What things help with your recovery besides meetings and aa? Please share some examples of how you recovered without aa. I want to try a different way, but dont think it will work because the aa is the only way saying has been drilled in my head.
posted by Truts83 on Nov 12, 2012 - 11 answers

My fiance went on a massive alcohol binge this week, two weeks before our wedding, and has left me. Any suggestions for coping with the devastation and loss I am feeling? Portland, OR-specific suggestions are especially welcome. [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Oct 13, 2012 - 22 answers

How do you find a Higher Power in 12-step recovery when you're a hardened atheist? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Aug 9, 2011 - 27 answers

A is not a heavy user, but not a once-in-a-blue-mooner either. And its not just pot. Its been going on for a long time and its starting to take its toll. I'm not sure if I can help her, or how. [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Jun 2, 2011 - 24 answers

Compulsive web-browsing completely dominates my life. How do I physically stop myself from using the internet? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Mar 26, 2011 - 27 answers

What are some good books / music / gifts for when you get out of rehab? [more inside]
posted by gauche on Oct 18, 2010 - 4 answers

How do I help a friend in recovery from narcotics make it to two clean years? [more inside]
posted by rachaelfaith on Nov 25, 2008 - 9 answers

I have a pretty serious drinking problem which has caused me to "call in sick" too often at my job. I finally confessed to my supervisor that I have a drinking problem. I should have been fired long ago, but because I appealed to them for help, the company is willing to keep me on the payroll provided that I seek treatment for my addiction. Here's my dilemma: where I live, every alcohol/chemical dependency treatment program is based on Alcoholics Anonymous and its 12 Steps. I have an intrinsic aversion to anything even remotely associated with a Higher Power, God, Jesus, etc. I need to find a treatment facility ( either residential or out-patient) that'll help me get sober without all the spiritual mumbo-jumbo associated with AA and the 12 Steps. I live in Corpus Christi, Texas and it's important that any suitable treatment program be located somewhere nearby--preferably Austin since I have sober friends there. But I guess anywhere in Texas will do. Any suggestions?
posted by buzzbash on Feb 5, 2008 - 30 answers

You could call me an alcoholic in that I have drunk nearly every day for ten years. I am 34 years old. I am thin and healthy looking. Because I’m asking in part for medical advice I want to be very specific about the amount I drink. [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Feb 1, 2008 - 36 answers

What to do now? I'm a single, mid-thirties female, and I have a crush. Oh, wait. It's a lot more complicated than that. I'm sorry this is so long... [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Jan 16, 2008 - 37 answers

Any recommendations for online communities for people recovering from substance abuse? While I am not anti-12 Step, I would like an alternative.
posted by chiefbroad on Nov 16, 2007 - 4 answers

My fun, happy, fairy-tale marriage of 2 months is imploding because my husband suddenly can't accept my past. Super-long explanation inside. [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Mar 30, 2007 - 70 answers

Does it ever stop? I am a "recovered" heroin addict. Or maybe now I can say I "was" a heroin addict. I've been clean for 8 years, I have children, a career, a semblance of a responsible adult life that I am content with at 36, friends, the arts. I write grants for charities. I don't have to hide my past, it just doesn't come up anymore. But I dream of dope sometimes- vivid dreams in my sleep. If I am stressed out, my thoughts occasionally wander there... [more inside]
posted by mistsandrain on Mar 1, 2007 - 26 answers