AA

I have nothing against the people who attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. I know that they are perfectly good people that are just trying to live better lives. I like the concept of comradery in sobriety, but the one thing that keeps me from truly and wholeheartedly working the program is the whole religious aspect of the particular AA process. They say that you don't necessarily need to believe in God to work the program, but you absolutely do. About six out of the twelve steps in the recovery program require a belief in God, and not only that, but there are unspoken requirements that your view of God has to have, namely that God is invested in and can/will change our lives. The exact words used in the book are "as you understand him" and the way I understand God, is that that's just not how he/she/it works. However, at the last meeting that I attended, a woman there told me that the only mandatory step in order to recover is the first step, which is to admit that we are powerless over alcohol and that our lives have become unmanageable. I have taken that step so I guess I'll just have to see where my path of recovery takes me from here. Another thing that someone else told me, is that I really shouldn't get hung up on the word "God" because that's not what the program is really about. It's about sobriety, plain and simple. It's about a community of broken people coming together to help aid each other in their recovery and grow as individuals, and it is because of that that I know I will more than likely still attend meetings from time to time. AA isn't for everyone, but for those who truly want to walk the path of recovery, many of them find the program to be an integral component of their rehabilitation, and it is for that that I know it will always be relevant for those that need it.