Monday, August 07, 2006
A.A.: More About Alcoholism: Discovery
"... absolutely unable to stop drinking on the basis of self-knowledge."
"For a few days he was depressed about his condition. He made up his mind to quit drinking altogether. It never occurred to him that perhaps he could not do so..."
Alcoholics Anonymous
More About Alcoholism
Page 39
Many of us felt that it was enough to figure it out. If we could just understand our weakness, then we could do something about it -- or so we thought. It never occurred to us that perhaps we could not do so.
After trying every way I could think of to quit drinking, I gave up trying to do it myself and found myself admitted to an alcohol treatment center. At the time, I didn't really think that they would be able to teach me anything about myself that I didn't already know, but I figured it couldn't hurt either (plus it was a way to get my parents off my back for a while).
I really did want a solution for my drinking problem, so I went to treatment looking for a cure. What I found was a lot of great information about my disease, but no cure. I was given tools to deal with the guilt that I'd built up over the years and I was relieved of my shame by learning that I had a recognized disease, not a weak moral character. The cure was left for me to find in the form of a daily reprieve from my chronic illness if I am willing to do the work as outlined in the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous.
I wholeheartedly support good 12-Step based inpatient/outpatient alcohol and drug rehabilitation as an excellent foundation for recovery. But, treatment is "discovery" not "recovery." Recovery comes one day at a time as we journey through life and use the tools that we have been given.
Get the latest edition of:
Alcoholics Anonymous
AA Services
aa addiction alcoholism recovery sponsornet substance abuse
"For a few days he was depressed about his condition. He made up his mind to quit drinking altogether. It never occurred to him that perhaps he could not do so..."
Alcoholics Anonymous
More About Alcoholism
Page 39
Many of us felt that it was enough to figure it out. If we could just understand our weakness, then we could do something about it -- or so we thought. It never occurred to us that perhaps we could not do so.
After trying every way I could think of to quit drinking, I gave up trying to do it myself and found myself admitted to an alcohol treatment center. At the time, I didn't really think that they would be able to teach me anything about myself that I didn't already know, but I figured it couldn't hurt either (plus it was a way to get my parents off my back for a while).
I really did want a solution for my drinking problem, so I went to treatment looking for a cure. What I found was a lot of great information about my disease, but no cure. I was given tools to deal with the guilt that I'd built up over the years and I was relieved of my shame by learning that I had a recognized disease, not a weak moral character. The cure was left for me to find in the form of a daily reprieve from my chronic illness if I am willing to do the work as outlined in the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous.
I wholeheartedly support good 12-Step based inpatient/outpatient alcohol and drug rehabilitation as an excellent foundation for recovery. But, treatment is "discovery" not "recovery." Recovery comes one day at a time as we journey through life and use the tools that we have been given.
Get the latest edition of:
Alcoholics Anonymous
AA Services
aa addiction alcoholism recovery sponsornet substance abuse
# posted by Bill B. @ 5:34 PM 
