I've been in and out of AA! I listened, watched, and shared. I got sick of hearing the same stories. I can'

Question

t drink or I'll die. What can I do to never drink agian? Without goint to AA? Please give me ideas for alternative methods.

AA drives me crazy, becuase I'm so judgemenal. And when it's all said and done, my judgement is right. But that's going to kill me. I love the concern I read for you all. Thanks so very much.

i meant the concern from all of you!

Answer 1

I found that AA hindered my recovery, I needed to take responsibility for my addiction and my recovery.

Check out books by Jack Trimpey, Jim Christopher, Stanton Peele, and Albert Ellis.

"Drink Too Much?" tips on cutting back or quitting:
http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/DrinkTooMuch.html

There are also some good online groups:
without aa:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/without_aa/.
SOS:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/sossaveourselves/
and the SOS webpage:
http://sossobriety.org/

Also check out SMART:
http://www.smartrecovery.org/
Rational Recovery:
http://www.rational.org/
Women for Sobriety:
http://www.womenforsobriety.org/
and LifeRing:
http://www.unhooked.com/index.htm

SOS, Smart, WFS, LifeRing, and other groups are available, but even all put together, do not have as many meetings as AA. AA is a program for life, the rest are groups to attend for a time so you can have a life.

You're not alone with uneasy feelings about AA, 95% of all people who try AA leave within the first year.
Check out the Orange Papers:
http://www.orange-papers.org/

Answer 2

I myself like to drink, but it comes and goes. Sometimes, though during the day I will crave a drink and I ask myself, why do you want this, what is it doing for you. I try and occupy myself with something else to take it off my mind. But this is about you, not me. It is a hard road to go. I know of a woman that was an alcoholic and she went into rehab and got lots of help. They prescribed her some sort of medicine that if she drinks it will make her very sick. She has not drank since and is doing so well. She looks better, acts better. She lost her husband and a beautiful home to all of this. Think of all the positive things in your life and stay away from friends and other things that encourage drinking. I myself have started reading and that helps me with a lot of other problems I have. I seem to get wrapped up in the character in the story and I just can't wait to get to the end. Also, there are support groups online that you can talk with and might not have to go to AA. I have some other issues myself and saw a neurologist and he has decided that I should see a pshychiatrist. You might want to think about a counselor or pshychologist. They know how to get things out of you that you didn't know were there. There maybe some underlying issue that drives you to drink, something that may have happened in your past.

Answer 3

If you're going to be a member of AA, it takes more than listening and watching. The AA fellowship is meetings, but the program of recovery is the 12 steps. If you haven't written an inventory, shared it with someone, made amends, prayed regularly, and tried to help others, you haven't yet experienced everything AA has to offer.

Do you have a sponsor? One who is taking you through the Steps? If you don't, get one. I hated AA and didn't get anywhere with it until I got a sponsor who showed me how to actually DO something for my recovery. Then the meetings got interesting. I still get frustrated and annoyed with stupid boring people (And there are plenty, in AA and out of it) but I've also been able to find meetings with other more interesting people who are more like me. Poke around.

I can't say this strongly enough, though--the AA message is that you can have a spiritual awakening AS THE RESULT OF THESE STEPS. That changed me as a person to someone calmer, mroe accepting, more happy, and feeling less like I was going to jump out of my skin any second, or start breaking things and hurting people, particularly those idiots at the meetings. W/o the steps, though, I didn't change as a person.

Answer 4

Been there ,done that.Change your lifestyle,make new friends(non-drinkers),get some hobbies,Volunteer some of your time to a worthy cause.You really have to want it for yourself.You can't be wishy-washy about it. Sometimes you pick up another addiction when you leave one.You have to join AA and get a sponsor,someone you can call when you feel like you're ready to go on a binge.Go into therapy and find out what leads you to drink.Take care.I've been to AL ANON&AA,I suggest you read Melody Beattie's books.

Answer 5

No...you can NEVER drink alcohol again. That's why you are an AA member. Alcoholics are called alcoholics because they cannot CONTROL their drinking habits. Therefore, the only option is to avoid it completely. If you cannot control not drinking it on your own, then you need help from others. hence AA. If you can control it, then you don't need AA. But due to the tone of your question, I believe you need help. As boring as it may sound at AA, I suggest you stick with it. Eventually, those repetitive phrases will stick in your head and remind you not to drink or you will suffer the consequences.

Answer 6

Its important not to put yourself in a situation where you'll be tempted. Stay away from bars and clubs. You may need to make some new friends. Its very difficult to do! Every morning when you wake up you need to tell yourself that you will not drink today. Eventually you will be able to stop. I did learn that your entire life will need to change and it will be a slow process. Good Luck!!

Answer 7

if you can't, and you know better than anybody, drink responsibly then, no you should not drink. Loosing your temper when your drinking, driveing when you've been drinking, hurting yourself, or others, no social life, or can't stop once you get started or good signs you should not drink. CONTROL is the word.

Answer 8

Behavioral therapy? I'm not exactly sure how it works, but I think maybe they get you to associate alcohol with nausea, or something like that. Best wishes and good luck staying clean!

Answer 9

I have been in and out as well. I have not been to a meeting in over a year and I have not drank either. you have to take the tools tat you learned while you were there and use them everyday. stay in the moment, don't dwell on the past, and take care not to become hungry, angry, lonely or tired.

Answer 10

I'm just stopping drinking for a lil while cuz it kept getting me in trouble. Just totally cut it out of my life.