Give Yourself a Sober Life with Secular Connections
 

The Secular Forums are where I learned the most valuable skills I needed to live a sober life. There is a tremendous wealth of knowledge and information here. Newcomers seeking self-empowerment and/or alternatives to conventional recovery programs should spend some time reading and posting here. It might be the greatest gift you've ever given yourself.

Ditto, Nonse.

agree

Verily, a Festivus for the rest of us!:a122:

Freeing myself from God or any reasonable facsimile there of liberated my recovery process from a whole lot of hindrances. I strongly desired sobriety but an odd spiritual makeover was not in my stars. Secular Connections helped me separate the 'other world' of spirituality from the real business of me getting clean.

SC of SR is a great place to practice a recovery you want without the undue pressure to convert to mystical powers beyond ones reasonably.

Just wanted to clarify to any newbies reading here that secular recovery from addiction does not require atheism. This forum is a natural place for atheists to gather, but it's not a requirement to participate here. I believe in God, I just don't/didn't see the wisdom or utility in making God responsible for my behavior. He gave me the free will to screw things up, but He also gave me the free will to be able to fix it.

Secular recovery simply means we are not reliant on an external higher power to defeat addiction. The tools each of us possess are adequate to recover. This forum explores various ways to employ those tools to achieve and maintain a clean and sober life.

Drugs and alcohol may have been kicking the **** out of you for many years, but you are stronger than you realize. You can beat it. :)

I like it. I like it a lot.

Since I've read the AVRT information and started actively using it I've have the most amazing feeling of relief and freedom. I feel like I can just let it go. The option of drinking or dwelling on not being able to has been taken right off the table. I don't do that anymore. I haven't been having cravings... in my heart I've wanted to stop for a very long time but I always thought it had to come from somewhere outside of me, something external had to happen for me to change. Now I know that I can just let it go and move forward. What a tremendous relief, like a huge weight has been lifted off me that I've been carrying forever! The noise in my head about it has quieted. Happy New Year everyone!

This is exactly what happened to me. I realized that I had generated so much noise around the problem, that the noise was creating more of a problem than the problem itself. While I realize my brain may continue to send cravings my way, and diminished cognitive ability may make it difficult for me to make the right decision, making it a simple path with one clear answer has made it much easier and more effective for me. Having the weight of all that constant noise gone is a tremendous relief. Happy New Year indeed.

Funny thing is, AVRT is NOT SECULAR at all---it's all-inclusive. It does not mix the apples of getting sober with the oranges of any particular religious practice or none at all. A Hale-Bopper (Heaven's Gate) could do it just as well as the Hitch. It's a bigger net and works well with anything else. Yes, Jack Trimpey is a bit grandiose and opinionated--much like a guy named Bill. Anyhoo, it worked well for this alcoholic. Now it's time to get busy livin'. Happy New Year to all!

Surely quitting an addiction like alcoholism can't possibly be as simple as simply choosing to stop drinking! If it were that simple, people would be doing it all the time.

Yes, Virginia. It really can be that simple. Is it easy? The degree of difficulty is completely up to us. And people really do quit exactly like this all the time. Believe in yourself and that you deserve to have a life free of addiction and demand nothing less. Onward!

Haha! Just quit? Crazy talk!

I told my best friend I'm quit a few days ago and she said she wouldn't be able to give up the social aspect of it. My response was that getting blotto drunk is in my opinion anti-social and that the hangovers are the most anti-social times of all. But I know that's off topic....

I wish that this technique was more popular and available because it really could save so many people years of trying and wasted money treating the symptoms of their addition rather than arresting the addiction itself.

the two posts written above the one quoted, ..... "Undue pressure....mystical God beyond ones ........ Festivus for the rest of us".

Nonsensical, You must have for the feeling I got when I read them...you must be a non-believer to get anything out of this forum. So you posted this.

Not interested in fighting over religion, and for me, that is exactly what this secular forum would be about for me.

Thanks. But no.

Raider, secular forum is a lot of thing, but not fighting over religion.

If no - why not to just pass by?

We are not fighting here. We work our sobriety.

Best wishes to you.

...

Wow, triple post.

I don't see any religious fights here, Raider. You are welcome anytime.

Zenchaser, You helped do just that. The net has changed the game for good. I predict hearing AV in an AA meeting within 10 yrs. Wait a minute...I could do that tomorrow!

I'm a bible reading believer AND secular connections has helped me with some really effective, practical tools to STAY sober in my self crafted recovery routine.