I am on here and I have my Hubby and family behind me. Still considering AA, but I simply can't find the time, yes even an hour.....So I chose do be here where I can be at home with kids and also ask people on here for advice. So far GREAT ! Everyone has been so helpful.

Davidf...interesting, I had never heard of the Jude Thaddeus Program. I skimmed over some stuff about it. Does it promote abstinence from drugs and alcohol?

I never fail to learn something new at SR.

I had the "St. Jude Home program" book on my recommended reading list album (on my profile page) for about seven months, up until a few days ago. I haven't used it myself, but I had heard very good things about it from others who have, and figured I would put it out there. I didn't get a single comment on it, however, so I took it down. If you wouldn't mind, I'd be interested in your take on it. Did you use the residential program or the home program?

I blew into a tube while wearing handcuffs. It was very motivating.

After reading some about the Jude Thaddeus Program, I like it, I like it a lot.

My AA group is like this. First of all we meet at 6:30 in the am and that weeds out a lot of the court appointed folks. Pretty much everone is there because they want to be.

For me, here is what helped me to finally quit:

...To realize that my time here on earth is very short, and that I had spent much of addicted to alcohol and dealing with the cumulative and increasingly negative consequences. I still have dreams of creativity and success. As my age increased, the choice to use or not use became more and more imperative, because I saw that life was passing me by. I had to make a choice:

1) quit using and effectively pull my life out of chaos, while simultaneously returning to achieving a productive and meaningful life; or

2) continue to get buzzed and ultimately fail at my vision of what I could become in life, and continue the miserable cycle of getting buzzed and reaping the consequences.

Since I am a firm believer that I am not powerless, Rational Recovery and its offering of AVRT was the most streamlined and effective way to go, for me. After 20 years of serious battle with alcohol, I found the answer that works for me. Cheers to any individual who overcomes, by any means!

To anyone contemplating quitting for similar reasons as mine...you can find a way (some way) to quit sooner, rather than later, if you really want to. Or, continue to drink your life away, if that is your choice. You can look back later and see how you wasted much of your valuable blip on this planet. Time goes by. Its your choice.

I used the home study version of the Jude Thaddeus program. There was no way I could have afforded their facilty at the time. Abstinance is strongly recommended. They point out that most all of us have tried to moderate and failed. They do not condemn the few who succeed. The program is writing intensive. There are exercises at the end of every chapter. These include writing about goals and an autobiography. It takes work, but it worked for me. It is all about implementing personal improvements, not waiting to have a perfect life delivered to you. I highly reccomend it to anyone who may be struggling, not only with substance abuse, but with life in general. Thanks for the positive feedback.

I used AA method for years, but it never really sunk in. When I started reading the bible every single day it really started changing my thinking. I also logged on to Wendy Pope and most recently I have found a chart on this page:

Taking Every Thought Captive

It in a way is like AVRT recovery....about dimissing any thoughts whatsoever of drinking or using immediately. We do need to take our thoughts captive and catch ourselves!

Lily

Good thread!
I go to NA first, and then AA [i live outside a very small village not many meetings] And yeah- i work a program. Lot of emphasis on learning to love myself so that i could find some HOPE. Lot of exercise on helping others so i could get practice in UNSELFISHNESS. and a bunch of work on spirituality so i could access some GRACE

joseph campbell: " In order to have something new, something old has to be broken; and if you’re too heavily fixed on the old, you’re going to get stuck. That’s what hell is: the place of people who could not yield their ego system to allow the grace of a transpersonal power to move them."

16 years doing this and lo n behold i have grabbed onto a BIG life....

I tried a little bit of different programs and did what worked for me for my own program. I'm 2.5 years sober now. For me, what really worked was mindfulness, mainly mindfulness of my addictive mind and how it tried to manipulate me to destroy myself. That is the end game, self-destruction at any costs. I try to never let myself get complacent. Last fall I actually said to myself, "I've been through so much crap this year and I did not drink. Am I recovered?" and BAM! here comes the addictive mind making my mouth water when I see my cousin drink a beer, or when I'm shopping for salad dressing and I think "You know, last time I had something with red wine vinegar in it, I didn't get depressed," and the thought "Well maybe you can drink a whole bottle of red wine?" And I just had to go "WTF? Where did that come from?" and laugh my butt off. The more I acknowledge those thoughts, tell them "No, I'm staying sober" and let it pass, the more I strengthen that muscle to defend myself from falling into the oblivion, while knowing it could happen at any time in a quick moment of weakness. I've also found that laughter is essential to my recovery, while still taking my addiction seriously. Just not so seriously it drives me to drink again.

I do this too Clay. In fact most of your whole post sounds much like what I've done.

The program and fellowship of alcoholics anonymous has worked for me for the last 13 months.

.

The big hole for AA recovery rate statistics IMHO is the number of people who go to AA, stop drinking and and are active in AA, then just stop going to meetings. I know quite a few people no longer active or attending AA meetings who are not drinking and living happy, productive lives. Some do end up drinking again but there is no way to track that.

AVRT for me!

I also found that Allen Carr's book Easy Way was a good precursor to AVRT. It gave my whole perception of alcohol a good twist and made it that much easier to effectively practice AVRT.

I agree with you, Tipping Point! Yoda did have it right!

I've been sober for nearly a year and with no help from AA, I've been an alcoholic for 24 years and AA wasn't for me.

AA has helped me
 

I use AA. I have been sober for about 8 out of the last 12-13 years which is about how long I have drank. I am a late starter. Don't consider me a good example because I have tried to follow my own program while doing AA.

Now I am truly trying to follow AA's program. There are so many in the AA rooms that have 15+ years. My sponsor has 21 years and a friend of mine who I talk too has 19 years.

Really hope I can say that in the future. Most I have gotten was about 4 straight through. The meetings really do help.

Working hard at it...starting on my 8th month again.

welcome to SR Honeybez :)

D