I’m about to have 6 months of sober from alcohol and drugs. Went to AA in the beginning and through my 12 steps. I stopped going because I just felt like it wasn’t for me, the program. Mainly because of the group they are all high class white collar people and well I’m not. Just didn’t feel comfortable. Tried other groups but just didn’t like them. Any advice on what to do?
I wish i had good advice but i don’t. I did AA for a while and i also got tired of the people and other reasons about the program. Id say try different meetings throughout the week and see if you find one that lands. I wish they had AA meetings for schizoprhenic people it would be a lot better. I just never felt like i fit in because of my mental illness disconnect. On top of alcoholism i have an illness which makes me even extra prone to drinking. They didn’t understand. The only thing the other members had in common with me was drinking. Beyond that i was opposite from everyone
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That’s EXACTLY one of my problems. They say they understand but the honestly don’t because they aren’t leaving it. There’s a group for people that have problems taking the medication but it’s not the same especially when I don’t have a problem taking my meds.
There were no groups like that where i am. I was pretty much the only schizo depressed person in the rooms. Everytime i talked about y i drank they just avoided me afterward. And i got really really tired of the same repetetive line over and over. When i asked for help they just said “go pray.” This site does more for me then any meeting ive ever been to. It really makes them hipocrytes in a way cause theres a line about mental illness in the book
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I can honestly say @KingKazuma you just now have made me felt more welcomed and comfortable about this site. I’ve been looking for something like this for a year now and knowing that someone else feels the same way about AA like I do means a lot!
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Good. I wish there were more openness about talking about this stuff but society isn’t there yet. The only place i find I’m open about my issues in person is a psych ward and i never want to go back there. And with being a father to my bunnies I can’t afford to
I could never go back to psych ward I hate it bad! But it was the only place I could talk about my problems and people had similarities. So what do you do now to stay sober?
I play video games and do other nerdy stuff. Judge me if u must but I’m not exactly sober in the psychoactive field. Its much better then it used to be but i still partake. My position in life is not ready to give up certain substances. Im 22 if that makes sense
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It makes perfect sense I’m 23 that’s why it’s a questionable struggle. I want to go back at it but my family makes good points on why I shouldn’t and don’t worry I don’t judge. You do you which is awesome.
It’s just the opposite for me. I grew up in a very affluent city. We weren’t rich or high class but we were comfortable and my family’s friends were usually very successful and several of them were millionaires. After first getting sick I was put in a group home that was not very nice and then in a hospital that was not nice. But when I got out I spent the next 7 years in an even more affluent city than I grew up in. And then despite that I ended up getting addicted to crack.
After four years of abusing drugs I joined AA, CA, and NA. And it seemed like almost everybody else there were hardcore users who had been in jail or prison or were homeless or ran the streets. Because of this, for years after I joined the programs I still doubted if I was really an addict. I finally came to terms that yes, I am and addict.
But yeah, I ran into people in my 28 years in the program who liked me or talked to me but I always thought everybody else was so hardcore.
I would just suggest sticking with AA or NA and keep searching for a meeting you feel comfortable in. I doubt anyone’s looking down on you. Just remember the bottom line of AA. We are all in the same boat and we all need each other and we are all here to help each other to solve our common problem which is how to get clean and sober and stay clean and sober. We all can learn from each others experiences how they recovered. Every addict can learn something from you and you can learn something from every addict.
Just keep in mind, “Principles before personalities”. You may know something and say something in a meeting that might literally save someones life.
Those high class people you refer too don’t own AA. Its a free progam that anybody can join. If certain people ostracize you it would defeat the purpose of what Bill Wilson started the program for. AA is open to everybody.
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It really isn’t worth it. Drink and do enough psychedelics it loses its fun. Its just become my coping mechanism now
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@77nick77 yeah I get your point but the program its self just doesn’t fit into my personality and my actual problem with schizophrenia. I feel almost all the time like know one truly understands.
@KingKazuma yeah I feel like it’s not worth it most of the time. I’ve worked really hard to staying sober this long don’t see the point of screwing it all up.
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I don’t know if they still have online AA meetings but I used to attend one a few years ago. It wasn’t bad; it had both advantages and disadvantages compared to live meetings. But you can contact AA World Services and they may steer you in the right direction to getting set up for online meetings. It might be worth a shot.
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Thanks @77nick77 I’ll definitely give it a try
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I went to AA and had a good experience. I didn’t have enough in those days, and a couple older guys used to take me out for meal after the meeting.
Jayster
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