rahrah

So I'm pretty conditioned in my thinking that I'll only ever be able too stay sober in AA...which is a problem for me because....well it just is. Nevertheless I've been determined to try on my own time and again and again and again....(all of which failed btw) But here I am again and I've just heard about AVRT...from here..thank you very much! And its amazing how it's concept is exactly how I have described myself...my 2 personalities...you see I have 'Me' (sober, sensible, responsible, productive) and 'SHE' (the addict). It doesn't matter how determined and desperate I am to stay sober...when 'SHE' wakes up...game over! 'Me' gets exiled to the far reaches of my brain. SHE takes over and suddenly all the plans of ME evaporate. I really, honestly, 100% feel like I have 2 completely separate personalities. Throughout all my time in AA I'd never heard anyone describe their addiction like that, but when I looked up AVRT sites, the description of the concept is EXACTLY how I view my struggle. I'm so desperate for SOBRIETY...not just being DRY...that I wanna make sure I'm managing my recovery properly which is why I want your input/advice/experience with AVRT. All feedback is welcome! Thanks!

PennyLane76

I find AVRT very helpful! Have you read the crash course on the website?

rahrah

Yes! I've been reading everything I can find! It really resonates with me!

GhostFace

I did the crash course 49 days ago and now I'm going to 50 days sober. It does work but me personally, I can't rely solely on it. I need a plan.

What is my plan?

Going to the gym, taking daily inventory of self and posting on SR of course. I find that being close and giving to the community here plays a big part on my short sobriety. It keeps me grounded and reminds me that I can't take that first drink.

rahrah

And I shouldn't say SHE 'suddenly ' wakes up...there's always signs that she's stirring, about to rise...that's when I need to take action to make sure SHE stays asleep.

Dee74

whatever works

D

Axiom

The Secular Recovery section of this helped me immensely. I am glad you are finding something that resonates with you.

No one way to get sober. Figure out what works for you and do the work.

Welcome to the forum!

KiKi0615

I use a combination of SR, AVRT, AA, counseling, exercise, prayer, meditation, healthy eating etc.

AVRT did not work for me all by itself. I'm the type of person that needs group support like SR & AA. I personally really like AA. The people in the meetings I go to are very supportive & caring. And of course I love SR!!! I'm very involved with the November 2015 class. It keeps me accountable.

Find a combo that works for you. The most important thing for me was to stop over-thinking it and just take action. The hardest part was not drinking the first few weeks but 33 days in I rarely have cravings. It gets better! :-)

wpainterw

I am one of those renegades who believes that the basic insights of AVRT are not necessarily incompatible with AA if the latter is viewed in a non dogmatic mode. Bill W. maintained that none of the steps are "mandatory" (although the first, and hardest step seems necessary to get things going) and also, at least in the latter part of his career, expressed his doubts about the influence of traditional organized religion over the AA groups which were developing.. See the writings of the late Ernie Kurtz. AVRT has a solid scientific basis, the capacity of the more primitive parts of the brain to mislead the more rational parts, particularly when the latter have been numbed and temporarily "dumbed down" by alcohol and where the body has had to change its physiology and neurology to accommodate itself to that substance. Thus I confess I am an eclectic and, to some a heretic in both camps. Yet I have found it possible to take what seems to me the best of each, or, to be more humble, those aspects with which I am most comfortable. I have had 27 years of what I consider complete sobriety. I am 88 and if I fall in the gutter it is more likely that it will be from a heart attack or stroke. But there are always other possibilities. As in the Woody Allen film, I may fall in love with a sheep and end up in a dirty raincoat sitting in the gutter drinking, out of a paper bag, a bottle of Woolite. Bed sounds more comfortable. I'll hope for that.

W

MythOfSisyphus

AVRT has worked well for me, over three years sober now. Why not give it a shot?

RedAndy

AVRT seems to definitely be the way forward for me, it had been mentioned as something I should look at, did the crash course only earlier this week and also ordered the book Rational Recovery which arrived yesterday and I picked up last night, reading hasn't been something I've done too much of for quite a few years but is one of the things already top of my list of doing much more of, I expect I will find it difficult to put this one down over the next few days.

Same as you Ghost Face with the gym being a major part of my plans, generally looking after myself with a healthy diet etc which is also something I have done for a good number of years now in between the binging and staying close to this place which I have definitely found most useful and supportive over the past few weeks.

Agreed Kiki those first few weeks were extremely difficult but now at 34 days and things seem to be settling down and becoming much clearer - no complacency though - there's no room for that.

zombob

AVRT is solid thinking practice. Keeping it solid requires daily action...just like any other 'program'. Like others I use it and every other tool I can find to stay focused. I do not want to be addicted to meetings as, although I stayed sober for 8 yrs, I missed a lot of son's ball games back in the 90's due to my "having to have a meeting". I think all can be integrated for a personal plan. Best wishes.

Hawkeye13

I'm now trying AVRT along with a program of exercise, yoga, meditation and
reading / posting here on SR after my final "moderation" attempt, exactly one month ago today.

I read Rational Recovery last month, and I resonated with the ideas
of taking responsibility for one's actions, making a firm decision to
not drink again for any reason, and that we do have power to control
our actions / thinking. However, I felt that the book was dogmatic in its own way
in claiming "superiority" over AA and that wasn't useful, so I let it go.
I am not an "AA person" but I have seen it work miracles for many, and I respect
it as a valid choice just as I respect AVRT, or any other tools an addict uses to quit for good.

One thing I've learned here on SR is that there are as many ways of recovery as there are alcoholics. One size doesn't fit all.

I have kept modifying and tweaking my Sobriety plan ever since I first quit nearly four years ago now.

By and large, I've been sober far more than drinking--maybe 1-2 months of active drinking during that four year period.
This is a huge improvement over the nearly-daily heavy drinking I was doing before that.
My "failures" have been my choice to attempt moderation when my AV voice
starts whispering that I've proved I have control / don't have a "real" problem.

AVRT is my latest "tweak" to my plan to cut that voice off before it can do any damage. So far, I really like it.

It isn't the sum total of my plan, but one piece of the puzzle.
I have a big recovery toolbox and plenty of room for anything that helps me
not only stay sober, but recover.

Nonsensical

Yup. For decades I would argue with my AV, not realizing what it was. This silent battle raging in my head that other alcoholics weren't talking about. Desperately wanting sobriety and desperately wanting to drink at the same time. I honestly believed I might be going insane.

Reading about AVRT in the secular recovery section of this forum changed my life.

Now that I know where that other voice in my head is coming from I don't argue with it any more. I don't let it be in charge and I don't take its advice. My life is significantly better as a result.

AVRT is all about taming The Beast, and that is absolutely essential for sobriety. What AVRT doesn't mention is how to take care of the Beauty - ourselves, the Beast Tamers. Proper care and feeding of the Beast Tamer is different for all of us. It makes SR a richly diverse community.

Congratulations on your decision to pursue a sober life. You will not be sorry.

OpenTuning

Hi RahRah,

AVRT is what got me started in sobriety, over 6 months ago. Mainly that primary concept that I could make a decision forever not to drink again. That it was completely in my power to do that. I didn't want alcohol to have a permanent role in my life even after I stopped drinking. I didn't think it deserved that importance. I wanted to find a way to simply kick it out of my life for good and move on.

And the idea of there being a separate part of my brain that craved alcohol, that spoke in the same voice as the rational part of my brain made a lot of sense to me. Explained a lot.

But I didn't use it on its own. I also read Allen Carr's How to Control Your Drinking, and that was the extra piece of the puzzle that did the trick for me. It's one thing to know where the AV is coming from. It's another to have rock solid arguments to prove why your AV is wrong. The Carr book helped me to realise that alcohol did absolutely none of the things I thought it did. To the point of waking me up to the fact that I didn't even like the taste. And this from someone who used to collect wine, and could often identify the different grapes, and the country they were from in blind tastings. The more I thought about it, the more I realised that yes, I could tell them apart, but I didn't actually like the taste. How stupid had I been for all those years!

And of course SR. Trying to support others while they start on their sober journey has really helped solidify my own. I actually thought I'd stop coming here once I felt secure in my own sobriety, for the reasons mentioned above. My plan had been to move on and leave thoughts of alcohol behind. But knowing the impact SR had on my life makes it very hard to let go. And also, despite the fact I wouldn't recognise anyone here if I passed them on the street, I do feel surrounded by people I care about on this site. It's good to feel part of a community.

esinger

There's many paths. I became very angry with one program's dogmatic approach. I have come to realize that some of the tools I picked up are useful and still help me today. The concepts of AVRT are pretty sound and I use them also. I've also incorporated other things I've learned by searching and reading and picking up along the way.
I am the type of person who looks at every thing with a critical eye. Following one rigid ideology will never work for me. I use what works for me and try to ignore the rest. The important thing is really wanting to be clean more than wanting to be intoxicated.
Good luck

strategery

I think it's better to have more tools rather than less tools in battling addiction.

Soberwolf

Go for it RahRah

Dee74

I really, seriously, live for the day when it's possible to discuss one method of recovery here without denigrating another.

Some statements really invite a reply in kind - we call those 'flame baiting' - and that's why we had to make this rule:

Please respect the rights of others to hold beliefs and perspectives, which differ from yours. Our Sober Recovery Forum members are of many nationalities, ages, and cultures. Healthy, vigorous debate will further our goals, but only when guided by the tolerance that springs from mutual embrace of mission.

Dee
Moderator
SR

ZeldaFan

I've been practicing AVRT and it has been helpful. It does put a lot of the responsibility on you to be alert and aware of our AV. I read Rational Recovery and found it helpful. Just be aware that the author really slams on traditional recovery methods including the thinking that alcoholism is a disease. It's good to keep an open mind to other tools to help in your recovery so I did take some of the read with a grain of salt but the overall concept is solid in my opinion.