AA is a whole new world out there. To be precise, it is near you, for Alcoholics Anonymous is almost everywhere. They are anonymous, so you won’t know! That’s the reason the world has little information about the success rate of AA. But, it is common sense to know that AA is successful, lest it may have not been around after 87 years of its inception!
Facing the truths
No recovery program has a 100 percent success rate, be it an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting or any other. The one who says so is lying. Even 90 percent is a bluff.
In the world of recovery and addictions, there is no guaranteed success. Yes, there can be a 100 percent completion rate of programs by people. But, there is no guarantee a newly-turned sober will stay sober for life.
Relapses are so common you would get a shock knowing this.
There have even been instances in meetings wherein a member barges in completely drunk! They relapsed.
There are also instances wherein people with co-occurring mental disorders create commotion in the meetings. Such people urgently need therapy for their mental disorders. No recovery program is complete without addressing your emotional and mental issues.
A lot happens in a typical AA meeting.
So, those who are conjuring up images of well-groomed and sane people sitting like “well-behaved kids” in a room and discussing in flawless languages their alcoholic stories are in for a surprise.
Face the truth guys and gals. These are meetings for alcoholics. This means alcoholics are going to attend them. There are bound to be disruptions, commotions, insanity, sights of depressed people slouching on the chair, and even people who suddenly realize they don’t want to quit drinking!
Then why attend meetings, you may ask
This is because, despite the commotions and insanity, people become sober here. A lot of credit goes to the 12 traditions of AA. The members have been following them strictly and this has kept AA alive and thriving. People here think about the welfare of each other.
Let’s compare AA to a hospital. A hospital has patients with different conditions of varying severity. Now, when you enter a hospital you cannot expect to see a place filled with healthy and happy people. The place is full of grieving and suffering people. It is a place for that.
But, does that mean patients don’t recover in a hospital?
In fact, they are here to get treatment and recover.
Yet, a hospital does not guarantee complete recovery. Some patients may relapse and come again for treatment. A few may even die.
Similarly, when you search for “Alcoholics Anonymous meetings near me” you must be ready to undergo treatment and work upon your recovery. Yet, you may relapse (there is no death here!). In this case, you come again.
Crux:
Come to an AA meeting in Massachusetts with an open mind and a heart that welcomes change within you. Life is not black and white. It is shades of grey. So, even if you relapse, that doesn’t mean you have failed. Start again.