Mrrryah1

I've been in and out of AA for the last 8 years with little success, and I'm thinking of exploring another avenue that has helped others to get sober. I know AA has helped millions of people get sober, and maybe I will decide that it is the best route for me, but there's no harm in looking at other ways which have helped people out - right?

I'm going to check out a SMART Recovery group tonight in my city - something I have never been to before. Does anyone know about these types of programs? Is there any basic literature I should pick up and start reading?

Other than the Big Book and AA stuff - is there any literature which has helped you immensely in finding sobriety that lasts?

Coldfusion

Try looking here:

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...rituality.html

IOAA2

Hi.
Even after a lot of years I like the AA booklet “Living Sober” after the first 164 pages of the BB.

Of course it works if we work it.

BE WELL

Soberwolf

Mrryah i read the living sober book first before ther big book it was an exellent read

doggonecarl

Most of the literature I read was in an effort to convince myself I wasn't an alcoholic. Once I realized I was, I sought sobriety and accepted I could never drink. SR helped me more than any book from that point on.

I hope you find something that works for you. Eight years is a long time struggling to find recovery.

twal

Hey...Mrrrayh! When I was going through a tough time a counselor suggested that I read The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. It's more of a self help book and not a recovery one. I have read it a few times when needing to regroup and just focus on myself. Hope this helps.

Northlander

This is probably not the sort of literature you had in mind, but the short story The Swimmer by John Cheever is a compelling work about losing everything to alcohol.

You can read it here for free...

http://www.loa.org/images/pdf/Cheever_Swimmer.pdf

DoubleFelix

I found Under the Influence: A Guide to the Myths and Realities of Alcoholism by James Robert Milam and Katherine Ketcham and Drinking: A Love Story by Caroline Knapp to be really helpful.

The first helped me understand how alcohol(ism) functions in the body of an alcoholic. This really helped take away the shame and stigma. This isn't about something "wrong" with me, it's just that my and other alcoholics bodies interact with alcohol differently than most people.

The second book helped me emotionally and spiritually. I related very deeply to Ms. Knapp's experiences, even though our drinking lives were very different. She was able to write out feelings I've had but have never been able to express. I felt understood and less alone. This is the book that made me accept that I was truly an alcoholic, and I could live a new kind of life if I wanted to.

I'm sure both of these are on that list that Coldfusion linked to.

Anna

M, have you read "Drinking: A Love Story" by Caroline Knapp? She was a young, professional, high-functioning alcoholic and her memoir is deeply honest and raw. When I read that book, it was the first time I believed that, if she could do it, I could do it.

Mrrryah1

I haven't read any of these books, except for Big Book and Living Sober.

I'm not looking for literature to prove I'm not an alcoholic. I definitely am. I'm just looking for something thought provoking that could perhaps helps me find some motivation when I am lacking. Keep my mind on the prize. Focus on staying sober.

Thanks for the suggestions!

Jupiters

another vote for Living Sober (and I don't go to AA, but it was a good book)
and A Drinking Story: Caroline Knapp

great book. I've already read it 3x haha