Alcoholism: Working the 12-Steps

Alcoholism is a pervasive intruder in the lives of millions of people, either directly or indirectly. It is safely assumed that you know someone with a drinking problem.

Denial Is The Greatest Roadblock Towards Recovery

Denial prevents recovery and is the greatest roadblock towards sobriety. Coming out from denial can take years, or maybe never. Denial keeps the alcoholic, and those who love an alcoholic, believing they don’t have a problem and that they can stop drinking at anytime. But the truth is they can’t stop at anytime. If they could stop at anytime then there wouldn’t be a problem. If you can stop drinking at one or two drinks then show us, don’t tell us.

Most alcoholics, if they have the right divine guidance, can work the program of Alcoholics Anonymous and become sober for life and become better people through it all. AA is a great place to start for many alcoholics for mental and spiritual recovery. Some alcoholics have been known to go through the process of the 12-steps without ever stepping foot in a meeting hall, while others may wish to go to seven meetings in seven days. Overall healing and recovery depends on the individual and their personal circumstances.

How Can Alcoholic’s Anonymous Help?

AA helps the alcoholic come out from the clutches of denial and better understand who they are in relation to others and themselves. It helps them to grow out from self and grasp the concept of their Creator, which gives them faith and hope in God as well as in themselves. The community of AA helps the alcoholic to see that they are not alone in their addiction. They will meet others who are also working towards sobriety that they can identify themselves with and also receive encouragement from.

Having a problem with drinking does not mean you are a weak person, it means you have unresolved emotional issues that have not had a chance to heal. The 12-steps help you to dredge up the past and confront your demons head on with the support of your AA family or with the support of your home family or both. Once you work yourself through each step of AA it helps you to conquer the emotional aspects of addiction.

There is no rush to complete the steps. In fact take your time and make sure that you have actually completed a step before thinking you can move on with your life on life’s terms. Loved ones should be as supportive as possible as the alcoholic is trying to maintain sobriety. AA does not help with the physical addiction to alcohol -- this must been done at home through proper diet and exercise.

Alcoholic Is Not Who You Are

Alcoholic is not who you are, but is an affliction that has taken over your life, controlling the person God meant for you to be. You are a beautiful Child of God, even if you don’t believe in God. God still loves you. Because God loves you, you have the ability to totally defeat all aspects of alcoholism from your life. If you so choose, God will make you strong and give you the faith and courage to conquer alcoholism for good!

You have to decide, “Who you are”. Are you a person who originated from an oyster, monkey, or gorilla? Where did you come from? Are you just another body of the millions of bodies simply roaming the earth who have no set purpose for their life? If you have an attitude like this, you probably won’t get sober, or won’t be able to stay sober for very long. That’s the reality of addiction.

God has a purpose for you, whether you want to believe it or not.

Poor Diet Keeps The Alcoholic Craving Alcohol

“Study after study has demonstrated that the vast majority of alcoholics are hypoglycemic. In one conducted by J. Poulos, D. Stafford, and K. Carron, fifty outpatient alcoholics and fifty halfway-house alcoholics were compared with a control group of one hundred nurses and teenagers. Of the one hundred alcoholics, ninety-six proved to be hypoglycemic; only fourteen of the nonalcoholic controls were hypoglycemic. A three-year study by Robert Meiers, M.D., in Santa Cruz, California, found that more than 95 percent of alcoholics studied suffered from low blood sugar”

The addiction to alcohol, in the physical sense, is probably the hardest aspect of alcoholism to conquer. An alcoholic literally craves the sugar in the alcohol. The brain continually sends signals of needing a fix of sugar because the pancreas just isn’t doing its job properly. This malady has a lot to do with the eating lifestyle of the alcoholic.

All alcoholics are nutritionally deficient and most likely hypoglycemic. Have you ever noticed how usually an alcoholic will not eat sugar foods unless they can’t get an alcohol fix? That is because they are getting their cravings met through the sugar in the alcohol. Low blood sugar is the culprit. Clean up your diet and get sober!

The alcoholic absolutely needs to begin to eat a good daily diet of whole grains, fish, beans, legumes, and fresh fruits and vegetables. They need to replenish the minerals they have lost. This means no processed or refined sugar foods, whatsoever. If it is not whole and natural, simply don’t eat it. Once the body is well, the cravings for alcohol will subside considerably. But don’t take my word for it, try it and see for yourself.

Alcoholics Are Special

Do you know why alcoholics are special? They are special because they have an uncanny ability to keep drinking alcohol even after the last person has left the party. You might be thinking, “That’s not special, that’s downright unhealthy.” Well, what do you think alcoholism is? Alcoholism is unhealthy in every form imaginable – physically, spiritually, emotionally, and mentally.

Alcoholics have always been a minority of misfits, drinking all night long, hardly able to manage the next morning, until the next drink, and then starting all over again. I’m talking about myself here – I can’t speak for all alcoholics. I literally felt like a misfit when I was in the depths of addiction. Anyway, the repetition or vicious cycle is what makes an alcoholic an alcoholic. If he or she could stop at one or two drinks they wouldn’t be alcoholic, right?

Actually what makes an alcoholic special is the sensitivity of their hearts when they are sober. Notice I said, when they are sober. Through my own research, and asking former alcoholics, I’ve come to the conclusion that alcoholic’s have a high sensitivity level towards people and their feelings that exceeds that of non-alcoholics, in general. This is why sober alcoholics and drug addicts almost always find themselves in a serving type profession helping other people combat their addictions and personal problems.

Former alcoholics make exceptional caregivers counselors, advisers, nurses, and other health care providers. And to me, that is special because the world could always use more good, caring people to teach others what they know and to help them overcome what has trapped them from within. If you ever need addiction help – the first and foremost aspect to look for in the qualifications is if they were former addicts. Rest assured, they will know more about what you are going through than someone that has never been addicted before.

7 Tips For Staying Clean and Sober

Be Around Positive People

Try and find positive, happy people that know what you are going through, preferably who have been down the same road as you and are now sober and ready to support and encourage you in your sobriety. Try not to be alone too often, unless you are having quiet meditation and need the alone time. Happy people bring happiness to others.

Eat A Wholesome Diet

Eating whole foods can make a BIG difference in how you feel physically and will also affect how you feel mentally. Wholesome foods are always best when trying to maintain a clean life from drugs and alcohol. Limit sugar intake to a bear minimum. If you feel an absolute need to indulge in sugar, try “raw bees” honey, which you can find at farmers markets. Bee’s honey has minerals and vitamins in it and is an excellent substitute for white sugar and other processed sugars. FACT: Bee’s honey is sweeter than white sugar.

Take Up A Hobby

What do you enjoy doing, but feel you never have the time? Make time for the things you like and enjoy – you deserve it! Invest your time and energy in something you can be proud of doing. Whether it is a craft, building something, volunteering, or whatever it is you like to do, make the time and just do it. We need to feel good about “who we are” while being free of drugs and alcohol – the best way to do that is by doing things that we enjoy doing and that will give us a sense of accomplishment. We don’t need the crutch of drugs any longer because we CAN love the person God created us to be!

Get Involved!

Idleness can be risky to an addictive personality. The little voice in our head rears its ugly horns and tells us its ok to “use” again, especially when we are bored, lonely, and or depressed. Find out what is going on in your community and get involved. If you enjoy meeting people, attend your AA meetings regularly. Seek friendships that enjoy the same recreations as you and ask them to be a support for you when you feel tempted. Get out and do something!

Help Others With Addiction

Reaching out to others and supporting them in their efforts of addiction can help the addict immensely. I believe when the time is right for the drug and or alcohol user to help others to stay clean is the number one factor in them remaining free of mind-altering substances. Helping others gives us a satisfaction that no other can.

Take An Online Course

Improving ourselves will help to maintain sobriety. There are many ways in which you can improve and enhance yourself. Taking an online course (trade) in something will keep your busy and also show you that you can do something without the need to be under the influence of mind-altering substances. Of course, we should never compare our abilities and skills with others, but we can compare ourselves with ourselves. Where are you at now in your sobriety? Set goals and work towards accomplishing something new for each goal you set. And by all means, have fun doing whatever it is you decide to do. Reach for the S T A R S !