MARTIN..I so did NOT see this post !! Happy Belated Birthday Martin !! !!!
and what a huge post this is...I just finished reading everything...quite a thinker...
PART II
They Stopped in Time
Among todays incoming A.A. members, many have never reached the advanced stages of alcoholism, though given time all might have.
Most of these fortunate ones have had little or no acquaintance with delirium, with hospitals, asylums, and jails. Some were drinking heavily, and there had been occasional serious episodes. But with many, drinking had been little more than a sometimes uncontrollable nuisance. Seldom had any of these lost either health, business, family, or friends.
Why do men and women like these join A.A.?
The seventeen who now tell their experiences answer that question. They saw that they had become actual or potential alcoholics, even though no serious harm had yet been done.
They realized that repeated lack of drinking control, when they really wanted control, was the fatal symptom that spelled problem drinking. This, plus mounting emotional disturbances, convinced them that compulsive alcoholism already had them; that complete ruin would be only a question of time.
Seeing this danger, they came to A.A. They realized that in the end alcoholism could be as mortal as cancer; certainly no sane man would wait for a malignant growth to become fatal before seeking help.
Therefore, these seventeen A.A.s, and hundreds of thousands like them, have been saved years of infinite suffering. They sum it up something like this: We didnt wait to hit bottom because, thank God, we could see the bottom. Actually, the bottom came up and hit us. That sold us on Alcoholics Anonymous.
(1) The Missing Link
He looked at everything as the cause of his unhappinessexcept alcohol.
PART III
They Lost Nearly All
The fifteen stories in this group tell of alcoholism at its miserable worst.
Many tried everythinghospitals, special treatments, sanitariums, asylums, and jails. Nothing worked. Loneliness, great physical and mental agonythese were the common lot. Most had taken shattering losses on nearly every front of life. Some went on trying to live with alcohol.
Others wanted to die.
Alcoholism had respected nobody, neither rich nor poor, learned nor unlettered. All found themselves headed for the same destruction, and it seemed they could do nothing whatever to stop it.
Now sober for years, they tell us how they got well. They prove to almost anyones satisfaction that its never too late to try Alcoholics Anonymous.
Martin,
I'm so glad you didn't have to travel as far as some of us did. My neighbor across the street from me is a Vice President at a bank. She was sober for 5 years and then decided on 4 more years of research. She has now been sober for 4 years. Her husband still drinks beer socially.
She isn't an AA person either. She is sober and happy. Thankfully, her research wasn't an end all. You know not everyone is destined to hit extreme bottoms. I'm happy that your not one of these people Martin. You are a wonderful human being and I'm not saying the rest of us aren't, or can't be. I'm just happy your research is not at the Master and PHD levels.
Take Care,
Chris
They Stopped in Time
Among todays incoming A.A. members, many have never reached the advanced stages of alcoholism, though given time all might have.
Most of these fortunate ones have had little or no acquaintance with delirium, with hospitals, asylums, and jails. Some were drinking heavily, and there had been occasional serious episodes. But with many, drinking had been little more than a sometimes uncontrollable nuisance. Seldom had any of these lost either health, business, family, or friends.
Why do men and women like these join A.A.?
The seventeen who now tell their experiences answer that question. They saw that they had become actual or potential alcoholics, even though no serious harm had yet been done.
They realized that repeated lack of drinking control, when they really wanted control, was the fatal symptom that spelled problem drinking. This, plus mounting emotional disturbances, convinced them that compulsive alcoholism already had them; that complete ruin would be only a question of time.
Seeing this danger, they came to A.A. They realized that in the end alcoholism could be as mortal as cancer; certainly no sane man would wait for a malignant growth to become fatal before seeking help.
Therefore, these seventeen A.A.s, and hundreds of thousands like them, have been saved years of infinite suffering. They sum it up something like this: We didnt wait to hit bottom because, thank God, we could see the bottom. Actually, the bottom came up and hit us. That sold us on Alcoholics Anonymous.
(1) The Missing Link
He looked at everything as the cause of his unhappinessexcept alcohol.
PART III
They Lost Nearly All
The fifteen stories in this group tell of alcoholism at its miserable worst.
Many tried everythinghospitals, special treatments, sanitariums, asylums, and jails. Nothing worked. Loneliness, great physical and mental agonythese were the common lot. Most had taken shattering losses on nearly every front of life. Some went on trying to live with alcohol.
Others wanted to die.
Alcoholism had respected nobody, neither rich nor poor, learned nor unlettered. All found themselves headed for the same destruction, and it seemed they could do nothing whatever to stop it.
Now sober for years, they tell us how they got well. They prove to almost anyones satisfaction that its never too late to try Alcoholics Anonymous.
Martin,
I'm so glad you didn't have to travel as far as some of us did. My neighbor across the street from me is a Vice President at a bank. She was sober for 5 years and then decided on 4 more years of research. She has now been sober for 4 years. Her husband still drinks beer socially.
She isn't an AA person either. She is sober and happy. Thankfully, her research wasn't an end all. You know not everyone is destined to hit extreme bottoms. I'm happy that your not one of these people Martin. You are a wonderful human being and I'm not saying the rest of us aren't, or can't be. I'm just happy your research is not at the Master and PHD levels.
Take Care,
Chris
Thanks Con. I hope you're feeling good today.
Thanks Chris. I guess I ought to read that book right through. Hadn't seen that. Your words mean a lot to me.
Thank you all for caring.
Martin
Thanks Chris. I guess I ought to read that book right through. Hadn't seen that. Your words mean a lot to me.
Thank you all for caring.
Martin
