Sobriety in A.A.: Opening doors to a life without drinking (Public Service Announcement)
Am I an alcoholic?
If you repeatedly drink more than you intend or want to, if you get into trouble, or if you have memory lapses when you drink,
you may be an alcoholic.
Only you can decide. No one in A.A. will tell you whether you are or are not.
“Reprinted from
(A Newcommer Asks., P-24),
with permission of A.A. World Services, Inc.”
What is AA?
Alcoholics Anonymous is a worldwide fellowship of men and women who help each other to stay sober.
They offer the same help to anyone who has a drinking problem and wants to do something about it.
Since they are all alcoholics themselves, they have a special understanding of each other.
They know what the illness feels like — and they have learned how to recover from it in A.A
A.A. members say that they are alcoholics today — even when they have not had a drink for many years.
They do not say that they are “cured.” Once people have lost their ability to control their drinking,
they can never again be sure of drinking safely — or, in other words, they can never become “former alcoholics” or “ex-alcoholics.”
But in A.A., they can become sober alcoholics, recovered alcoholics.
“Reprinted from
(A Brief Guide to A.A., P-42),
with permission of A.A. World Services, Inc.”
How does A.A. help the alcoholic?
Through the example and friendship of the recovered alcoholics in A.A., new members are encouraged to stay away from a drink “one day at a time,”
as the A.A.s do. Instead of “swearing off forever” or worrying about whether they will be sober tomorrow, A.A.s concentrate on not drinking right now — today.
By keeping alcohol out of their systems, newcomers take care of one part of their illness — their bodies have a chance to get well.
But remember, there is another part. If they are going to stay sober, they need healthy minds and healthy emotions, too.
So they begin to straighten out their confused thinking and unhappy feelings by following A.A.’s “Twelve Steps” to recovery.
These Steps suggest ideas and actions that can guide alcoholics toward happy and useful lives.
To be in touch with other members and to learn about the recovery program, new members go to A.A. meetings regularly.
“Reprinted from
(A Brief Guide to A.A., P-42),
with permission of A.A. World Services, Inc.”
