My wife and I are both recovering alcoholic/ addicts. We live in a rual town in the mid west. During our recovery we have found that going to meetings in our area is an invotation to exile. The problem we incountered, along with our fellow recoveries, is that once someone saw you enter a meeting place, word would spread. My wife and i both volenteered to recovery and for this we have been ostracized in our community.She grew up here and i moved here over a year ago when we got married. Jobs are limited and with the tag of alcoholic or addict, they are almost nil. All this is due to someone seeing us at a meeting and then the word spread. We have even lost one of our meeting mates this summer because of this. He lost his job and all went down hill very fast. He went back to the bottle for solace and no one was there to help. At just 21, they found his vehicle of a dirt road rolled over in a ditch. He'd been ther for 2 days and no one had noticed.Some of the others that we have talked to have agreed that this is a common problem, and with no real support at the times during our cravings or triggers.We feel that the internet can be a way to link ourselves to others and not just with sites like this that give you the chance to voice a concern and wait to hear from some automated response or wait till the next day to get an answer for someone. There are those whose job or family dont facilitate them with the time to go to a meeting or a recovery center thats open 24/7 for people who need to talk, just to walk in. There are the parents that are trying to make a difference in thier lives by working as much as possible and staying home rather than looking for or hanging out at a friends to take the edge off. They dont have the luxury of affording a sitter and leaving the home to get that reassurance or pep talk that we need from our meeting and those in our situation. There are many examples and reasons to help keep us on the road to recovery, but getting to those place that can help can be just as difficut as recovery it self. In this day and age, with the computer becoming such a common household appliance and with all the information avalible to us at any time.
Would a web site, unlike this one, but simular to this and many more, be useful. What i am saying is , My wfe and i are building a site that will give you all the same info and more. A site that has live chat with those like us, and live streaming video to go with it. A site that you can go to and realy talk to some one live, one on one, or in a group. And if you want, see the person your talking with to feel and see the emotions in the words that are being heard. A place online that we can have our own meetings at a time that works for us and not against us. A site where a mom can go to after puting the kids to bed and not have to leave the house. For her to be able talk to some one about how all the stress at work and the kids were just a bit more than usual tonight and how much a drink or a hit would take the edge off right now. A network of people that can be there when you need them and with info that does pertain to you and not just the general population of addicts as a whole. Its New years eve and i dont drink any more, insted of taking that chance and going out to celebrate and falling off. I'm here with my Wife and on the computer finding a different way to stay sober.
If you feel this would be a worth while venture, then let us know what you feel and what you would like to see in a site like that. all your imput would be of value us and maybe a greater vaue to some one els that might be in dire straights.
Small towns can be tough - and judgmental - but don't let that stop your recovery. My daughter went to meetings 20 miles away to get around that issue, but it is a shame that you may not have that option. My only suggestion would be to think hard about the video-streaming so that the same thing doesn't happen online as did in face-to-face. Good luck on your mission.
