Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting
Alcoholics Anonymous strives to create an inclusive group philosophy. Anyone who wishes to make a commitment to sobriety, is dealing with the issue of alcoholism because of a loved one is afflicted by the disease, or simply wishes to learn more about substance abuse, is welcome to attend an AA meeting. I visited an open AA meeting, which meant that the discussion must be confined to problems dealing with alcohol, but everyone was welcome, regardless of his or her substance abuse history. This also meant that the group was open to people still struggling with alcoholism. Closed meetings are limited to persons who wish to make a commitment to stop drinking. Usually, this means that they must have abstained from using alcohol for at least 24 hours.I was the only Hispanic male in the room. Most of the people in the group were in their early thirties to late forties, and the room was fairly evenly divided between men and women-there may have been a few more males than females. Most of the membership was Caucasian. The only 'stereotype busting' effect that I witnessed upon my own preconceived perspective
was how relatively normal, and sociable the members seemed on the surface. Some of the members had been going to this AA group for years, and this reminded me of how even addicts with many years of sobriety still must fight the tendency to use alcohol as a coping mechanism for the life stresses all persons face, from starting a new job to a daughter's impending marriage. I was surprised at some of the humility shown by many of the addicts. I would recommend the meeting to my clients, although I might suggest a group that was more specifically tailored to the member's age, or ethnic group, so an addict did not feel alienated by the appearance, culture, or income bracket, upon walking into the room. The curative nature of the program lies in its support structure and the sense of community it gives to its members. There is constant behavioral reinforcement that resorting to old, ineffective behaviors is wrong. People were just as interested in the lives of the less regular members of the group. Then, there was a discussion between members of the regular group about issues that they were confronting in their lives, and how they were fighting the urge to drink. The recovering addict gains a sense of responsibility to other addicts as well as to his or her family to remain sober. The meeting was friendly, and since it was open, it was not cliquey in any sense. The recovering alcoholic gains a strong sense of self-in-relation to a larger community of struggling persons. I might also suggest an Al-Anon meeting to the client's loved ones. Meetings also provide a free form of therapeutic space for addicts to talk about their issues with other addicts, even if they cannot afford regular therapy. The meeting began with the Serenity Prayer.
Common topics in this essay:
Serenity Prayer,
Alcoholics Anonymous,
aa meeting,
fighting urge,
urge drink,
substance abuse,
loved ones,
remain sober,
fighting urge drink,
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Acceptance Essays
