#ageofmiracles

New Article http://recess2recovery.com/i-am-an-alcoholic/

Alcoholic Verses I am an Alcoholic

I am an alcoholic which means in my recovery; I have alcoholic thinking. It is not the amount of drink I have consumed. I crossed over that invisible line and became an Alcoholic,  I am emotionally and physically different and so is my thinking. My book tells me I have the phenomenon of craving and an allergy of the body.

When I sit in my meetings; we do the usual stuff, and ask people to identify, such as newcomers, 30 days, 60 days, 90 days, six months, and nine months of continuous sobriety. We also do give cakes for birthdays (sobriety anniversaries.) I listen to everyone, and I noticed this more and more lately.

I will use a name of Bill for this article. So, this person Bill, shares or identifies. I often hear, “Bill Alcoholic.” This identity is slightly off, from what I think I should be hearing. Saying “Bill Alcoholic” as if Alcoholic was his or her last name. I believe we need to identify as who we truly are, like, “Bill I am an Alcoholic” or “My name is Bill P., and I am an alcoholic.” Slightly different, but I think it is important. I also hear  “I am Bill, I am an active member of Alcoholics Anonymous” while true is not identifying as an Alcoholic.

Why is it important. First, it is what we do, for each and at every meeting, (including business meetings). So why? Why do we identify as ‘I am an Alcoholic?’ I believe it helps when we are new to understand that we are physically and emotionally different from non-alcoholics, so this reinforces the understanding of who we are.

As well as, I am identifying as an alcoholic and with another alcoholic. It is the Essence of Our Common Bond.

What is an alcoholic?

Doctor’s Opinion Page XXX.5 All these, (alcoholics) and many others, have one symptom in common: they cannot start drinking without developing the phenomenon of craving. This phenomenon, as we have suggested, may be the manifestation of an allergy which differentiates these people, and sets them apart as a distinct entity. It has never been, by any treatment with which we are familiar, permanently eradicated. The only relief we have to suggest is entire abstinence.

New Article http://recess2recovery.com/many-alcoholics-are-enthusiasts-they-run-to-extremes/

Many alcoholics are enthusiasts. They run to extremes.

Many alcoholics are enthusiasts. They run to extremes.

Alcoholic’s Anonymous Big Book

From Chapter 9 of the Big Book, The Family Afterward

125.2        Another principle we observe carefully is that we do not relate intimate experiences of another person unless we are sure he would approve. We find it better, when possible, to stick to our own stories. A man may criticize or laugh at himself and it will affect others favorably, but criticism or ridicule coming from another often produces the contrary effect. Members of a family should watch such matters carefully, for one careless, inconsiderate remark has been known to raise the very devil. We alcoholics are sensitive people. It takes some of us a long time to outgrow that serious handicap.

125.3        Many alcoholics are enthusiasts. They run to extremes. At the beginning of recovery a man will take, as a rule, one of two directions. He may either plunge into a frantic attempt to get on his feet in business, or

New Article https://recess2recovery.com/serenity-is-not-the-absence-of-conflict/

Serenity is Not the Absence of Conflict

Serenity is Not the Absence of Conflict, But the Ability to Cope With It.

How is your Serenity?

In the Big Book of Alcoholic’s Anonymous is a story of Acceptance was the Answer. Page 417 is one of the most quoted pages from the BB. It is often a favorite of many as it is with me.

417.1 And acceptance is the answer to all my problems today. When I am disturbed, it is because I find some person, place, thing, or situation—some fact of my life—unacceptable to me, and I can find no serenity until I accept that person, place, thing, or situation as being exactly the way it is supposed to be at this moment. Nothing, absolutely nothing, happens in God’s world by mistake. Until I could accept my alcoholism, I could not stay sober; unless I accept life completely on life’s terms, I cannot be happy. I need to concentrate not so much on what needs to be changed in the world as on what needs to be changed in me and in my attitudes.

Serenity Prayer – Full Version (composed in the 1940s)

God grant me the serenity To accept the things I cannot change; Courage to change the things I can; And wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time; Enjoying one moment at a time; Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; Taking, as He did, this sinful world As it is, not as I would have it; Trusting that He will make all things right If I surrender to His Will; So that I may be reasonably happy in this life And supremely happy with Him Forever and ever in the next. Amen.

Shortened Version (What we say in AA meetings)

New Article http://recess2recovery.com/youre-always-one-decision-away-from-a-totally-different-life/

You're Always One Decision Away From a Totally Different Life

You’re Always One Decision Away From a Totally Different Life

We are all one decision away from a totally different life. This is so clearly stated in step 3 from Alcoholic’s Anonymous; Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.

The steps are simple, clean house, trust God, help others… That is all possible with that one word, decision.

The Steps

New Post has been published on http://recess2recovery.com/the-trinity-of-self/

The Trinity of Self

The Trinity of Self

The word Trinity is often referred to as the three-in-one Person of the God of the Bible. There is another trinity (lower case t) of my self-centered world. There are these three sides to my thinking. I am 1) selfish, 2) self-centered, and 3) live in self-pity. The perfect storm! I live with most of these defects of characters each day, sometimes one or the other is more prevalent, or there are days when I am not consciously aware that I am living in the self-centered world. Ah, before you judge me, I ask that you look for these defects in your life. If you still cannot see it, try a dose of humility.

What does it mean to be selfish, self-centered and self-pity? On page 62 of the Big Book has all three in two sentences and others added on for humility. It is the root of our (mine) troubles!

“Selfishness-self-centeredness! That, we think, is the root of our troubles. Driven by a hundred forms of fear, self-delusion, self-seeking, and self-pity, we step on the toes of our fellows, and they retaliate.”

What is selfishness? It is me being concerned excessively or exclusively, about me or my advantage over you; where I am overly concerned with self-pleasure, or my welfare, at the expense of you.

What does it mean to be self-centered? It is being preoccupied with my affairs at the expense of yours. This is the area where my ego allows me to go.

What does it mean to live in self-pity? This is my most active, “weakness.” Self-pity is when I feel suffering and misfortune because of self-indulgence thinking which I accept as truth, but it is all about me wanting something I do not deserve. Often it is a failure of faith, failed thinking and puffing myself up as I deserve something more than you do.

Alcoholic’s Anonymous

On the flip side, is to see the trinity of AA as well, which is healthier of the trinity of self. When we look at the AA logo of the circle and triangle that is most closely associated with AA, the triangle is three-sided, each side representing, Service, Recovery, and Unity.

So, the trinity of AA is how we should relate to each other. The Trinity of the Bible is how we should love one another.