Go to AA, while doing Rational Recovery?
 

I just took the Crash course in AVRT a/k/a Rational Recovery. I think that I will do well with this approach. The information that I read, the tools of AVRT all make logical sense to me and I am excited to have found this technique. The only thing is that I don't have a social network other than Sober Recovery and I don't have any sober friends to hang out with or call when I want to talk. I would like to go to Womens groups in AA, but the founder of Rational Recovery thinks that going to recovery groups that promote, powerlessness like AA are counterproductive and will interfere with my recovery in RR. So....with that said...any thoughts? Anyone have experience with this? I have recently broken up with my b/f and he was my only close friend. I miss having a best friend and a social life. I don't have a ton of extra time to devote to friends because I work full time, my 18 yr old daughter is living with me and is expecting in March 2014, so I will have my hands full helping her and I already spend most of my free time hanging out with her, but still feel like I need a friend or two in sobriety. Thanks for your thoughts.

I am exploring the exact same thing and I am fully engrossed in AA (inventory and starting amends). I don't have the answer but super interested in the responses.

Sorry about your BF.

Have you looked into Women For Sobriety instead? It s a support group but it puts the emphasize on being a competent woman.

One thing about AA that I heard years ago: "Take what you want and leave the rest". There are some meetings in which it is easy to do, but there are other groups for which it might be difficult. Another option is to look for social groups that have nothing and everything to do with recovery. Those that don't mention it at all, but are healthy outlets for social, emotional, physical, and mental growth. This could be as little as membership to a gym, running club, political clubs, meetup groups, etc........... For me recovery is not about staying away from or not drinking as much as it is flourishing doing something else.

I don't know to much about AVRT, but AA has worked well for me.
I go to a group that really makes it easy to take what I need and leave the rest.
Other groups have been very structured. The key is to find a group that fits what you need in your recovery. I wish you all the best!

Take what you need and leave the rest.
Do what ever you need to do to get and stay sober.
:)

I'm not positive, but I think what AA means by powerless is if you will pick up a drink in a sober state KNOWING where it takes you, then you've lost power in that area. Also once you have one drink and you can't stop, then you've lost power.

I've never read "take what you need and leave the rest" in the Big Book. With my crazy thinking I can't trust what I think I need or don't need.

I am in AA and I do use some of the techniques with AVRT. I've found something that works for me and thankfully I don't need anyone's blessing in how I stay sober. :)

I personally found the steps more helpful than RR alone (which didn't work quite as well with me), but the combination has been helpful for me.

There is more than one path to recovery and I hope that you will do whatever's best for you. :)

I found AVART helped a lot getting me sober and AA kept me sober

I don't want to encourage a debate between AA and Rational Recovery and can only speak from personal experience. That is that, although I got sober through AA (albeit with some issues which were helped by an Agnostics group, although I am not really an agnostic) I find many of the aspects and teachings of Rational Recovery helpful and well founded. Thus I cannot agree with its founder if he is said to believe that a person is best advised to choose between one or the other. There may, however, be some truth to what he says if he is referring to the historic and more rigid conventional version of AA, a literal adherence to all aspects of the Big Book in its original form. If the latter is meant and if this is put forward as the exclusive path for recovery then I would say that AA, so interpreted, might be inconsistent with the insights of Rational Recovery.In a practical sense, then, if the only AA group to which one has access takes this narrow, dogmatic approach, I would not be surprised if a person had difficulty trying to use it and Rational Recovery at the same time.

W.

I have found AA meetings in the urban areas a little more accepting of agnostics, but not much more.

I've done and do a lot of both. I've written about it somewhere on SR. I like the aspects of a personality change, a complete change of perception and living that AA provides. Helping others and learning to be of service are also paramount to me. RR was about quitting drinking and not changing my mind. AA was all the stuff after that that I mentioned above. These programs worked in beautiful concert for me.

I agree with Carlotta.Maybe attend WFS meetings

Thank you for the tip on Women For Sobriety Carlotta. I was wondering if you if they have meetings in person or is this just on the internet?

Thank you everyone for your feedback
 

Thank you everyone for your feedback and thoughts on AA and Rational Recovery. Sending Love and Encouragement your way.

I've been in this dilemma . I'm not in AA, but desperately wanted sober friends. I asked my addictions therapist if I would be disengenuous if I joined AA just for the social aspect. She said " The only requirement is a desire to stop drinking". Having said that, there are also "Sober Meet Up" groups. You can google them. Good Luck!