'Yes, there is a substitute and it is vastly more than that. It is a fellowship in Alcoholics Anonymous. . . . Life will mean something at last.
— ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS, p. 152
Life is better without alcohol. A.A. and the presence of a Higher Power keeps me sober, but the grace of God does even better; it brings service into my life. Contact with the A.A. program teaches me a new and greater understanding of what Alcoholics Anonymous is and what it does, but most importantly, it helps to show me who I am: an alcoholic who needs the constant experience of the Alcoholics Anonymous program so that I may live a life given to me by my Higher Power.'
I pretty much say this all the time.
The coolest part of sobriety is that you are given the opportunity to live two lives in one lifetime.
The first life... The drinking/drugging you. For the sake of the example we'll call it Hurricane (state your name). Just like a Hurricane you came in and destroyed everything and everyone. We've all have seen them and/or survived through one. We all know the destruction a Hurricane can do.
The second life.. is sober you. For the sake of the example we'll call it (State you name) 2.0.
This is the version of you how eventually over the course of time while working a program of recovery and growth you will eventually pull your head out of your backside
Oh you can stop drinking any knucklehead can do that. By going that route and not addressing the core problem you don't grow let alone fix the problem...in other words your DRY.
By working o program of recovery now you're addressing the core problems. You're starting to get sober. The new you, version 2.0, is coming forth, like of phoenix rising from the ground.
For those of you how are new we welcome you to the Lossid Community. There are plenty of us who have been sober for a number of years if not decades.
If you're struggling please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We are hear/here for you.
Respectfully,
Michael