Post by Clipper on Jul 28, 2011 13:46:30 GMT -5
You are one hundred percent correct FA. There IS no cure for addiction. Most would say that one who has gotten sober through a 12 step program is "recovering" and that there is actually no point at which one is cured or is no longer and alcoholic or an addict.
At my age I consider myself about as recovered as I am going to get, haha. I simply follow the principles I learned through many years of meetings and such, and I wake up with two things first on my mind each day. I thank the Lord for allowing me another day, vertical and ventilating, and I pray for him walk with me through it and keep me well and sober. The last things on my mind when I prepare for bed at night are to thank the Lord for another day of sobriety, good health, bountiful blessings and a wonderful soul mate to share them with.
Many years ago my sponsor and myself participated in a group that held meetings at the county jail and at Auburn and Elmira prisons occasionally. Incarceration doesn't serve to change a person's addictive behavior unless they WANT it to. We DID have the pleasure of knowing several who decided while incarcerated that it was in their better interests to get their lives together and get sober. By showing them by example that there IS life without drinking or drugging, a few find their way to the programs and actually have a sincere desire to change their lives.
In cases like Lindsey's it is complicated by the circle of people she is associated with both socially and in her work. People, places, and things, are an important factor in achieving and maintaining sobriety. One has to stay away from influences and people that make it harder to keep one's self sober. I was lucky to have spent time in a residential rehab for alcoholics, found NEW friends and a great sponsor to help me get started on the road to changing my life. Actually two great sponsors over a period of years. My first sponsor passed away with 20+ years of sobriety, and as I look back fondly on the times we spent together, he was by all means the very best friend I ever had in my entire life. We attended meetings together, fished, hunted, camped, and socialized together. We laughed together, cried together, rejoiced on good days and helped each other through dark days. Our common addiction, the fellowship we found around the tables of AA, and our common desire to enjoy sobriety one day at a time made us as close as any brothers might be. The biggest thing that Tom taught me was that I could do anything sober that I used to do drunk and it was much more fun doing it sober. I discovered that there were horseshoe pits other places besides the Legion, pool tables in other places besides bars, and that coca cola and coffee were just as thirst quenching as beer or brandy and water.
I am sure that it would be difficult to say the least for Lindsey to give up the Hollywood friends and Hollywood lifestyle in order to recover for the long haul. She would have to have a really strong desire to make it happen, and would have to make lifestyle changes that would be very hard for such a celebrity. I would wish her the best. The key is for her to WANT to change. Don't see much progress toward that end at present, do you? I always pray for ALL who suffer from addiction. I hope she is able to find her way BEFORE she ends up like Amy Winehouse.
May Amy rest in peace. It was my experience that a life of addiction became a life of torment, guilt, and desperation. It became a treadmill that it didn't seem one could ever get off of. At least now Amy is at peace.
At my age I consider myself about as recovered as I am going to get, haha. I simply follow the principles I learned through many years of meetings and such, and I wake up with two things first on my mind each day. I thank the Lord for allowing me another day, vertical and ventilating, and I pray for him walk with me through it and keep me well and sober. The last things on my mind when I prepare for bed at night are to thank the Lord for another day of sobriety, good health, bountiful blessings and a wonderful soul mate to share them with.
Many years ago my sponsor and myself participated in a group that held meetings at the county jail and at Auburn and Elmira prisons occasionally. Incarceration doesn't serve to change a person's addictive behavior unless they WANT it to. We DID have the pleasure of knowing several who decided while incarcerated that it was in their better interests to get their lives together and get sober. By showing them by example that there IS life without drinking or drugging, a few find their way to the programs and actually have a sincere desire to change their lives.
In cases like Lindsey's it is complicated by the circle of people she is associated with both socially and in her work. People, places, and things, are an important factor in achieving and maintaining sobriety. One has to stay away from influences and people that make it harder to keep one's self sober. I was lucky to have spent time in a residential rehab for alcoholics, found NEW friends and a great sponsor to help me get started on the road to changing my life. Actually two great sponsors over a period of years. My first sponsor passed away with 20+ years of sobriety, and as I look back fondly on the times we spent together, he was by all means the very best friend I ever had in my entire life. We attended meetings together, fished, hunted, camped, and socialized together. We laughed together, cried together, rejoiced on good days and helped each other through dark days. Our common addiction, the fellowship we found around the tables of AA, and our common desire to enjoy sobriety one day at a time made us as close as any brothers might be. The biggest thing that Tom taught me was that I could do anything sober that I used to do drunk and it was much more fun doing it sober. I discovered that there were horseshoe pits other places besides the Legion, pool tables in other places besides bars, and that coca cola and coffee were just as thirst quenching as beer or brandy and water.
I am sure that it would be difficult to say the least for Lindsey to give up the Hollywood friends and Hollywood lifestyle in order to recover for the long haul. She would have to have a really strong desire to make it happen, and would have to make lifestyle changes that would be very hard for such a celebrity. I would wish her the best. The key is for her to WANT to change. Don't see much progress toward that end at present, do you? I always pray for ALL who suffer from addiction. I hope she is able to find her way BEFORE she ends up like Amy Winehouse.
May Amy rest in peace. It was my experience that a life of addiction became a life of torment, guilt, and desperation. It became a treadmill that it didn't seem one could ever get off of. At least now Amy is at peace.
