting tomorrow to see what it's like. Hopeful, our church has had a Celebrate Recovery for more than 5 years so I know it's well established. I don't know how long they've had the celebration station part for families but the jr high and high school programs are new this year. DD 13 has been wanting to go but it always seems like she has too much homework or a music program/school event the same night that they have it

honeypig

JustAGirl, I see you put Alanon in the title of this thread and mention Alanon in your first post. Then I see you mention going to an ACOA meeting in your later post. I guess I'm a little unclear--which group are you wanting to look into? The focus and feeling of each are fairly different, in my (admittedly limited) experience.

If your A is your husband, definitely Alanon should be your choice rather than ACOA. If you come from an alcoholic family, then Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACOA) may be helpful in dealing with that. In my opinion, Alanon will carry over into helping w/an alcoholic family better than ACOA will carry over into helping w/a alcoholic spouse. Again, my experience is limited, but this is what it felt like to me. Just wanted to clarify, as sometimes folks aren't clear about which group does what.

I'm curious about Celebrate Recovery. Reading the website, it doesn't seem to be a 12-step program. I hope you'll post what your experience is, if indeed you do attend. Oh, also, you mentioned concerns about anonymity in your original post. The CR website does say "Celebrate Recovery maintains strict confidentiality", so it would appear that you're OK on that count.

Hope you find something useful, wherever you choose to go.

Hammer

Only difference I see is that I can leave my shoes on for Celebrate Recovery.

C.B. does theirs in 8 steps, and Alanon/AA does it in 12.

I can count to 8 on my fingers, but I have to take off my shoes to count to 12.

I suppose Bart Simpson might say -- Same Crap, Different Dumpster -- but since growing up a little with all this, I would say . . .

Both All Good, Both All God. Praise His Holy Name.

Mountainmanbob

as a Christian Celebrate Recovery get's my highest rating
Christ centered and that's a good Program for God's chosen children
but
I will admit
I also go to the secular Programs for support
this man who has fooled himself often
needs and receives all the support available

with all grateful thanks going to God

MM

JustAGirl1971

Thank you all. I did attend the ACOA meeting that I mentioned. It was different than I expected. Honeypig, my father was an alcoholic, too, and the ACOA meeting just happened to be at a time that I could attend. I keep making excuses for why I can't make each al-anon meeting. I didn't have any good excuses why I couldn't make the ACOA meeting so I went. I do agree that al-anon would probably be a better fit. I did meet several women who are/were married to alcoholics.

DD and I are planning to try Celebrate Recovery together next. I'm hoping ds will consider attending with us or going to ala-teen.

Hammer & MMBob, thank you both for your perspectives.

honeypig

Thanks for the update, JustAGirl. Well, at least you got to a meeting of SOME kind, and hopefully that will kind of be an icebreaker for you as far as overcoming those excuses about getting to Alanon.

I'd really like it if you'd post your ongoing experiences w/finding a meeting or program that you feel is a good fit. I think it might be helpful to folks who are having a hard time getting themselves to go or who are having to work to find that "coming home" feeling of being at the right meeting or in the right program.

Thanks again for letting us know how it turned out!

hopeful4

Actually Celebrate Recovery is a 12 step program, I read them (the steps) aloud at our meeting just last night. There are eight principals that are separate, but it is a 12 step program. You can go to the meetings without being involved in a 12 step study. I did the 12 step study and learned so much about myself. I would actually like to do another one eventually for various reasons.

I think it is a matter of finding a group of people who can support you while you work on yourself. Give all kinds of meetings a try and see who you click with.

Good Luck!

Hammer

Sounds Great. 12 is a good number, too.

It is always a sad thing to me when folks on either or any side get so wound up their professed religions or professed lack thereof, they cannot even the see the good and blessings available.

hopeful4

Yes I agree Mr. Hammer! When I want religion I go to church. Celebrate Recovery or Alanon or whatever you go to are not church. Can you get in touch with the church people there? Sure. Is it a church service? Nope. It is there for you to reach out to people to get support. I have found so much good there I just cannot explain it. It is not all because of the program itself (although I am a full Celebrate Recovery kool-aide drinker lol).
It is because of the wonderful people I have met there who are in the same boat as I am, who understand me, understand my situation and have offered me their open hearts. It is for the unconditional love and support I receive there EVERY SINGLE TIME. There is no mistake I can make that I cannot tell them about. There is no decision I can make they will not support me on. They help me look into myself and see who I want to be, and fortunately for me, they help me be a better person for it. There were times in my past I had isolated myself so much that they were the only people I opened up to about what was truly going on im my life. Had I not been able to do that I think I would have exploded or went into a deep depression because I was stuffing all those feelings down so much and had no other outlet.

If you are lucky enough to live in a town that offers support of whatever type I hope FOR YOURSELF you reach out and take it. If you find the right group it will change your life.
Ok..Rant Over. I just wanted to back up what Mr. Hammer said. I personally think God is most likely displeased with how caught up the world is in our little demoninations and have missed the big picture all together.

I hope this week is a good one for everyone and that we all offer support to someone else and remember to accept it from others also!

JustAGirl1971

At the ACOA meeting, there were many different faiths represented. I must admit it felt a little strange listening to them discuss prayer and meditation when their faiths were so very different from one another. At the time, I felt like such an odd duck that I didn't feel like I could identify with most of them. After the fact, I've realized how much I do identify with much of what was said, especially the craving for excitement or the next "big thing", the constantly racing thoughts and inability to stay focused (and all this time I was blaming it on undiagnosed ADHD, lol.)

Listening to them all discuss how much more peaceful their lives are as a result of meditation has definitely made me want to try it. My prayer life has improved immensely these last few months and as a result, my life is already more peaceful than it was. The thought that it could be even better (and that I could actually possibly quiet my mind for more than 2 seconds) really makes me want to try meditation. In the end, the insights on meditation shared by the non-christians (esp hindu and buddhist) were actually more helpful to me than the insights shared by christians. Probably because our faith is so different. At the time, I kind of just wanted to get the heck out of there. In retrospect, I'm really glad I went

Hammer

Figured I would bump this thread up, if anyone had more details.

Not so much a "versus" concept, but whether / how / support for CR at local churches.

Thanks.