Kana
Posts: 6676
Joined: 10/24/2006 Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Hismouse he still has all the traits of an alcoholic even though he's been sober 20 years, so whilst I don't know him as a drinker, I still have to deal with the traits and learn best how to deal with them, along the way I can work on me as well. As someone who worked in the recovery community for a long time I both get this and don't. 1-I absolutely get the concept that drinking is just a symptom of the deeper underlying character flaws underneath that cause alcoholism. And I totally understand that you can take the alcohol out of the drunk and all that you'll be left with is the "ic" 2-That said, after twenty years of practicing the steps, which are defined as " a group of principles, spiritual in their nature, which, if practiced as a way of life, can expel the obsession to drink and enable the sufferer to become happily and usefully whole," these flaws should be grooved down to where they are largely a non-issue. Further, the point of the 12 steps is to "have a spiritual awakening" which is later defined as " a personality change sufficient to overcome alcohol."-in other words, psychic and spiritual surgery (Or better yet, dentistry has occurred) has been undertaken, the ex problem drinker has done a whole shift in make up, deportment, values, and moral guideposts and thus is quite literally a new man....not the same person who walked in the door of the 12 steps. Kinda like the religious concept of being reborn. So with all that, those driving character flaws, those internal forces and selfishnesses that drove him to drink-they should not be active and present in his life on a daily basis. If they are, you got problems. Big effing problems. Point of fact-you shouldn't have to deal with those traits at all-he should...because it's his recovery and he is responsible for his actions. What alanon or AA or any other 12 step program will do is help you in how you react to him and the world around you.
< Message edited by Kana -- 5/25/2012 7:56:04 AM >
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"One of God's own prototypes. A high-powered mutant of some kind never even considered for mass production. Too weird to live, and too rare to die. " HST
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