Non religious alcohol meetings/organizations??
 

Hi, I am new here and I am trying to find other places for a friend of mine to go for help... he is an atheist and disagreed with things he has heard in about 30 AA meetings and he also left a recent stint in rehab...he feels there is no treatment out there suitable for him, and just wondering if anyone had any other ideas. Found something here in UK called Smart Recovery UK I am going to check into, although the meeting is quite far from where he lives (he is not physically well due to alcoholism) but just wondering if anyone had any other ideas? Seems difficult to find alternative treatments......

PS. Unfortunately he doesn't really use the internet so can't really use online assistance/meetings/help.

Hi Hellione

you'd be better to check out our Secular Connections forum - you'll find a lot of secular based non 12 step recovery down there - not sure how many of our secular members are from the UK tho...but I'll move you there :)

here are some UK links - as far as I know all secularly based

The National Alcohol Helpline-UK - Tel: 0800 917 8282
Offers help to callers worried about their own drinking; support to the family and friends of people who are drinking; advice to callers on where to go for help.

UK National AA Helpline
08457 697 555

FRANK
(for younger people)

Smart Recovery UK

Addaction | Drugs & Alcohol Addiction and Recovery: Support - Help - Advice

Alcohol services | Alcohol Concern

and some NHS links
Find more health services - Alcohol addiction support - NHS Choices


D

Hi Hellione666,

There are a couple of great options that a) don't require meetings, b) don't require the Internet and c) work independently of whether you're an atheist or not. Both just require spending a few pounds on a book:

Allen Carr's Easy Way to Control Alcohol
ISBN-10: 0572028504
ISBN-13: 978-0572028503

Rational Recovery: The New Cure for Substance Addiction
ISBN-10: 0671528580
ISBN-13: 978-0671528584

(I have put the ISBN numbers as opposed to linking to them on Amazon as commercial links often get removed here)

Both options are about self-recovery in the most absolute sense. You don't need any help from anyone; it all comes from yourself. For me, the Allen Carr book was great for making me want to become a non-drinker and the Rational Recovery book allowed me to achieve it, for good.

Keep in touch as the aggregate knowledge of self/secular recovery on this forum is huge.

(By the way, if your friend only gets one book get the Rational Recovery one!)