Alcoholics Anonymous
Members Login
Username 
 
Password 
    Remember Me  
Post Info TOPIC: Working on my fourth step


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 189
Date:
Working on my fourth step
Permalink  
 


Hello everyone, I hope today is a good day for you all.


I am working on my fourth step and I have come to the sex inventory part.  I am struggling with this.  I guess I'm not sure what exactly I am supposed to do...My sponsor gave me some suggestions and I will call her again later today but I was wondering if anyone had some advice for this.


What my sponsor told me was to write down people that I have had intimate relationships with and then where I was selfis, dishonest, and inconsiderate in respect to those people.  I have been with my husband since I was 14 and so there is not alot of people I have been intimate with.  Sex has been a tough subject for me in all this I guess.  I will pray to be shown what to do.  I guess I am just having a hard time working through all the feeling that are coming up.  Thanks for any suggestions..


Jen "iffer"



__________________
Jen"iffer"


MIP Old Timer

Status: Offline
Posts: 888
Date:
Permalink  
 

Hi Iffer...I would just stick with your sponsor..one on one..with it...:)


And just try to keep it as simple as possible...


And yes....it takes us into yesterdays...pain..emotions..feelings...not easy for some of us..


But it gets it all to the surface...and with step five..is a very unloading experience...


Good luck with it Iffer...and you have a good day..


 



__________________
Life is short..Live it sober to the fullest...One day at a time...


MIP Old Timer

Status: Offline
Posts: 1349
Date:
Permalink  
 

do you have a copy of the '12 Steps and 12 Traditions' book? It kinda goes over it in there:


"


Creation gave us instincts for a purpose. Without them we wouldn't be complete human beings. If men and women didn't exert themselves to be secure in their persons, made no effort to harvest food or construct shelter, there would be no survival. If they didn't reproduce, the earth wouldn't be populated. If there were no social instinct, if men cared nothing for the society of one another, there would be no society. So these desires--for the sex relation, for material and emotional security, and for companionship--are perfectly necessary and right, and surely God-given.


Yet these instincts, so necessary for our existence, often far exceed their proper functions. Powerfully, blindly, many times subtly, they drive us, dominate us, and insist upon ruling our lives. Our desires for sex, for material and emotional security, and for an important place in society often tyrannize us. When thus out of joint, man's natural desires cause him great trouble, practically all the trouble there is. No human being, however good, is exempt from these troubles. Nearly every serious emotional problem can be seen as a case of misdirected instinct. When that happens, our great natural assets, the instincts, have turned into physical and mental liabilities...
Before tackling the inventory problem in detail, let's have a closer look at what the basic problem is. Simple examples like the following take on a world of meaning when we think about them. Suppose a person places sex desire ahead of everything else. In such a case, this imperious urge can destroy his chances for material and emotional security as well as his standing in the community. Another may develop such an obsession for financial security that he wants to do nothing but hoard money. Going to the extreme, he can become a miser, or even a recluse who denies himself both family and friends. ..
But that is not all of the danger. Every time a person imposes his instincts unreasonably upon others, unhappiness follows. If the pursuit of wealth tramples upon people who happen to be in the way, then anger, jealousy, and revenge are likely to be aroused. If sex runs riot, there is a similar uproar. Demands made upon other people for too much attention, protection, and love can only invite domination or revulsion in the protectors themselves--two emotions quite as unhealthy as the demands which evoked them. When an individual's desire for prestige becomes uncontrollable, whether in the sewing circle or at the international conference table, other people suffer and often revolt. This collision of instincts can produce anything from a cold snub to a blazing revolution. In these ways we are set in conflict not only with ourselves, but with other people who have instincts, too. ..
We have drunk to escape the guilt of passions, and then have drunk again to make more passions possible...
When, and how, and in just what instances did my selfish pursuit of the sex relation damage other people and me? What people were hurt, and how badly? Did I spoil my marriage and injure my children? Did I jeopardize my standing in the community? Just how did I react to these situations at the time? Did I burn with a guilt that nothing could extinguish? Or did I insist that I was the pursued and not the pursuer, and thus absolve myself? How have I reacted to frustration in sexual matters? When denied, did I become vengeful or depressed? Did I take it out on other people? If there was rejection or coldness at home, did I use this as a reason for promiscuity? ...
It should be remembered that this kind of insecurity may arise in any area where instincts are threatened. Questioning directed to this end might run like this: Looking at both past and present, what sex situations have caused me anxiety, bitterness, frustration, or depression? Appraising each situation fairly, can I see where I have been at fault? Did these perplexities beset me because of selfishness or unreasonable demands? Or, if my disturbance was seemingly caused by the behavior of others, why do I lack the ability to accept conditions I cannot change? These are the sort of fundamental inquiries that can disclose the source of my discomfort and indicate whether I may be able to alter my own conduct and so adjust myself serenely to self-discipline. .."
 
The copying came in two different colors.. the red is the color of the original, but then the copier switched to my normal font. anyway I hope this helps.  It helps me tremendously to read and reread the 12X12
 
love in recovery,
 
amanda
 


__________________
do your best and God does the rest, a step at a time


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 189
Date:
Permalink  
 

Thanks for your responses.  I will work with my sponsor on this and I will read again the 12 x 12 section on the fourth step. 


Jen



__________________
Jen"iffer"
Page 1 of 1  sorted by
 
Quick Reply

Please log in to post quick replies.