Alcoholism Support Group
Alcoholism is the continued consumption of alcoholic beverages, even when it is negatively affecting your health, work, relationships and life. If you think alcohol is causing you to lose control, it's time to seek help. Our group is a safe place to vent, check in, get back up if you fall, and reach sobriety.
Went to my home group yesterday been awhile since I been there of many meeting.
Seen a friend walking out after the meeting and I thought that was weird I didn't see him in the meeting and found out he was in the Back ti Basics meeting. Are eyes meet and I knew what happened he was over 5 years sober.
He began to explain what happened went to Florida for the winter met up with some old friends that drink and didn't think it would be a problem. These so called friends kept telling him about "having just one" blah, blah, blah and after a few weeks he was sitting in a meeting with his friends close by drinking in a bar got up half way through it went to meet them and the rest is history. As he continued what happened within a month he was back to drinking over a fifth a day almost died of poising. Long story short flew back home went through detox and back on the road to recovery. He made no excuses knew what he did and is grateful to be on the planet with another chance., many don't get that chance.
More than one point to this story and why I posted it. For one I will never forget are conversation and if I even consider a drink it would defiantly take me back to yesterday, so him sharing his story helped me. Some say relapse is part of recovery that's bull shit the only ones that say that have relapsed or is one there way to one.
I hope anyone new to recovery will get educated on the illness and know what can happen if you don't make it your #1 priority. Its doesn't matter how ya do it a 12 step program or whatever.
More people die on a daily basis related to alcohol then people that seek recovery, pretty scary stuff.
Peace be the Journey...
Seen a friend walking out after the meeting and I thought that was weird I didn't see him in the meeting and found out he was in the Back ti Basics meeting. Are eyes meet and I knew what happened he was over 5 years sober.
He began to explain what happened went to Florida for the winter met up with some old friends that drink and didn't think it would be a problem. These so called friends kept telling him about "having just one" blah, blah, blah and after a few weeks he was sitting in a meeting with his friends close by drinking in a bar got up half way through it went to meet them and the rest is history. As he continued what happened within a month he was back to drinking over a fifth a day almost died of poising. Long story short flew back home went through detox and back on the road to recovery. He made no excuses knew what he did and is grateful to be on the planet with another chance., many don't get that chance.
More than one point to this story and why I posted it. For one I will never forget are conversation and if I even consider a drink it would defiantly take me back to yesterday, so him sharing his story helped me. Some say relapse is part of recovery that's bull shit the only ones that say that have relapsed or is one there way to one.
I hope anyone new to recovery will get educated on the illness and know what can happen if you don't make it your #1 priority. Its doesn't matter how ya do it a 12 step program or whatever.
More people die on a daily basis related to alcohol then people that seek recovery, pretty scary stuff.
Peace be the Journey...
I read the impact of this on you, especially when you say about when your eyes met and you knew what had happened. As you say, there are stories like this and it always about how people moved from being spiritually well...moving away from HP, program, meetings, and what connects them.
Glad you and I are 100% with this today (hug).
Take care fella x
" My friend had emphasized the absolute necessity of demonstrating these principles in all my affairs. Particularly was it imperative to work with others as he had worked with me. Faith without works was dead, he said. And how appallingly true for the alcoholic! For if an alcoholic failed to perfect and enlarge his spiritual life through work and self-sacrifice for others, he could not survive the certain trials and low spots ahead. If he did not work, he would surely drink again, and if he drank, he would surely die. Then faith would be dead indeed. With us it is just like that."
Sadly I've seen that borne out many times, some of us are more fortunate like your friend and do make it back, but as you probably have seen too, there are no guarantees.
The eye contact...oh, how very painful to see in a split second the tragedy ...but it is also one of the miracle of the AA program...we are connected with love and understanding so we can help each other.
You're right, the main goal is to stay sober no matter what and how. For me God, AA. For somebody who is new to recovery perhaps something else, but I hope with you that sobriety becomes the most important force of his or her life. If he or she wants to live. Thanks again.
Glad your friend survived this.
Thanks for the post, gjm. Good tonic.
Paul
In my two short years in the program I've seen men and women with days, months and even decades relapse.
I've also met countless men and women who have never relapsed. Relapse isnt part of recovery its part of the disease.
We fool ourselves that we can relapse, then stop whenever we want to. Not everyone gets that chance. I know many who didnt and now never will. Thank you for the reminder. Its good to take the rose colored glasses of the disease OFF and look at reality.
Yeah Fire no doubt its your exp. glad ya made it back.
Defiantly a good reminder for anyone, that eye to eye contact I mentioned is something I will never forget anytime soon.
I'm glad your friend found his way back.
I'm also amazed when people stop, and just stay stopped. Relapse isnt part of my AA journey, but I certainly had many pre AA. So you really just stopped, after never trying to stop or moderate before that?
I know that I spent some years where I said I really should stop, but I would do it "later." I would tell myself I should cut back, and maybe I would a bit for a while, but not for long, and not enough to matter.
The last couple of years that I was drinking I did not see how I would be able to stop. I honestly did not know how to make it through an entire night sober. I finally faced it. I decided I couldn't live that way anymore. Then I was able to stop.
The idea of relapse was foreign to me when I joined DS at two weeks sober .It did not even dawn on me that there were people who quit who picked up a drink again. I did not get that. Seriously it shook me up.
To be honest my sobriety now is much more motivated by quality of my life now and a love of being sober and living spiritually than the fear of relapse. Even so it always gives me a bit of a jolt when I see or hear of someone who had a long time sober and relapses. It is never a bad thing to stop and think about whether I am doing all that I need to do for my own sobriety.
Billy