It’s Just a Phase

”… it turned out that everything I put down on paper was eerily similar to the same thing I had heard in rehab”

When I was about 2 or 3 years into my recovery I had convinced myself that I knew everything there was about staying sober. I just “knew” AA was a crock and that the only good thing to come out of a 12 step group meeting was free coffee. I went so far as to say that I was going to write a book, to tell people that I had the answer to all their problems. Then reality set in… it turned out that everything I put down on paper was eerily similar to the same thing I had heard in rehab, AA, NA, and group meetings of all sorts.

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Fast forward to a decade later and the only thing I can tell you I am convinced of is that I can recommend almost any recovery program. I will not call it wisdom because of that particular trait I am definitely lacking, so call it hard earned experience that convinced me of this; regardless of your method of attainment, sobriety beats drunk in all races.

I think it was just a phase I went through where I felt I needed to judge the different recovery methods and programs. Little did I know back then that the problems I faced in attaining sobriety were light compared to others or may have been considered insurmountable by some, but there definitely can not be a single solution that fits everyone's needs. Alcohol, drugs, or both… the symptoms of the addiction remain similar but the unique trials and tribulations of one’s life are unique to their situation. Some need more support and others need less structure, but everyone is better off in recovery regardless of the methods.

The more I talk to others in recovery the more I realize that the recurring threads of reality, accountability, and spirituality run through all the programs of recovery, even in those that do it “on their on”. I don’t know why I felt the need to criticize the methods of others, but it takes only a simple Google search to see that many others spend a considerable amount of time trying to debunk recovery programs that obviously didn’t work for them. I hope that like with me, it’s just a phase that will pass and that eventually they will spend less time being negative and more time concentrating on their own success.