LeadHatter

i have been told it follow a format. but what is that exactly?

please dont advise me to just try it though you lovely people im just trying to get an idea of what to expect since id rather avoid just turning up and sitting there feeling like what the hell am i doing then leaving. that would be a bit of a mess. i have been told it has a format to it, what is that please and is god/spirituality or step stuff mentioned.

JackNWA

There are several different types of meetings. Check this link out, it explains things quite well. Your First AA Meeting<

glitter

Here's a short video explaining the basics:

What to Expect at a First AA Meeting

nandm

Yes, you may here some God/Higher Power/spiritual stuff in any AA meeting. One thing to keep in mind is an open mind. AA is not a religion it is but rather has some spiritual aspects to it. You will find these as you progress in the program. Do you have to believe in "God"? No you don't have to believe in any religious God if you so choose. The key is do you believe that somewhere out there in this universe there is a power greater than yourself. Be it the energy from electricity, the radiant power from the sun, Budda, Jesus, etc... It really does not matter what label you put on it as that is irrelevant.

AA has worked for me nearly 10 years now and I came to AA an athiest/agnostic and still don't subscribe to any formal religious organization but I am sober through the process of AA

Boleo

Like JackN said: there are many different meeting formats;

Lead Discussion - 1 or 2 people lead the meeting.
Open Discussion - Group therapy.
Open Meetings - 1 or more people tell their story. Anyone is welcome.
Closed meetings - Strictly for alcoholics who are serious about their unity/anonymity.
Work Shops - Classroom environment.
Big Book Meetings - Everyone reads a few paragraphs.
Alano/Clubs - Bar-like facilities without alcohol.
Plus many others that fall in between the above.

Kjell

Kevin-

Just like most meetings of any kind.

Introduction
Announcements
Offering
Discussion
Closing

Your best bet is to go with an open mind as we could tell you the specifics of what our meetings are like and then you could go to one that is a bit different.

Just go. You deserve recovery.

Kjell

LeadHatter

Thanks everyone, i find jack that in your guide about discussion meetings there is a generally accepted 'no crosstalk' rule. kewl

JackNWA

Indeed there is Kev, and in my experience at least it is taken pretty seriously by the group.

LexieCat

HOPEFULLY "god/spirituality or step stuff" is mentioned! In AA, "God" is a term meaning whatever Higher Power makes sense to you. It could be the power of the universe. Some people don't use the term "God" but use "Higher Power" instead. Nobody is going to tell you you have to believe in a diety, or any particular diety. In AA, a "spiritual experience" or "spiritual awakening" is defined as a "personality change sufficient to recover from alcoholism."

The Steps are what AA is all about. If you go to a meeting where the Steps aren't mentioned or discussed, I'd question the value of that meeting.

You already got some good links about what happens at AA meetings. There usually IS a specific format, but the format will be different from group to group. There are no "rules" as to how a meeting has to be run, except insofar as the group members decide.

smacked

The meetings I went to were pretty straight forward (I only went to about 10). We'd set up chairs in a church basement and make coffee. The person chairing the meeting would decide on a reading or topic.. he'd go over a few rules, hand out coins for sober time.. and people would share if they wanted to in relation to the topic of the evening, and people (like me) would also just sit there and listen. At every meeting, in every location, the meetings ended with everyone holding hands reciting the Lord's Prayer. I didn't like that part.. but it didn't hurt much :P

Obviously I went another direction with my recovery program than AA, but it sure wasn't a bad place to spend some time for an hour a night. Lots of good experience and understanding in those rooms.

keithj

Only at the good meetings.

FrothyJay

It's hard to get around the spirituality of AA, because that's exactly what it is. There aren't spiritual aspects of the program-- the whole darn thing is spiritual.

But if the word "spiritual" to you means "religious" or "evangelical," then you have it wrong.

I like this definition from Wikipedia:

Spirituality can refer to an ultimate or immaterial reality, an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of their being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live."

AA is founded on the idea that alcoholism is a spiritual problem that requires a spiritual solution. Different meetings will focus on this idea to wildly different degrees. As has been said here before, I strongly recommend finding a traditional, solution-focused meeting, and not a more modern group therapy session where people are sharing about their problems.