Brunie

I have decided that today I am not drinking. My only time of sobriety has been when I was pregnant and a few weeks here and there on special diets. My drinking has now turned into 2 bottles of wine every night, and I can barely get out of bed to take my daughter to daycare and get to work.
I am a professional single Mom of a 4 year old. I have not hit rock bottom as I own a home, a car and I am debt free. But I can see that the drinking is progressing, and I do not want my daughter to grow up watching me drink.
Do AA meetings really work? I am embarrassed to go to a meeting and have a lot anxiety about going. Can I do this on my own?

Anna

Hi Brunie,

Welcome! And, yes alcoholism is a progressive disease, and you will get worse unless you stop.

I am glad you're seeking recovery. I am not an AA person, but it does work for many people. You can do this!

flutter

like anything else, AA works for people that put everything they can into it.. Think how much effort you've put into drinking, now put that into staying sober. When you have the support behind your committment to sobriety, I think most things can 'work'... seeing as how you're actually the one doing the work.

least

Yes you can do this on your own, it's just a bit easier to be travelling recovery road with friends. AA meetings can give good face to face support. Give it a try. YOu CAN do this! Welcome!:ghug3

grateful2b

Brunie, good for you! that is an important first step.
I want to start by saying that AA is not the only way...there are other ways...
I am an addict but I go to AA meetings..I am so inspired by what I see..
A common thread that binds all ....people in various stages of healing and the love and understanding...Seeing the newcomers come in and be welcomed and hearing people's inspiring stories.
But most important, I see that AA works if you work it...
As I look around at people who only a little while ago were new and terrified, and now are tentatively finding their way in the program...it is good to see...
I agree with Least, it is harder to do on your own...recovery is tough enough
whatever way you choose...you can do this!

KindBird

You have made the right decision at the right time - stopping now is the best solution. I was also a wine drinker and functional by all counts but I knew that things were not OK. Thought I am not in AA, I don't see what you have to lose by trying it - lots of recovery there and many find it such a support. There are other groups - LifeRing, Smart Recovery.. You might try looking at the book Sober For Good, and look at the Secular Recovery section on this site to see alternatives if you are interested.

This site is also just AMAZING - lots of people use SR as their community.

Welcome - you can do this!

123bubblegum123

Congratulations on your amazing decision. I hope to god you make it through today! Please keep me posted =]

Rach

Fubarcdn

Welcome to SR Brunie.
You can do this.
Your child will enjoy life a lot better with a sober mom.
Do it for both of you.

CoF1984

Hi and welcome to SR. You've made the right step by wanting to stop and stopping today. As an AA member myself I can say that yes it works for me. But, there are also many other programs available as well to choose from. But, with any program, you get out of it what you put into it. Just like with anything else in life anything you want takes some degree of working for. Feel free to come here, read, post and use all the support you can. We're all here for the same common reason, to recover with the support of others going through the same things we are. And once again welcome to SoberRecovery and glad to have you here. (I hope I said this all okay and it didn't come out wrong. I sincerely apologize if any of this comes out the wrong way, it's not intentional.)

Wes

Brunie

Thank you everyone! It is amazing how much time I am thinking about not drinking a glass of wine. I went to the store today and got seltzer water decaf tea etc...... No wine in the house, hid wine glasses etc. I also bought the book Sober For Good and Beyond the Influence.
Does anyone have any good ideas on audio tapes I can listen to my car? I travel a lot during the day.

adore79

I dont know about audio books but I just wanted to welcome you. It is a great disicion to quit drinking, we dont need alcohol to live and as you said, it progresses and gets worse.

grateful2b

just a suggestion....you can download speaker meetings off the net...they are so inspiring!

acer67

Hi there and welcome!

I'm new here too and attended my first aa meeting last week and it was very inspiring. It was a ladies group and it was amazing how I could relate to each persons story in some form or another. I am going to try another one tomorrow. One thing is for certain, I don't think I can do this alone. It is great to have some support. This site is an awesome place to start.

As for audio tapes for the car - I highly recommend anything by Dr. Wayne Dyer (There's a Spiritual Solution to Every Problem or The Awakened Life are good ones to start with). These are not tapes on addiction but can be used for all areas of one's life. Listening to Dr. Dyer has been a life raft for me many times in the past 5 years. Very inspiring!

grateful2b

my brother, when he isn't in an AA meeting, is listening to inspirational people on his ipod as he goes about his day...his absolute favorite is Dr. Wayne Dyer..

Tazman53

Brunie welcome to SR and congrats on a life saving and changing decision for both you and your daughter.

You ask:

Well I drank for 40 years, the last 5 years I did not draw a sober breath, thanks to the program and fellowship of AA I have been sober over 2 1/2 years. Yes it has worked for me and hundreds of thousands of others.

Trust me if you weren't I would think you were different then any other alcoholic that ever went to AA. I was scared to death, I had it in my head that AA was a room full of old men smoking cigarettes, drinking coffee and whining about how miserable they were because they could not drink any more.

Well I thought I was in the wrong place when I walked into a room with a group of people in it, talking & laughing, men & women, young & old, balck & white. Well it turned out I was in the right place, these people were happy, not only that, but they were glad I was there and they were willing to help me gain what they had.

It is normal to have a fear of the unknown, especially when it is something that can change your life.

Some folks can do it on thier own, I couldn't, and now that I am sober I am glad I needed AA, I have made some fantastic new sober friends and really do enjoy going to meetings and working with others. One of the greatest joys I have today is helping other alcoholics to gain and maintain sobriety.

Just think about it this way, is a very tough task easier to do alone or with the help of others who have done the task before?

I have not read the other book, but "Beyond the Influence" is an awesome book that ties all of the latest medical and scientific research into one book that is understandable to the average person.

In regards to going to an AA meeting, I would suggest starting of with either a womans only meeting or a newcomers meeting. Another great type of meeting is a "Speaker" meeting, walk in, grab a cup of coffee, sit down and listen to a recovering alcoholic tell thier story of how it was, what happened, and how life is for them today.