MUREEDS
IN RECOVERY
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A NEWCOMER ASKS
This leaflet is intended for people approaching
Alcoholics Anonymous (A. A.) for the first time.
In it we have tried to answer the questions most
frequently in the minds of newcomers
- the
questions which were in our minds when we first
approached the Fellowship.
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 not.
What can I do if I am worried about my drinking?
Seek help. Alcoholics Anonymous can help.
What is Alcoholics Anonymous?
We are a Fellowship of men and women who have lost
the ability to control our drinking and have found
ourselves in various kinds of trouble as a result
of drinking. We attempt - most of successfully -
to create a satisfying way of
life without
alcohol. For this we find we need the help and
support of other alcoholics in A.A.
If I go to an A. A. meeting, does that commit me
to anything?
No. A.A. does not keep membership files,
or
attendance records. You do not have to reveal
anything about yourself. No one will bother you
if you don't want to come back.
What happens if I meet people I know in A. A.?
They will be there for the same reason you are
there. They will not disclose your identity to
outsiders. At A. A. you retain as much anonymity
as you wish. That is one of the reasons we call
ourselves Alcoholics Anonymous.
What happens at an A.A. meeting?
An A. A. meeting may take one of several forms,
but at any meeting you will find
alcoholics
talking about what drinking did to their lives and
personalities, what actions they took to
help
themselves, and how they are living their lives
today.
How can this help me with my drinking problem?
We in A.A. know what it is like to be addicted to
alcohol, and to be unable to keep promises made to
others and to ourselves that
we will stop
drinking. We are not professional therapists.
Our only qualification for helping others
to
recover from alcoholism is that we have stopped
drinking ourselves, but problem drinkers coming to
us know that recovery is possible because they
see people who have done it.
Why do A. A.'s keep on going to meetings after
they are cured?
We in A. A believe there is no such thing as a
cure for alcoholism. We can never return
to
normal drinking, and our ability to stay away from
alcohol depends on maintaining our
physical,
mental, and spiritual health. This we can achieve
by going to meetings regularly and putting into
practice what we learn there. In addition,
we
find it helps us to stay sober if we help other
alcoholics.
How do I join A.A.?
You are an A.A. member if and when you say so.
The only requirement for A. A. membership is a
desire to stop drinking, and many of us were not
very wholehearted about that when
we first
approached A.A.
How much does A. A. membership cost?
There are no dues or fees for A.A. membership. An
A. A. group will usually have a collection during
the meeting to cover expenses, such as
rent,
coffee, etc., aand to this all members are free to
contribute as much or as little as they wish.
Is A.A. a religious organization?
No. Nor is it allied with
any religious
organization.
There's a lot of talk about God, though, isn't
there?
The majority of A. A. members believe that
we
have found the solution to our drinking problem
not through individual willpower, but through a
power greater than ourselves. However, everyone
defines this power as he or she wishes.
Many
people call it God, others think it is the A.A.
group, still others don't believe in it at all.
There is room in A. A. for people of all shades of
belief and nonbelief.
Can I bring my family to an A.A. meeting?
Family members or close friends are welcome at
"Open" A.A. meetings. Discuss this with
your
local contact.
What advice do you give new members?
In our experience, the people who recover in A.A.
are those who:
(a) stay away from the first drink;
(b) attend A.A. meetings regularly;
(c) seed out the people in
A.A. who have
successfully stayed sober for some time;
(d) try to put into practice the A.A. program of
recovery.
How can I contact A.A.?
Look for Alcoholics Anonymous in your
local
telephone directory. Theses telephones
are
answered by A.A. volunteers who will be happy to
answer your questions, or put you in touch with
those who can. If there is no A.A.
telephone
service close to you, write or phone the
A.A.
General Service Office.
Remember that alcoholism is a progressive disease.
Take it seriously, even if you feel you are only
in the early stages of the illness. Alcoholism
kills people. If you are an alcoholic, and if you
continue to drink, in time you will get worse.