I suggest you make a list of all the things that haven't happened to you yet and if you choose to keep drinking check items off the list are you "achievew them" and trust me if you keep drinking " achieve them you will!
And AA may be spiritual but it is not religious.

Hi shoes and welcome!

You don't have to convince anyone that you are an alcoholic. You have made that important decision and now it's time to do something about it if you want to change. When I went to rehab, my family and friends couldn't believe that I was going. I expressed I had an alcohol problem and they literally told me I didn't. I was also a "functioning alcoholic" and to many just a weekend warrior like my friends and family but it was much worse than that for me and I knew it. It was hard to not get their support but I eventually found that I didn't need them to believe I had a problem, I just had to make a decision to change it for myself so that I could lead a healthy happy life. I relapsed many times after rehab for many different reasons but first and foremost, you need to take care of YOU. This is your life and if you hold on to your convictions, you will succeed and not participate in acting out with this disease. In may case, my family and fiends were shocked because they didn't want to lose their party buddy and possibly have to look at their own relationship to alcohol. Scary for heavy drinkers... Bottom line is my life eventually became completely unmanageable and unrecognizable. I didn't have to lose anything tangible to have that happen. It took years but I eventually became physically dependent on the booze. A Drink became my first ritual of the morning when I woke up. This could happen to you as well. Don't let it get that bad when you can make it better now. Hang in there and stick around, we are just like you here. A bunch of drunks in recovery (or not) trying to get better and stop the madness. You need willingness to change. That's all. The rest will fall into place if you get into a program and surround yourself with support. Glad you are here.

i know what you mean, cuz I've already "achieved" several things that I'd like to get back.

Donttread said it...

That's right... AA is not a religious program. It is a spiritual program. Spirituality comes in many forms. We help each other in the rooms of AA. We help ourselves with the steps of AA which also turns into support and help for others. It's a great tool. Give a meeting a shot. You need not have any religious preference to apply the wonderful tools of AA to your life.

Why wait for rock bottom? I hit it and almost died. As for religion in the rooms, it's there but you don't have to own it. I'm an agnostic Buddhist and I've made my peace with it. It's my fellow drunks and druggies that make the differerence, not their religious views. Look for the message below the message.
The Four Reliances

First, rely on the spirit and meaning of the teachings,
not on the words;

Second, rely on the teachings,
not on the personality of the teacher;

Third, rely on real wisdom,
not superficial interpretation;

And fourth, rely on the essence of your pure Wisdom Mind,
not on judgmental perceptions.-- Traditional Buddhist teaching
_______________________________________________________________________

Don't make to much out of it, but just go to a meeting and see if you like it. Try NOT to analyze your situation, but seek help. If you need a "push" talk to someone at the AA local intergroup. They will assist you in any way they can, including sending you a meeting schedule and give you the numbers of people that would be glad to introduce you to the program.

Even if you haven't "lost" any material things or relationships, it sounds as though that you have lost peace of mind. Isn't this the most important thing to possess? If you need more one-on-one help, look into an out-patient (or in-patient) treatment program. They will show you the essential tools to get started. They can also help you with introduction to AA or the appropriate 12-step program.

Good luck,
Wayne-

I have found AA to be non religious in the aspect of the church aspect of it. Want you want is some form of spiratuality, get back to AA, I just think you misunderstand it.

The bottom line is that in alcoholism our dilemma is powerlessness so we need a Power greater than ourselves which we can reach through the 12 Step programme to the God of our understanding.

AA is really cool because it isn't bothered about what God you have, just so long as you can develop faith in something bigger than you! That is why it is a spiritual programme and not a religious one, the difference is huge.

The 12 Step programme helps you sweep aside the prejudice etc that is blocking you and become open minded to change and progress from what does not work for you to what will work for you.

Simple but astonishingly effective. It certainly worked for me.

Private message me if you want.

Religious? Uh Uh, not me, no way Jose'. I didn't experience religion in AA shoes. I didn't experience Christianity until 10 years after AA. I did experience spiritual growth from believing in a Higher Power than me, and at first, that HP was those people in the rooms of AA.

shoes, you don't need to wait to hit rock bottom before you get help. If you can identify yourself as an alcoholic, and do something about it now, your chances of recovery are much better than if you were to wait till you hit a bottom, any bottom, because most of the time it's pure dumb luck you survive to get there. Welcome to the site. There's some great people here, and we're all leaning on each other. CM xxx