Hey look, you can't have it both ways. I'd be happy to just post on the
Alcohol Recovery without 12 Steps Group on Daily Strength but people from this group killed that group by doing their missionary 12th Step work and trying to justify their "fellowship" and promote it. People didn't want to deal with it so they said to Hell with it. So now, if someone is critical of AA over here, it's a problem.
Whatever happened to attraction not promotion? That's a joke as well. You're free to have your little religious solution and nobody is going to take it away from you but you have no right to get all self-righteous because someone questions the efficacy of powerlessness, surrender, lifetime recovering and faith healing. They're valid criticisms and worthy of debate. If you have no interest than that's fine, ignore anyone who has the audacity to view things with a critical mind and read what supports your confirmation bias.

I don't play the blame game. I'm happy and have a peaceful life, I wish the same for you!

I have never read the big book.....I think I read parts of it here and there years ago but never the whole book.

Looking back at it all now, I had some emotional problems that triggered my drinking and druggin and when I was in detox, they had a lounge where we could talk with counselors and read addiction related books that were sitting on a coffee table in from of a couch and I remember picking up the this book called "The 12 steps for everyone who really wants them" By Jerry Hirshfield which is the aa 12 steps adapted for EHA which is Emotional Health Anonymous. I could easily identify with everything in the book. It seemed like every word was laid in like a brick.

So long story short, all the pieces of my sobriety began fitting together like a puzzle and it all started with a glance at a book which caught my eye while in detox and when I left the hospital, the book came with me. Although I felt a little guilty for stealing, I have since handed out dozens of copies to those I believe will benefit from reading it.

I'm not saying that this book is the magic pill that will control everyones alcoholism but I'm saying that this was the key that found it's way through all the clutter in my brain and started the engine that took me on the road to recovery!

Now... we are all different, coming from different backgrounds with different beliefs so consequently, different things will work for different people. I think a big part of recovery is initially finding the key to future success. For me it was the 12 steps of EHA and AA, but for others, it could be the teachings of budda, religion or one of the many other recovery programs, or cold turkey even!

I don't really think it's a good idea to knock something that didn't work for you because you could be indirectly steering someone away from a program that could potentially save their life! I have been guilty of doing so in the past and for that I am sorry.

I don't want anyone to take offense because I am sure everyone in here has honorable intentions and I have unknowingly said things in here in the past that I regret because I am not perfect but the difference is now, I put alot of thought into what I write before I reply to a post.

In the end, we are all human and we all make mistakes and we can only hope that nobody gets hurt by them. I want to end this by saying, I love all you people and I wish you all a happy sober life!

God Bless!

I can not be reasonably content by continuing to only take inventory of the things I am doing wrong. I get very depressed. If I continually focus only on the negative I begin to hate myself too much.

Re your comment Zachary, I wouldn't be happy doing that either, in fact I would find it pointless to carry on if that were the case. My Step 10 tells me where I am doing better too, I love those little moments when I realise I am getting better than I was. I guess it's all in the individual interpretation.

So interesting all the different comments about this. It must be invoking something in us all???????

He he and another one of those threads where if we're not careful, being "right" becomes more important than being "useful" :)

Personally I find quotes and snippets like the OP unuseful on the whole but maybe it will resonate with someone else and it was meant for them...thank heavens for the "ignore" button...if there was a real one in my head for real life things would be easier :) Except I would probably never use it :))

Zach #34 interesting point...reflection and self examination is so critical for growth IMO...but if I'm not careful "critical" becomes the operative word...self-reflection becomes self-blame. There is a useful difference I believe, but I am a very inwardly-directed person...navel-gazing becomes an occupational hazard :))

P