Most people who turn to A.A. for help achieve sobriety without too much difficulty, and continue to stay sober. Others have trouble understanding and accepting the A.A. program. All too soon, they forget what being an alcoholic means. After their physical health returns and their lives become a little more manageable, they may drift away from the program ﾗ either mentally, by forgetting its principles, or physically, by going to fewer meetings. These people may have one or more relapses or "slips." They may get drunk again. This can be discouraging ﾗ and very painful for loved ones. Fears and feelings of hopelessness may be reawakened. But experienced A.A. members know that such slips are not necessarily repeated in the future. If the alcoholic can honestly review the kind of thinking and behavior that preceded the slip, its recurrence can often be prevented. In fact, a slip can serve as a valuable lesson for alcoholics who believe that they have been "cured" of alcoholism merely because they have been dry for a while.
Overconfidence and unrealistic thinking sometimes result in slips. Judgment becomes fuzzy, and some alcoholics begin to believe that they can now control alcohol. They may go to fewer and fewer meetings, or they may begin to criticize the people in their group, losing sight of the A.A. tradition that the alcoholic should always put the principles of the program before the personalities of its members. Or it may be that the alcoholic forgot to live life one day at a time.
Of basic importance are three frequently used A.A. slogans: "First Things First," "Live and Let Live," and "Easy Does It." These are useful reminders that alcoholics are staying away from drinking one day at a time and that they are striving toward open-mindedness and serenity.
From AA.org
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Life is short..Live it sober to the fullest...One day at a time...
I know for me being the fourth time around in the program I'm a heck of alot more willing to follow direction and work through the wreckage instead of ignoring it. Trudging along, holding on for dear life.
WOW, i love that S L I P "sobriety lost its priority"
i know for me, if i don't PRACTICE, i will get emotionally flabby....that is fact....i see folks think "ok, i feel better, life is a bit better, i dont' need this stuff" and that is when they get into trouble......hell i know for me?? even IN the program, working it, i am at risk unless i am TOTALLY honest/ open / willing with my Higher Power.......working DAILY the 10th step......and even still its ONE day at a time........gr8 share, phil, thanks
"Most people who turn to A.A. for help achieve sobriety without too much difficulty, and continue to stay sober. Others have trouble understanding and accepting the A.A. program."
Hmm, I've gotta say I think this is misleading- Most figures I've read and heard are around 5% for over 2 years of sobriety out of people who try AA or AA-based rehab. It is not always the relapsers fault for relapsing any more than it is entirely our fault we were alcoholics in the first place.
"It would be a product of false pride to claim that A.A. is a cure-all, even for alcoholism." -Bill W., As Bill Sees It, reading 285.
