AA Philosophy stupid

Just to be clear, I’m not advocating for you to do anything. I just presented some alternatives to AA that have abstinence as a extremely strong suggestion.

I went to AA for one year. During that time I attended regularly and participated willingly. I was touched by many of the stories I heard. Almost felt guilty that my problem seemed trivial compared to some of the wrecked people I heard and saw. Had to shift to a non-smoking group across town, the local center was an unbearable smoke-filled room. Small nonsmoking group was nice for a couple months, but I ran in to a snag working the "steps." I could no longer ignore the Higher Power clause and the commitment therein.

I bailed after determining that it wasn't worth losing whatever personal integrity I had left and buy in to a superstition that called for me to quit questioning things and foist personal responsibility for myself and my actions and thinking onto an incomprehensible entity. Was a lot of good convo and good folks who did very well in A.A. But I managed to elude Magic Thinking and bartering my job of creating myself to mysticism, so to say, and run a good life--with a little help from my friends-- anyway.

llort_vbo wrote:

LikeAnsweringQuestionsOnAmazon. wrote:

I don't believe total abstinence forever is the only way...or that if I can live, this way as a more or less moderation in all things kind of life, that I was somehow a "normie" or something like that. We either are or are not fans of heavy drinking, or poor diet, or 4 packs a day of cigarettes, or 5 gallons of coffee, or we are not. Can some kinds of recovery, much of which is a part of AA help with that without the " we are like people with no arms and no legs stuff", yes, I believe it can.

Just to be clear, I’m not advocating for you to do anything. I just presented some alternatives to AA that have abstinence as a extremely strong suggestion.

Thanks! Coincidental with my start in 12 step programs, I also did a year of

therapy with a therapist who was not an abstinence only type or stay in 12 steps forever type.

Post 12 steps , I enjoyed the book , The Truth About Addiction and Recovery, and maybe some others that I can't remember.

No offense to people who take a different route , I am not fully recovered from the hand to mouth problem that I believe all these addictions(and sometimes running addiction) have as a common root, but I have and will manage not to go off the deep end again, and through about as bad of stuff that someone can go through.

That’s great, I’m always happy to hear stories about people who have resolved things for themselves.

I understand the criticism of people who say that AA is just replacing one addiction or habit with another. The idea of ‘having’ to go to a meeting instead of falling back into the lifestyle that caused you to drink is unappealing to me. The flip side of that could be that you want to go to meetings out of gratitude for what you have experienced in the program and want to help others at various stages of recovery. In this sense, AA and all of its derivatives fall under the heading of mutual-aid support groups. There are many of these and each have success with particular niches.

Finally, I would say that the discomfort with the religious aspects of AA is way overblown and this is just an artifice employed by trolls like Bad Wigans. There are literally 10s of thousands of groups in the US for AA alone. Each group is ‘autonomous except in matters affecting the whole’ and in fact are areligious with an understanding of spirituality that is appropriate to such a movement borne in 1935 in Akron. With a little bit of effort, you can find a group that accommodate just about any lifestyle or outlook. In Manhattan, there are bunches of AA groups for atheists, … OR even RUNNERS! If you don’t live near one of these groups, there’s plenty of opportunities online — if that’s what you want. So, if your conception of AA is 10 grumpy old men in a smoky room telling war sorties, then you haven’t looked hard. But that might be fine if you did find something that works.

I wouldn't tell someone not to go, and also what Bad Wiggins said rings a bell with me. I think you are giving a good middle ground compared to "AA philosophy is stupid" for sure. Also, the AA dances can be great. don't drink and go there, that wouldn't be cool, but maybe see what happens and have fun in a sober environment. I used to love the dances.

Lucas Tanner wrote:If you think that someone like me can go back to casual drinking you are mistaken.

Is that because you have no self-control? Therefore you choose to use the "addict" label so everyone will feel sorry for you? Perhaps you are just weak.

^^^found the angry drunk incel

llort_vbo wrote:

^^^found the angry drunk incel

Looks like we found the addict's enabler.

Actually I drink very little. A beer month maybe.

Ah, I agree entirely. I drank beer heavily, for about 25 years, then went abstinent, in 2012, with no aid, nor problem at all--just as simply as that. I always found the vast majority of those AA types to be nothing but self-aggrandizing hypocrites. They'd just tell me I was a dry drunk, and I'd respond that they were merely jealous idiots. But most AA meetings are comprised mainly of obviously mentally ill, lower class types, anyway.

AA is a cult.

Helped me a lot. Haven’t been to a meeting in years but at the time it was exactly what I needed. They say “take what you want and leave the rest.” I’m not sure why the vitriol against the group. There’s no need to give up your integrity or personal responsibility.

'Dry drunk', lol. Haven't heard that term in a couple decades. I dated a woman (insanely hot, only reason I put up with her shiite) and she was all in on AA. We'd be off on vacay somewhere and she'd start jonesing for a gotdam meeting. We'd have to drop what we were doing and find a meeting somewhere. She also was pushing hard for me to start up with Al Anon, their group for family members and friends of AA people. Similar to AA itself. F that. Funny thing is I never once saw her take a drink, smoke pot or any other drug over the 4 years I was with her. I did but she never partook. I guess it worked for her but she was a meeting and coffee fiend.

I went to AA to support a friend. It was AA in the US and I think I went three times... Brooklyn and Mahattan if I remember rightly. The meetings seem to vary a lot.

I didn't really like it. It was full of predators. Creepy older guys trying to hit on me.

Everyone was drinking sh!tloads of strong coffee and smoking cigarettes (which have a relatively high % chance of either killing you or damaging your health) while trying to say there was no such thing as moderate drinking for anyone. There isn't for some people but it's not an absolute.

Why do you have to give responsibility over to a higher power?

I actually think that's a dangerous concept for some people as it abdicates responsibility.

I didn't like it. No offence. I don't think it helped my friend at all. I'd guess that it DOES help a lot of people though, it's free and some of the meetings provide a great service, so it's not all negative. I suppose the biggest takeaway is to pick the meeting wisely and leave if you feel uncomfortable? I doubt they can ban people for being weird (and nor should they, but the hitting on people is a separate issue).