First AA meeting
Forget what I said in my previous post, that was some bullshit, whiny face , cry baby stuff... I'm sorry I ever let it fly... but it was what I was thinking at the time.... bad morning... following a bad night... Went to my first AA meeting this morning, and then posted in Alcohol Discussions: Holy shit was it hard to get out of my car and walk into that building! And then, to even find the meeting, they don't exactly put a SIGN on the door... I just sorta wandered downstairs, following the direction of the voices... sklunked into the first chair I could find in the back of the room- sklunked is too a word - and then I very very secret-spy-like looked up... and around... wondering... is this it? Is this the right room? People were just sorta sitting around, eating sticky-buns and stirring coffee cups and shuffling suspiciously-laminated papers.... I wasn't sure... I was waiting for someone to do or say something... "AA"-like? I don't know what I thought that meant... And then they started reading stuff, and sharing and going around the room.. and then they asked for new-comers, first-meeting people, and a couple people went up and got their little chips, and I thought, I don't need that damn chip, it's not worth it, and then I thought, I want that damn chip, it's never going to be my first meeting ever again, I better get that chip... so I stumbled up and mumbled my name and I found myself saying "and I'm an alcoholic" and I thought, dammit that sounds AWFUL, I don't like saying that, but I think you gotta say it to get that CHIP... And then they asked for people who had 24 hours sober, come up for a chip, and then a month, come get your chip, and then two months... and when they got to 7 months, I lost my shit, because I wasn't sure if 210 days is officially 7 months, or do you have to figure in Leap Year, or what... So I got lost in the calculations and also freaking out because I don't want to have to say "and I'm an alcoholic" again... and I missed the chip... Next time I will be more prepared... Here's my question, and I know it's probably been answered here before, but I haven't seen it: How and when do you go about getting a sponsor? Do you have to be... "ready" for one, or do you have to go to a bunch of meetings first, or stick with one group for a while? How does it work? I'm not ready, but I'm just wondering, how do I get there?
Replies
Hey whitefingers! I loved your journal entry! You described an AA meeting perfectly! You\'re a great writer.
So you went to your first meeting today? Congrats! Then 9-10-09 is your sobriety date. You\'ll get your chips based on this date. So in 7 months you\'ll pick up your..... 7 month chip. I know it\'s weird because you\'ve been sober a lot longer than today\'s date... but that\'s how they do it--it\'s an old tradition.
You choose a sponsor when you\'re think you\'re ready. That\'s it. Just find a woman in the group who you think could help you work the steps. It\'s normally someone who\'s had more than a year of sobriety.
You\'ve admitted that you\'re an alcoholic? (In my case \"addict\" ) Then you\'ve worked the first step! Don\'t worry about saying \"And I\'m an alcoholic\". Everyone says it but I know it\'s weird at first!
If you have any more questions about AA or NA I\'d be happy to answer them.
Take care!
Veg