Recovery through the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous
Sgt. Bill S., used a one word summary to describe the basic principle (as he saw it) behind each of the 12 Steps, when he was giving talks to military personnel about alcoholism at Lackland in San Antonio, Texas, during the 1950’s and later on in California.
In the [...]

Mental obsession Bill W. a
co-founder of Alcoholics
Anonymous answers
questions about alcoholism
in a discussion in 1960.
Question; Bill, could you
explain what you mean by
“mental obsession”? What
is this? Bill W.: Well, as I
understand it, we are all
born with a certain amount
of freedom of choice. The
degree of this varies from
person to person, and from
area to area in our lives. In
the case of neurotic
people, our instincts take
on certain patterns and
directions, sometimes so
compulsive they cannot be
broken by any ordinary
effort of the will. The
alcoholic’;s compulsion to
drink is like that.

Relapse, Slips and Busts Bill
W. a co-founder of
Alcoholics Anonymous
answers questions about
alcoholism in a discussion in
1960. Question; What
about slips in general? You
must have witnessed a lot
of them. Bill W.: The
subject of slips is a very
large one. It takes in a lot
of territory. Slips can often
be charged to rebellion and
some of us surely are more
rebellious than others. Slips
can be charged to
carelessness, to
complacency. Many of us
fail to ride out such periods
sober. Slips are due to the
illusion that one can be
“cured” of alcoholism.
Things go fine for two or
three

Know when it’;s time to fire
your doctor CNN reports
on what to do when your
doctor is not paying
attention. Dr. Jerome
Groopman knew he needed
to break up with his doctor.
Groopman is not alone. “I
really think it’;s a fear of
the unknown,” says Robin
DiMatteo, a researcher at
the University of California
at Riverside who’;s studied
doctor-patient
communication. “But if the
doctor isn’;t supporting
your healing or health, you
should go.” 1. When your
doctor doesn’;t like it when
you ask questions 2. When
your doctor doesn’;t listen
to you 3. If your doctor
can’;t explain your illness

We were created fully human. We were given emotions, desires, hopes, dreams, and feelings. There is an alive, excited, fun loving child in us somewhere! Let it come out! Let it come alive! Let it have some fun

Many people in early recovery from addiction, alcoholism, gambling and codependency are challenged by philosophical questions such as posed here.

The Abstinent Approach to Healthy Wine Consumption In the Sober Kitchen
by Recovering Chef Liz Scott
No doubt since you put down that last drink, you have noticed that researchers are continually discovering good and healthy things about drinking, particularly red wine. Most recently, a compound called resveratrol, which is present in grape skins [...]

It’s better to quiet your mind than to let negative thoughts run rampant

Three Tips To Bring The Romance Back Into Your Relationships
In recovery many people may need to look at just how they can get romance back into their relationships. Alcoholics, addicts and their codependents may have strained sexuality. Think about what happened when you first met. Are these some of the things you did [...]

Personal Stories of
Recovery Treatment and
Recovery: Personal Profiles
When Marjorie Hawkins
entered treatment for
alcohol and drug abuse in
1985, she seemed a
hopeless case.
Unemployed, homeless,
and addicted to alcohol and
heroin, Hawkins found
herself at Carrick Hall, a
Washington, D.C.
treatment center, where
she began, almost literally,
to see the light. “I went
in,” Hawkins recalls today,
“and after the first week, I
realized I could hear what
they were saying. The fog
had lifted. I learned that
my biggest problem was my
addiction, that if I didn’;t
drink and do drugs every
day, I could be