Love this piece as someone who does use AA, but has plenty of criticism to lodge at it. The membership demographics are embarrassing for a group that had ideas that, at the time of its conception, were actually pretty radical. The institution calcified pretty quickly and is powerfully resistant to change. I'm just glad there are other organizations and methods people can use today to support them in recovery and sobriety.
The thing with my journey is that I USE AA. Like a tool. I don't buy into all the dogma. I have a sponsor who questions it as much as I do. I also live in an area where you never hear The Lord's Prayer in meetings, and many people are New Agers, hippies, Buddhists, and the like, with a smaller proportion of dogmatic Christians. Also, people here tend to use thoughtful, nuanced language around addiction and recovery, and generally approach the program with openness. It's very different than any other place I've tried AA out, where it only worked in the shallowest sense of telling me what to do when I was too beat down and desperate to come up with anything on my own, and never stuck once the immediate horror of my situation had improved. It's still AA, warts and all, but it's an AA that feels genuinely inclusive and thoughtful, which is what keeps me coming back. If it weren't, I'd be doing something else. I wish this were the case everywhere, but it most definitely is not.
Thank you for reading! …everyone’s journey is so different.. AA can truly be invaluable, and lifesaving.. I just hope we can all take a little from each persons experience.. and use it to grow and heal.
Honestly, reading your piece made me question myself for a minute. Why AM I still in AA despite just how warty it can be? I feel like I'm going to have to write something on that at some point.
I can echo many of the sentiments here, especially around the God stuff. Glad you mentioned SMART Recovery - they've been quite helpful for me. I hadn't heard of Refuge - will check them out, I like lots of Buddhist ideas like mindfulness and meditation. Thanks for sharing, Jill.
Love this piece as someone who does use AA, but has plenty of criticism to lodge at it. The membership demographics are embarrassing for a group that had ideas that, at the time of its conception, were actually pretty radical. The institution calcified pretty quickly and is powerfully resistant to change. I'm just glad there are other organizations and methods people can use today to support them in recovery and sobriety.
The thing with my journey is that I USE AA. Like a tool. I don't buy into all the dogma. I have a sponsor who questions it as much as I do. I also live in an area where you never hear The Lord's Prayer in meetings, and many people are New Agers, hippies, Buddhists, and the like, with a smaller proportion of dogmatic Christians. Also, people here tend to use thoughtful, nuanced language around addiction and recovery, and generally approach the program with openness. It's very different than any other place I've tried AA out, where it only worked in the shallowest sense of telling me what to do when I was too beat down and desperate to come up with anything on my own, and never stuck once the immediate horror of my situation had improved. It's still AA, warts and all, but it's an AA that feels genuinely inclusive and thoughtful, which is what keeps me coming back. If it weren't, I'd be doing something else. I wish this were the case everywhere, but it most definitely is not.
Thank you for reading! …everyone’s journey is so different.. AA can truly be invaluable, and lifesaving.. I just hope we can all take a little from each persons experience.. and use it to grow and heal.
Honestly, reading your piece made me question myself for a minute. Why AM I still in AA despite just how warty it can be? I feel like I'm going to have to write something on that at some point.
I’m glad to inspire! 🩷
I can echo many of the sentiments here, especially around the God stuff. Glad you mentioned SMART Recovery - they've been quite helpful for me. I hadn't heard of Refuge - will check them out, I like lots of Buddhist ideas like mindfulness and meditation. Thanks for sharing, Jill.
Of course! Everyone’s path is different but It’s always nice to have options 😊