Alcoholics Anonymous Mallorca http://www.aamallorca.org Contact us in AA Majorca if you have a desire to stop drinking Thu, 02 Feb 2012 21:09:58 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Am I an alcoholic? http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/11/am-i-an-alcoholic/ http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/11/am-i-an-alcoholic/#comments Mon, 07 Nov 2011 10:32:41 +0000 Jonas http://www.aamallorca.org/?p=5483 Only you can decide whether you want to give AA a try; whether you think it can help you.

Here is a direct link to the chapter “More about alcoholism” from The Big Book of AA.

For a better understanding of the alcoholic mind, PLEASE read this text:

Chapter 3: [...]]]> Only you can decide whether you want to give AA a try; whether you think it can help you.

Here is a direct link to the chapter “More about alcoholism” from The Big Book of AA.

For a better understanding of the alcoholic mind, PLEASE read this text:

Chapter 3: “More about alcoholism”

If you find this chapter helpful, do not hesitate to read the rest of the book.

“Most of us have been unwilling to admit we were real alcoholics. No person likes to think he is bodily and mentally different from his fellows. Therefore, it is not surprising that our drinking careers have been characterized by countless vain attempts to prove we could drink like other people.

The idea that somehow, someday he will control and enjoy his liquor drinking is the great obsession of every abnormal drinker. The persistence of this illusion is astonishing. Many pursue it into the gates of insanity or death.”

From “More about alcoholism”, The Big Book of AA

Reprinted with permission of AA World Service.

]]> http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/11/am-i-an-alcoholic/feed/ 0 To wives / husbands http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/03/wife-husband-alcoholic-read/ http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/03/wife-husband-alcoholic-read/#comments Sun, 27 Mar 2011 09:15:50 +0000 Jonas http://www.aamallorca.org/?p=4978 Here is a direct link to the chapter “To wives” from The Big Book of AA.

For a better understanding of your alcoholic spouse, PLEASE read this text:

Chapter 8: “To wives”

If you find this chapter helpful, do not hesitate to read the rest of the book.

“For some reason, [...]]]> Here is a direct link to the chapter “To wives” from The Big Book of AA.

For a better understanding of your alcoholic spouse, PLEASE read this text:

Chapter 8: “To wives”

If you find this chapter helpful, do not hesitate to read the rest of the book.

“For some reason, we alcoholics seem to have the gift of picking out the world’s finest women. Why they should be subjected to the tortures we inflict upon them, I cannot explain.”

From “Doctor Bob’s nightmare”, The Big Book of AA

Reprinted with permission of AA World Service.

]]> http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/03/wife-husband-alcoholic-read/feed/ 0 To employers http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/03/employer-alcoholic-read/ http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/03/employer-alcoholic-read/#comments Sun, 27 Mar 2011 08:13:46 +0000 Jonas http://www.aamallorca.org/?p=5009 Here is a direct link to the chapter “”To employers” from The Big Book of AA.

For a better understanding of your alcoholic employee, PLEASE read this text:

Chapter 10: “To employers”

If you find this chapter helpful, do not hesitate to read the rest of the book.

“Today I own [...]]]> Here is a direct link to the chapter “”To employers” from The Big Book of AA.

For a better understanding of your alcoholic employee, PLEASE read this text:

Chapter 10: “To employers”

If you find this chapter helpful, do not hesitate to read the rest of the book.

“Today I own a little company. There are two alcoholic employees, who produce as much as five normal salesmen. But why not? They have a new attitude, and they have been saved from a living death. I have enjoyed every moment spent in getting them straightened out.”

From “To employers”, The Big Book of AA

Reprinted with permission of AA World Service.

]]> http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/03/employer-alcoholic-read/feed/ 0 Convincing Mr. Hyde http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/02/convincing-mr-hyde/ http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/02/convincing-mr-hyde/#comments Tue, 08 Feb 2011 10:10:52 +0000 Jonas http://www.aamallorca.org/?p=5326 “Even then, as we hew away, peace and joy will still elude us. That’s the place so many of us AA oldsters have come to. And it’s a hell of a spot, literally. How shall our unconscious—from which so many of our fears, compulsions and phony aspirations still stream —be brought into line with what [...]]]>

“Even then, as we hew away, peace and joy will still elude us. That’s the place so many of us AA oldsters have come to. And it’s a hell of a spot, literally. How shall our unconscious—from which so many of our fears, compulsions and phony aspirations still stream —be brought into line with what we actually believe, know and want! How to convince our dumb, raging and hidden “Mr. Hyde” becomes our main task.”

Regular attendance at meetings, serving and helping others is the recipe that many have tried and found to be successful. Whenever I stray from these basic principles, my old habits resurface and my old self also comes back with all its fears and defects. The ultimate goal of each AA member is permanent sobriety, achieved One Day at a Time.

Reprinted with permission of AA World Service

]]> http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/02/convincing-mr-hyde/feed/ 0 Rescued by surrendering http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/02/rescued-surrendering/ http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/02/rescued-surrendering/#comments Thu, 03 Feb 2011 08:46:26 +0000 Jonas http://www.aamallorca.org/?p=5323 “Characteristic of the so-called typical alcoholic is a narcissistic egocentric core, dominated by feelings of omnipotence, intent on maintaining at all costs its inner integrity. . . . Inwardly the alcoholic brooks no control from man or God. He, the alcoholic, is and must be the master of his destiny. He will fight to the [...]]]>

“Characteristic of the so-called typical alcoholic is a narcissistic egocentric core, dominated by feelings of omnipotence, intent on maintaining at all costs its inner integrity. . . . Inwardly the alcoholic brooks no control from man or God. He, the alcoholic, is and must be the master of his destiny. He will fight to the end to preserve that position.”

The great mystery is: “Why do some of us die alcoholic deaths, fighting to preserve the ‘independence’ of our ego, while others seem to sober up effortlessly in AA?”

Help from a Higher Power, the gift of sobriety, came to me when an otherwise unexplained desire to stop drinking coincided with my willingness to accept the suggestions of the men and women of AA I had to surrender, for only by reaching out to God and my fellows could I be rescued.

Reprinted with permission of AA World Service

 

]]> http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/02/rescued-surrendering/feed/ 0 Freedom from guilt http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/freedom-guilt/ http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/freedom-guilt/#comments Thu, 27 Jan 2011 11:27:17 +0000 Jonas http://www.aamallorca.org/?p=5319 Where other people were concerned, we had to drop the word “blame” from our speech and thought.

When I become willing to accept my own power-lessness, I begin to realize that blaming myself for all the trouble in my life can be an ego trip back into hopelessness. Asking for help and listening deeply [...]]]>

Where other people were concerned, we had to drop the word “blame” from our speech and thought.

When I become willing to accept my own power-lessness, I begin to realize that blaming myself for all the trouble in my life can be an ego trip back into hopelessness. Asking for help and listening deeply to the messages inherent in the Steps and Traditions of the program make it possible to change those attitudes which delay my recovery. Before joining AA, I had such a desire for approval from people in powerful positions that I was willing to sacrifice myself, and others, to gain a foothold in the world. I invariably came to grief. In the program I find true friends who love, understand, and care to help me learn the truth about myself. With the help of the Twelve Steps, I am able to build a better life, free of guilt and the need for self-justification.

Reprinted with permission of AA World Service

]]> http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/freedom-guilt/feed/ 0 Getting involved http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/involved/ http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/involved/#comments Mon, 24 Jan 2011 12:06:06 +0000 Jonas http://www.aamallorca.org/?p=5316 There is action and more action. “Faith without works is dead.”… To be helpful is our only aim.

I understand that service is a vital part of recovery but I often wonder, “What can I do?” Simply start with what I have today! I look around to see where there is a need. Are [...]]]>

There is action and more action. “Faith without works is dead.”… To be helpful is our only aim.

I understand that service is a vital part of recovery but I often wonder, “What can I do?” Simply start with what I have today! I look around to see where there is a need. Are the ashtrays full? Do I have hands and feet to empty them? Suddenly I’m involved! The best speaker may make the worst coffee; the member who’s best with newcomers may be unable to read; the one willing to clean up may make a mess of the bank account—yet every one of these people and jobs is essential to an active group. The miracle of service is this: when I use what I have, I find there is more available to me than I realized before.

Reprinted with permission of AA World Service

]]> http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/involved/feed/ 0 It doesn’t happen overnight http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/happen-overnight/ http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/happen-overnight/#comments Thu, 13 Jan 2011 11:10:28 +0000 Jonas http://www.aamallorca.org/?p=5313 We are not cured of alcoholism. What we really have is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition.

The most common alcoholic fantasy seems to be: “If I just don’t drink, everything will be all right.” Once the fog cleared for me, I saw—for the first time—the mess my life [...]]]>

We are not cured of alcoholism. What we really have is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition.

The most common alcoholic fantasy seems to be: “If I just don’t drink, everything will be all right.” Once the fog cleared for me, I saw—for the first time—the mess my life had become. I had family, work, financial and legal problems; I was hung up on old religious ideas; there were sides of my character to which I was inclined to stay blind because they easily could have convinced me that I was hopeless and pushed me toward escape again. The Big Book guided me in resolving all of my problems. But it didn’t happen overnight—and certainly not automatically—with no effort on my part. I need always to recognize God’s mercy and blessings that shine through any problem I have to face.

Reprinted with permission of AA World Service

]]> http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/happen-overnight/feed/ 0 Accepting our present circumstances http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/accepting-present-circumstances/ http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/accepting-present-circumstances/#comments Wed, 12 Jan 2011 12:52:00 +0000 Jonas http://www.aamallorca.org/?p=5310 Our very first problem is to accept our present circumstances as they are, ourselves as we are, and the people about us as they are. This is to adopt a realistic humility without which no genuine advance can even begin. Again and again, we shall need to return to that unflattering point of departure. This [...]]]>

Our very first problem is to accept our present circumstances as they are, ourselves as we are, and the people about us as they are. This is to adopt a realistic humility without which no genuine advance can even begin. Again and again, we shall need to return to that unflattering point of departure. This is an exercise in acceptance that we can profitably practice every day of our lives. Provided we strenuously avoid turning these realistic surveys of the facts of life into unrealistic alibis for apathy or defeatism, they can be the sure foundation upon which increased emotional health and therefore spiritual progress can be built.

When I am having a difficult time accepting people, places or events, I turn to this passage and it relieves me of many an underlying fear regarding others, or situations life presents me. The thought allows me to be human and not perfect, and to regain my peace of mind.

Reprinted with permission of AA World Service

]]> http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/accepting-present-circumstances/feed/ 0 The 100% Step http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/5304/ http://www.aamallorca.org/2011/01/5304/#comments Tue, 11 Jan 2011 20:34:58 +0000 Jonas http://www.aamallorca.org/?p=5304 Only Step One, where we made the 100 percent admission we were powerless over alcohol, can be practiced with absolute perfection.

Long before I was able to obtain sobriety in AA, I knew without a doubt that alcohol was killing me, yet even with this knowledge, I was unable to stop drinking. So, when faced [...]]]>

Only Step One, where we made the 100 percent admission we were powerless over alcohol, can be practiced with absolute perfection.

Long before I was able to obtain sobriety in AA, I knew without a doubt that alcohol was killing me, yet even with this knowledge, I was unable to stop drinking. So, when faced with Step One, I found it easy to admit that I lacked the power to not drink. But was my life unmanageable? Never! Five months after coming into AA, I was drinking again and wondered why. Later on, back in AA and smarting from my wounds, I learned that Step One is the only Step that can be taken 100%. And that the only way to take it 100% is to take 100% of the Step. That was many twenty-four hours ago and I haven’t had to take Step One again.

Reprinted with permission of AA World Service

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