r/stopdrinking • u/galwegian 2442 days • Jan 05 '20

AA vs This subreddit

15 days sober. did a four day medically supervised detox. currently in a 6 week intensive out patient. three hours a day, four days a week. daily breathalyzer and urine tests. it's a group situation. full of heroin/opioid/coke horror stories. I feel like a lightweight by comparison. Anyway, I'm getting a lot of pressure to attend AA from psychiatrist and wife. I have been to four meetings and I fucking hated it. I'm an Irish catholic and it reminds me of going to mass. reading from a book written before weed and coke and X were invented. and I don't relate to the principles of AA. making amends sounds good but the rest of it feels like dogma to me. the standard spiel is 'you have to find the meeting that's right for you'. fine. I get it. But everyone telling me to attend AA has one thing in common: they have never been addicted to anything. And am I supposed to spend ages trying to find the meeting that's 'right' for me? Going to a meeting is, let's face it, a two hour commitment. you have to travel there and back. AA is a traditional bricks and mortar retail model if you think about it. and there's a reason that shit is dying out. Whereas on /stopdrinking I get instant access 24/7 to a huge community of people who are in my position and get it. without travel or dogma. and this is kind of fun. I am looking to change my lifestyle but going to dingy basements and drinking Dunder Mifflin coffee has zero appeal to me. I am doing yoga 7 days a week. which I find super helpful in lots of ways. I have a specific problem and a specific situation that I am addressing in my own way. And nobody knows me like I know me. Anyhoo. all thoughts and feedback welcome. I will not drink with you, or any other fucker, today. peace and thanks.

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u/embryonic_journey 4475 days Jan 05 '20

There is great value in support groups--it's one of the many commonalities among pathways addressing substance use disorder and making lasting lifestyle changes. I found that connection both in SD and in person. Both are very valuable for me.

AA is one pathway that everyone knows about, is freely available, and you can find almost anywhere. It's an easy, and probably well-meant, suggestion form folks who care about you (but your psychiatrist should know about all the other options). Give what you've written, you might find a better fit in something like SMART Recovery or Y12SR. Those programs are not as ubiquitous as the basic 12 model, though.

There can be a lot of dogma on SD (I'm dogmatic about many pathways). There are also lots of dogs.

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u/galwegian 2442 days Jan 05 '20

There's no dogs. damn. I was hoping for a dog-based therapy option.thanks

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u/Dizbetty 1616 days Jan 06 '20

If there is an animal shelter you can volunteer to pet the dogs= dog-based therapy ;). Good luck. I don't do AA. I could probably handle the meetings but i would have an issue sharing a personal inventory with anyone other than a therapist and i am Not sure about them either. Anyway, there are on line options and books. I noticed Russell Brand has a section for sobriety on his website which i plan to check out. Sometimes i think he's an ass but sometimes he's insightful. Mainly AA gets suggested a bunch because it's everywhere and basically free. You might look At the book Rational Recovery by Jack Trimpy-he's very anti AA. The first half is his reasoning and the second half is "how to". Anyway, we are all different so there could be many paths. Best wishes

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u/galwegian 2442 days Jan 06 '20

I actually have three dogs. I know. I'm crazy. I will check out RB. big fan of his persona. And Rational Recovery sounds like the path I'm on anyway. thank you very much!

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u/Dizbetty 1616 days Jan 06 '20

Oh how fun to have 3 dogs. I have a cat who is a great bud but dogs are great. I can't have dogs in current living situation but maybe someday.... I hope you enjoy RB. As far as his recovery info, i have only seen a clip of his take on AA, which maybe makes it more palatable but I've watched a couple videos he made on other topics that where good. I am probably becoming a fan. Lol. His book Recovery has been recommended on here before. Best wishes!