Step Two cannot be emphasized too much, not only to newcomers, but to all AAs. Clearly, the chief mark of restoration to sanity is our not taking the first drink. No matter what else happens to us, as long as we refrain from the first drink, our lives will get better. I realize the problemsContinue reading “Self Examination to Sanity – 10th Step to 2nd Step – Grapevine Article March 1981 by Anonymous”
Category Archives: Unmanageability
Clearing A Channel – As Bill Sees It #78
During the day, we can pause where situations must be met and decisions made, and renew the simple request “Thy will, not mine, be done.” If at these points our emotional disturbance happens to be great, we will more surely keep our balance provided we remember, and repeat to ourselves, a particular prayer or phraseContinue reading “Clearing A Channel – As Bill Sees It #78”
The Strange Mental Blank Spot – Grapevine Article by Louisa P.
An alcoholic does battle with the strange mental blank spot that separates her (and all alcoholics) from the rest of humanity Alcoholism is a physical, mental, and spiritual disease. That’s what we learn in AA. Alcoholism is merely a lack of self-discipline. That’s what most of the world thinks. Alcoholics can exert all the self-disciplineContinue reading “The Strange Mental Blank Spot – Grapevine Article by Louisa P.”
4th Step Fear Inventory – Practice These Principles by Ray A.
Healthy and Unhealthy Fear Overcoming our fear is not always a good thing. We ought to have feared drinking, suggests the Big Book, for we knew how much suffering and humiliation it had wrought. But we did not. We lacked “the kind of defense that keeps one from putting his hand on a hot stove”Continue reading “4th Step Fear Inventory – Practice These Principles by Ray A.”
Denial: A Story In 3 Parts Grapevine Article May 2006 by Victoria P.
The thick wall finally cracks for this hard-drinking lawyer What It Was Like… These days, I don’t so much fall asleep as pass out. I go to work because my legal career is the Potemkin village of my denial. As long as I’m working, I’m not an alcoholic. I don’t think this, of course, becauseContinue reading “Denial: A Story In 3 Parts Grapevine Article May 2006 by Victoria P.”
That Day On The Bridge – Grapevine Article September 1962 by M.D.B
My thoughts were on a collision course with the oncoming train (yet all my troubles were within myself) IN May or June of 1948, I stood on the side of a viaduct in western Oregon and played host to a legion of morbid thoughts. A fast freight train rushed towards the tracks directly below. SinceContinue reading “That Day On The Bridge – Grapevine Article September 1962 by M.D.B”
Knowing It’s Not Personal – 12 Essential Insights for Emotional Sobriety – Dr. Allen Berger
Stop for a moment and think about all the things that upset you during the day. A friend says you’re not being attentive enough. Your partner seems to be ignoring you. The auto repair service implies you’re stupid for not knowing it was time to change the oil. A driver swerves in front of youContinue reading “Knowing It’s Not Personal – 12 Essential Insights for Emotional Sobriety – Dr. Allen Berger”
Small But Mighty – Grapevine Article March 2006 by Jack H.
Three little words, one big difference My loneliness was a ceaseless, tangible thing, which gnawed away at my guts like a particularly nasty form of cancer. The cause of all this loneliness was that something inside me, beyond my control, made me vicious and frequently violent. I drank heavily every day in an effort toContinue reading “Small But Mighty – Grapevine Article March 2006 by Jack H.”
Seeing & Accepting Our Reality – 12 & 12 pages 122 -125
This extract from Step 12 can be thought of as a high level roadmap for helping us understand our ongoing journey toward emotional sobriety as we grow in maturity and balance. This journey has no ceiling ; we can always be in a mode of expansion. Bill W more deeply explored these themes in hisContinue reading “Seeing & Accepting Our Reality – 12 & 12 pages 122 -125”
Faith, Failure, and Frustration – Grapevine Article May 1973 by Anonymous
Making promises we cannot keep leads only to greater guilt THE GRAVITY of the offense is measured according to the dignity of the one offended. So said an old philosopher. Guilt is sometimes defined as remorse felt over one’s commission of a real or imagined offense. Sometimes, I define guilt as the result of wishingContinue reading “Faith, Failure, and Frustration – Grapevine Article May 1973 by Anonymous”