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How It Works
(Preview)
Chapter 5 - How It Works Rarely have we seen a person fail who has thoroughly followed our path. Those who do not recover are people who cannot or will not completely give themselves to this simple program, usually men and women who are constitutionally incapable of being honest with themselves. Ther...
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Can I be selfish?
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Am I selfish for wanting to cut all ties with certain people if they're not helping me? In other words, my friend's an alcoholic and when ever we see each other we wind up having a drink despite the fact that I always tell myself I won't. Thing is though, I think she has no intention to stop. Can anyone relat...
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Daily Reflections ~ I'm Not Different
(Preview)
In the beginning, it was four whole years before A.A. brought permanent sobriety to even one alcoholic woman. Like the high bottoms, the women said they were different; . . . The Skid-Rower said he was different . . . so did the artists and the professional people, the rich, the poor, the religious, the...
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Pocket Sponsor
(Preview)
Day Twenty/5:00 AM: "If you understand, things are just as they are; if you do not understand, things are just as they are." ~ Zen Proverb I don't have to understand how the Steps work, just that they do. Excerpt from the Pocket Sponsor, By The Hazelden author of ' Day By Day' & othe...
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AA Thought for the Day
(Preview)
AA Thought for the Day February 20, 2009
A New Attitude
And we have ceased fighting anything or anyone -- even alcohol. For by this time sanity will have returned. We will seldom be interested in liquor. If tempted, we recoil from it as from a hot flame. We react sanely and normally, and we will find th...
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24 Hrs a Day ~ 20th Feb 09
(Preview)
A.A. Thought for the Day Liquor used to be my friend. I used to have a lot of fun drinking. Practically all the fun I had was connected with drinking. But the time came when liquor became my enemy. I don't know just when liquor turned against me and became my enemy, but I know it happened, because I began to g...
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Daily Reflections ~ The Gift of Laughter
(Preview)
At this juncture, his A.A. sponsor usually laughs. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 26
Before my recovery from alcoholism began, laughter was one of the most painful sounds I knew. I never laughed and I felt that anyone elses laughter was directed at me! My self-pity and anger denied me the si...
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Setting Our Own Course
(Preview)
We are powerless over other people's expectations of us. We cannot control what others want, what they expect, or what they want us to do and be.
We can control how we respond to other people's expectations.
During the course of any day, people may make demands on our time, talents, energy, money,...
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Yogaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh..........
(Preview)
Oh my goodness, thank you Danielle for the suggestion. It is such an exhiliarating way to refresh and renew!!!!!!! It is changing my life is such wonderful ways.... :o)
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jonijoni1
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I feel horrible.
(Preview)
I got drunk last night and I just feel so guilty and humiliated. Alcohol is dominating my life, I feel like I can't go anywhere now because people have seen me in a state too many times. I want to be able to enjoy a drink without becoming an emotional wreck, I only intended on having one glass of wine and some...
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24Hrs a Day ~ 19th Feb 09
(Preview)
A.A. Thought for the Day Many things we do in A.A. are in preparation for that crucial moment when, walking down the street on a nice sunshiny day, we see a nice cool cocktail lounge and the idea of having a drink pops into our minds. If we've trained our minds so that we're well prepared for that crucial mo...
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Extra Emoticons, enjoy
(Preview)
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StPeteDean
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Pocket Sponsor
(Preview)
Day Nineteen/6:00 PM: This is a good time to grasp the moment. No need to regret the past and what you did or didn't do; no need to contemplate the future for what "misfortunes" lay ahead. Simplify, simplify. Do you have laundry to wash? Can you fix a meal or call someone and go to a meeting? You...
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AA Thought for the Day
(Preview)
AA Thought for the Day February 19, 2009Readjustment Life is God's good gift to me. I must cooperate with it to live it, which means constant readjustment and the throwing out of phoney fancies as to how I might manage it by the thankful sharing of all honest thinking with my fellows. Living means growi...
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As Bill Sees It
(Preview)
As Bill Sees ItPg. 50 A.A.: Benign Anarchy and Democracy When we come into A.A. we find a greater personal freedom than any other society knows. We cannot be compelled to do anything. In that sense our Society is a benign anarchy. The word "anarchy" has a bad meaning to most of us. But I think...
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Being Right
(Preview)
Recovery is not about being right; it's about allowing ourselves to be who we are and accepting others as they are.
That concept can be difficult for many of us if we have lived in systems that functioned on the "right/wrong" justice scale. The person who was right was okay; the person who...
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Our Path
(Preview)
I just spent several hours with someone from my group, and I feel like I'm losing my mind. This woman insisted that the only way I would make progress in my program was to go to her church and succumb to her religious rules. She pushed and insisted, and insisted and pushed. She's been in the program so much...
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Just can't get sober
(Preview)
I've been trying and trying. I can't help but think "maybe I'm just not ready", but inside I know I have a problem and know what it will cost me if I don't stop. I can't seem to devote myself to recovery even though I hate myself after a binge (and the binges happen often). I'm lying to my husba...
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slhNY125
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WAY OFF TOPIC -- I mean way, way, way off! But need some help!
(Preview)
I thought since we have so many folks from all over the world someone might be able to tell me what to do. I have a friggin' armadillo problem! They have somehow made their way into my area and are DESTROYING my yard. They've dug up my flowers, plants, shrubs, and are now digging at the foundation of my hous...
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Doll
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Daily Reflections ~ Our Paths Are Our Own
(Preview)
there was nothing left for us but to pick up the simple kit of spiritual tools laid at our feet. ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 25 My first attempt at the Steps was one of obligation and necessity, which resulted in a deep feeling of discouragement in the face of all those adverbs: courageously; completely;...
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24 Hrs a Day ~ 18th Feb 09
(Preview)
A.A. Thought for the Day After I became an alcoholic, alcohol poisoned my love for my family and friends, it poisoned my ambition, it poisoned my self-respect. It poisoned my whole life, until I met A.A. My life is happier now than it has been for a long time. I don't want to commit suicide. So with the hel...
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How to how fun without alcohol
(Preview)
I just wanted to start this topic because it does seem like a lot of people check out this website before coming to any meetings and because it is a first step for them in seeking out AA. One of my initial fears was that if I conceded I was an alcoholic, I would never be able to have fun again. All the clubs an...
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pinkchip
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Pocket Sponsor
(Preview)
Day Eighteen/7:00 AM: God didn't do it! God doesn't do anything to me, but always through me. Excerpt from the Pocket Sponsor, By The Hazelden author of ' Day By Day' & other Meditation Books Thought for the Day Create A Peaceful Thought When your open your eyes in the morning, Sit for a moment and ap...
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Out of Defeat...Strength
(Preview)
As Bill Sees ItPg. 49 Out of Defeat...Strength If we are planning to stop drinking, there must be no reservation of any kind, nor any lurking notion that some day we will be immune to alcohol. << << << >> >> >> Such is the paradox of A.A. regeneration: strength a...
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Daily Reflections ~ The Love In Their Eyes
(Preview)
Some of us wont believe in God, others cant, and still others who do believe that God exists have no faith whatever He will perform this miracle. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 25 It was the changes I saw in the new people who came into the Fellowship that helped me lose my fear, and change my negat...
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24 Hrs a Day ~ 17th Feb 09
(Preview)
A.A. Thought for the Day Alcohol is poison to the alcoholic. Poison is not too strong a word, because alcoholism leads eventually to the death of the alcoholic. It may be a quick death or a slow death. When we go by package stores and see various kinds of liquor all dressed up in fancy packages to make it lo...
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Wisdom of the Rooms
(Preview)
Wisdom of the Rooms February 16, 2009 Quote of the Week "Relationship: Real Exciting Love Affair Turns Insanely Obsessive, Now Sobriety Hangs In Peril." Someone once said that getting into a relationship in early recovery is like throwing miracle grow on your character defects. The da...
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Jane05
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I fell off the wagon- ashamed.
(Preview)
Well, actually I slipped a little a couple of weeks ago. Went out with a friend of mine and had three glasses of wine. Well, this convinced me- well not convinced- but gave me an excuse to believe that I could control my drinking. So I went out last night thinking I would have two glasses of wine. My fri...
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Codependent2
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Question....
(Preview)
I recently got shingles on my face/eyes. Consequently my doctor gave me vicodin for the pain. I had only been prescribed a pain medication once before and have never taken any not prescribed to me. By the second day, I realised very quickly that I was not using the vicodin for pain.....but to feel th...
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cramcj01
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things that make you stay sober...
(Preview)
#1 Not going to bars #2 Go out for lunch rather than dinner A lot of drinking seems to be by association for me. Certain activities are always associated with drinking. I know it is impossible to Not do all of the things, but some things are easy changes that make not drinking well, easier! What things h...
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Dakota
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Pocket Sponsor
(Preview)
Day Seventeen/8:00 AM: One hour at a time leads to one day at a time in our recovery program. Each hour is one of 24 building blocks of each day of our sobriety and clean time. My current building block is to be kind and considerate for this hour. My one act of kindness can be the difference between a Buildin...
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AA Thought for the Day
(Preview)
AA Thought for the Day February 17, 2009 Unity Since personal calamity holds us in bondage no more, our most challenging concern has become the future of Alcoholics Anonymous; how to preserve among us A.A.s such a powerful unity that neither weakness of persons nor the strain and strife of these trou...
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As Bill Sees It
(Preview)
As Bill Sees ItPg. 48 Live Serenely When a drunk has a terrific hangover because he drank heavily yesterday, he cannot live well today. But, there is another kind of hangover which we all experience whether we are drinking or not. That is the emotional hangover, the direct result of yesterday's and...
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Acceptance
(Preview)
Our basic recovery concept that never loses its power to work miracles is the concept called acceptance.
We do not achieve acceptance in a moment. We often have to work through a mirage of feelings - sometimes anger, outrage, shame, self-pity, or sadness. But if acceptance is our goal, we will achi...
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Daily Reflections ~ Commitment
(Preview)
Understanding is the key to right principles and attitudes, and right action is the key to good living. TWELVE STEPS AND TWELVE TRADITIONS, p. 125 There came a time in my program of recovery when the third stanza of the Serenity Prayer The wisdom to know the difference became indelibly imprinted in my...
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G'morning
(Preview)
Lots of crappola going on lately, but I am sober and walking through it. Just wanted to check in and let my friends know I am ok, sober, and trusting that God is going to work everything out. Joni
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24 Hrs a Day ~ 16th Feb 09
(Preview)
A.A. Thought for the Day One drink started a train of thought that became an obsession, and from then on, we couldn't stop drinking. We developed a mental compulsion to keep drinking until we got good and drunk. People generally make two mistakes about alcoholism. One mistake is that it can be cured by...
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Hey everyone...
(Preview)
I think I have a drinking problem. I can stop drinking for a couple of days or even a week but then I binge drink and make myself ill. All this week I've had an irregular heart beat, shortness of breath & feeling so lethargic. I feel like I can't just stop after one drink & I'm too embarassed to show...
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Bee22
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I feel like crying
(Preview)
The effects of my drinking is so bad. I feel like crying. I am ashamed. My head is pounding. I have the shakes. I have to go into work for a few hours and honestly don't know if I can drive. I still feel like I might even be a little drunk still. The self- loathing has definitely kicked in.
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Codependent2
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How I'm MAKING IT for Today
(Preview)
And Lord knows, I have shown myself lately, that I really want to MAKE IT in this program; in LIFE. My Alanon Aunt/"Mom" had her open heart surgery. They told us all was well after the surgery, but then as the evening came on, she was bleeding profusely from the chest tube. I was beside myself w...
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jonijoni1
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Misery is an Option
(Preview)
From "Walk Softly and Carry a Big Book" Misery is an option. But acceptance and gratitude did not come as standard equipment either.
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Jane05
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Feeling angry and resentful ! VENTING!
(Preview)
Yesterday (13th) was my belly button birthday. For the most part it was a good day. UNTIL my mother called! The first words out of her mouth (of course) were "Happy Birthday" the rest of the 30 minute conversation was ALL about MY SISTER and how her life is going with starting new job, movi...
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Doll
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AA Thought for the Day
(Preview)
AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AAOnline.net) February 16, 2009 Slogans As I was sitting at a meeting the other evening, a lady was speaking and she mentioned the three slogans: "Live and Let Live," " Easy Does It," and "First Things First," and that she was having t...
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As Bill Sees It
(Preview)
As Bill Sees ItPg. 47 Seeing Is Believing The Wright Brothers' almost childish faith that they could build a machine which would fly was the mainspring of their accomplishment. Without that, nothing could have happened. We agnostics and atheists were sticking to the idea that self-sufficiency...
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Pocket Sponsor
(Preview)
Day Sixteen/8:00 AM: The most important thing to know about Step Three, turning our will over to a Higher Power, is that all we can do is DECIDE to do it. There is no "will" we can wrap and send. Once we make the decision that we want to, it is basically done. I decide to align my will with that of...
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Detachment
(Preview)
The concept of letting go can be confusing to many of us. When are we doing too much or trying too hard to control people and outcomes? When are we doing too little? When is what we're doing an appropriate part of taking care of ourselves? What is our responsibility, and what isn't?
These issues can cha...
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managing my mind
(Preview)
I struggle with the differing ideas on choosing sobriety over drinking. What I mean is, I chose to stop drinking a few days ago because I was scared of what I would do the next time I drank. Over the last 3 weeks I have broken the following items in my apartment: desk lamp, floor lamp, guitar amp, recliner,...
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Dodsworth
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Alcohol Always Lied to Me
(Preview)
I saw where this had been posted back when, but thought it was a good time to post again. Have a safe, sober day!! Alcohol Always Lied to Me I Drank for Courage...and woke up night after night horrified. I Drank for Sophistication...and became crude. I Drank to find Peace...and ignited a war within mys...
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Jane05
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Hi ya all
(Preview)
Happy Valentines Day!!! I have been so self absorbed lately that I really havent taken much time to respond to what others are sharing! For that, I apologize...I have read alot of the posts today and I feel bad because I just havent had the interest, energy or the want to read whats going on......I soooo...
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lani
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AA Thought for the Day
(Preview)
AA Thought for the Day (courtesy AAOnline.net) February 15, 2009 Life on Life's Terms As we go through the day we pause, when agitated or doubtful, and ask for the right thought or action. We constantly remind ourselves we are no longer running the show, humbly saying to ourselves many times each day &...
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