He learned to accept his physical condition and used AA to help him manage it each day
After going to meetings and staying sober for over 20 years, with an average of two-to-three meetings a week, one would think that I’d have taken in every topic meeting imaginable. Not quite so.
An AA saying that has helped me tremendously over the years is “this too shall pass.” But I and some other AAs have come to realize that some things in our lives will not pass. In my life I have to cope with chronic physical pain. I have on several occasions talked at meetings about how this pain affects my attitude and my serenity (or lack thereof). Sometimes when talking at a meeting, I would get a nodding response or that knowing look in another AA’s eyes. But not very often.
About a year or so ago, an old friend that I had not seen for a while came to my home group. She openly talked about her disabling physical condition and the pain that kept her from doing the things that she has done in her 23 years of sobriety.
After the meeting, we talked and we were joined by another friend who also has chronic physical pain. We all felt good about being able to talk about our pain and having other AA people to understand and to support each other. We arranged to meet again in a week. Another AA met with us that following eek and we decided to meet every week.
Some more AAs that have chronic pain eventually joined us and we decided to start an AA meeting that was a topic meeting with a permanent topic.
Our topic each and every week is: “Living a quality life in sobriety while coexisting with chronic physical pain.” Anyone is welcome to this meeting if he or she has a desire to stop drinking. We try to stay on topic, but have at times accommodated newcomers in need of Step meetings and others in need of a meeting not related to physical pain.
Most of the AAs that attend have 18 or more years of sobriety and the pain conditions have developed during that sober time. Some are newcomers and pain was a part of their lives during their drinking days. Due to the extent of the debilitating physical conditions, some of us have been forced into disability, while others of us are maintaining employment.
A friend in AA who does have to contend with chronic pain asked recently, “What do you guys find new to talk about every week? Or do you just whine about how miserable you are?” God love him; that attitude is precisely why we started this meeting. Is there “whining” at our meeting. No. Are there tears? Sometimes.
Is there understanding of the difficulties of loss of abilities, loss of incomes, loss of enjoyable sober physical activities, depression that so often accompanies chronic pain, frustration with doctors and the medical profession, the fears of addictions to pain medications, the frustrations and sadness of knowing that these conditions will get worse and certainly will not pass? Yes, absolutely yes.
Just as AA was founded on the principle of one drunk helping another drunk to stay sober one day at a time, so is our group, with the added burden of dealing with painful conditions tha twill not pass. Sometimes in my life of sobriety I have larned the answers are not revealed and I have been granted the serenity of acceptance.
With chronic physical pain, it can be the same way: some answers, some acceptance. I am grateful that I have a purpose that has been handed down from Bill W. and Dr. Bob.
That purpose now includes one hurting alcoholic helping another hurting alcoholic to live a quality life in sobriety while coexisting with the pain. It has been a rewarding part of my sobriety to be of service and a comfort to know that I am not alone.
After going to meetings and staying sober for over 20 years, with an average of two-to-three meetings a week, one would think that I’d have taken in every topic meeting imaginable. Not quite so.
An AA saying that has helped me tremendously over the years is “this too shall pass.” But I and some other AAs have come to realize that some things in our lives will not pass. In my life I have to cope with chronic physical pain. I have on several occasions talked at meetings about how this pain affects my attitude and my serenity (or lack thereof). Sometimes when talking at a meeting, I would get a nodding response or that knowing look in another AA’s eyes. But not very often.
About a year or so ago, an old friend that I had not seen for a while came to my home group. She openly talked about her disabling physical condition and the pain that kept her from doing the things that she has done in her 23 years of sobriety.
After the meeting, we talked and we were joined by another friend who also has chronic physical pain. We all felt good about being able to talk about our pain and having other AA people to understand and to support each other. We arranged to meet again in a week. Another AA met with us that following eek and we decided to meet every week.
Some more AAs that have chronic pain eventually joined us and we decided to start an AA meeting that was a topic meeting with a permanent topic.
Our topic each and every week is: “Living a quality life in sobriety while coexisting with chronic physical pain.” Anyone is welcome to this meeting if he or she has a desire to stop drinking. We try to stay on topic, but have at times accommodated newcomers in need of Step meetings and others in need of a meeting not related to physical pain.
Most of the AAs that attend have 18 or more years of sobriety and the pain conditions have developed during that sober time. Some are newcomers and pain was a part of their lives during their drinking days. Due to the extent of the debilitating physical conditions, some of us have been forced into disability, while others of us are maintaining employment.
A friend in AA who does have to contend with chronic pain asked recently, “What do you guys find new to talk about every week? Or do you just whine about how miserable you are?” God love him; that attitude is precisely why we started this meeting. Is there “whining” at our meeting. No. Are there tears? Sometimes.
Is there understanding of the difficulties of loss of abilities, loss of incomes, loss of enjoyable sober physical activities, depression that so often accompanies chronic pain, frustration with doctors and the medical profession, the fears of addictions to pain medications, the frustrations and sadness of knowing that these conditions will get worse and certainly will not pass? Yes, absolutely yes.
Just as AA was founded on the principle of one drunk helping another drunk to stay sober one day at a time, so is our group, with the added burden of dealing with painful conditions tha twill not pass. Sometimes in my life of sobriety I have larned the answers are not revealed and I have been granted the serenity of acceptance.
With chronic physical pain, it can be the same way: some answers, some acceptance. I am grateful that I have a purpose that has been handed down from Bill W. and Dr. Bob.
That purpose now includes one hurting alcoholic helping another hurting alcoholic to live a quality life in sobriety while coexisting with the pain. It has been a rewarding part of my sobriety to be of service and a comfort to know that I am not alone.