THE INTERACTIVE SUPPORT GROUPS IN RECOVERY

No advice or discussion would be complete without offering a possible solution and Alcoholics Anonymous has done just that. I recommend therefore that persons interested in the recovery programme of A.A.go to the link for information about this very successful programme.http://www.aa.org/

Back in the early '70s I lived next to the home of a family whose Father was one of the worst drunks I'd ever seen. Not having been exposed to a drinking culture before then this experience was definitely a learning one for me. When he fell headfirst off a building and landed on a piece of lumber with a protruding nail, it was the culmination of a series of drinking disasters that had created tragedies for his family. I went to his funeral saddened by the fact that he had left several young children behind. Incidentally, he had asked me to help him work on the building he was constructing while I was home on vacation from school.

Ironically it was not long before I too found myself in an almost similar predicament after being involved in a disastrous relationship which left me reeling and holding on to new found friends for support, friends whose only advice was to " forget the woman and have a good time, after all you are only young once". Fortunately for me and those around me it did not take me too long to tire of the wasted time and money being spent on a useless pastime and less than five years later I decided to chuck it in and revert to the person I once was, a bit older, and hopefully a bit wiser.

Let us take a look at an option that can assist the individual who may have found himself in a condition where the love for mood and mind altering chemicals/substances  left his family stressed out and how you can assist before he/she too succumbs to a similar fate as my neighbor. I ask that you share this post with a friend or family member who may be experiencing a substance abuse problem.

THE DECISION

By the grace of God you have reached the point where you are sick and tired of being sick and tired and have decided that you will do something about your addiction and you will begin now, today!

The decision to seek help was the best decision you have ever made since you became an adult because it is the one decision that will change your life forever. Come what may you will do all within your power to make that decision work in your best interest.

Waiting expectantly for someone to give you the support when you need it is not going to happen as experience has shown that most people do not understand how you feel or what makes you tick. In fact they much prefer to criticize or condemn you rather than try to understand and offer you moral support.

However other persons in recovery have testified that support groups have worked for them even after medical intervention had failed to help them remain permanently clean and sober with the result that they have not had a relapse since they began working the steps as recommended by fellow members.

Is there a support group nearby or do you know of anyone from your community who has a similar problem and may be dealing with it successfully? If there is a group, make that decision now to become a member of the group. You are a member if you say so.

If there are no groups nearby, call up a friend or two and invite them to a discussion on the formation of a support group. Have a family member who wants to help you assist you in getting a venue prepared. You will need a table, several chairs, and slogans to remind you of your resolve. These are some slogans that can help.


Easy does it

There go I but for the Grace of God

One day at a time

Live and let live


Attraction rather than promotion


THE SERENITY PRAYER

God grant me the Serenity
to accept the things I cannot change
Courage to change the things I can
and Wisdom to know the difference

At that meeting explain what you have learned in the Institution meetings you have attended and what you are trying to do. Get a consensus on how often you will meet, how long a meeting should last (an hour and a half is normally sufficient), the time and venue, who will chair the meeting and who will arrange the room, who will prepare the refreshments.

Now it is time to begin a new journey for that prize; an improvement in your personal, family, social and financial life.

In this document I will deal with the actual format in conducting a meeting and some of the guidelines you may wish to follow if your group is to succeed.

Experience has shown that individuals who had taken up the challenge of forming a group from among their peers were more likely to sustain their recovery as they were able to maintain their focus when others could not.

I encourage you therefore to think seriously about forming a new group in your neighborhood, and don’t hesitate to write for free advice if you are uncertain about an issue.

God Bless and May He grant you the success you so richly deserve.

Eric

HOW TO CONDUCT A MEETING
(Recommended Format)



N.B.: Meetings are either by way of

1. Testimonies where individuals share their experience, strength and hope with each other.

2. Discussion on some aspect of recovery with a moderator being used to manage the time frame within which the discussion would end.

Remember no answer is incorrect as the individual can only share what is appropriate for him/her at that point in time.



1. INTRODUCTION OF CHAIRPERSON


Welcome to the …………………Group for persons who are in recovery. My name is ------------------- (First name only) and I will be your Chairperson for today’s session.

Today’s meeting will be a --------------------------meeting.


Before we begin today’s meeting there are some simple guidelines we ask everyone to follow for our own protection.

Some of us are trying to kick the habit of smoking cigarettes/ tobacco and we would appreciate no smoking on or around the compound as we do not wish to be tempted to have a relapse.

Weapons, alcohol or illegal drugs and/or paraphernalia including wrapping paper are not to be used or brought into the compound before or after a meeting.

We encourage those of you who are in active use to visit a medical practitioner for a referral to a treatment provider who will help you make the initial adjustment before you re-enter our room. One of our members can help you with the name of a Specialist in your field. You may stay though if you have no illegal items on your person.

Finally we ask that you do not interrupt or speak while someone is on the floor making a contribution. We practice respect for each other’s views and this helps to encourage others to stay in these rooms and to keep their focus on recovery.


2. THE LORD’S PRAYER.
(OPTIONAL)

Our Father who art in Heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy Kingdom come,
Thy will be done on Earth
As it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our trespasses
As we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil,
For thine is the kingdom
The power and the glory,
For ever an ever …Amen.





3. RECOMMENDED READING


WHAT IS AN INTERACTIVE GROUP

An interactive group is a support group where members share freely with each other and act as a support for persons who are in recovery from an Addictive Personality Disorder.

Focus groups have been proven to very successful for many years and are patterned from the twelve steps recovery program of Alcoholics Anonymous.

We are individuals who have successfully overcome our Disorder in spite of everyone being convinced that we would have destroyed ourselves and others in the process.

Now that we are in recovery we meet regularly to share our experiences, strength and hope with each other in order to provide guidance and support.

We are not affiliated to any other group, organization or institution and do not engage in any fund-raising activities, or assist anyone with funding, jobs, legal or medical matters.

Our main goal is to return our lives to normalcy, and this we do by sharing the experiences that led us to seek help, what we did in order to recover, and what we are doing now to maintain our recovery.

Any two or more persons who meet regularly to share their experience, strength and hope with each other may call themselves a group.

All we ask is that you refrain from discussing with anyone- who you see here or what you hear here, and that you abstain from all mood and mind altering substances including tobacco before, during and after our meetings.
This is to protect those of us who may be trying to kick the habit and will be in danger of getting an urge to use, from which we may never recover.

We also ask that you respect our desire to have a meeting that is free from controversy so we do not interrupt nor criticize another person’s contribution neither do we use obscene language as not everyone feels comfortable with it.

Membership in this group is free; we take no minutes, have no membership rules, fees or dues. We pay our own way and may choose to collect a donation from members- only to defray expenses so that we can maintain a meeting place or to provide a snack during our ten minutes break.

Anyone may join us regardless of age, race, religion, sexual preferences, or political persuasion.

Last but not least, we do not encourage mixed meetings as experiences at other groups have shown that this often leads to serious relationship problems which can cause relapses.



4 THE TWELVE STEPS RECOVERY PROGRAMME (Adapted)
with permission from Alcoholics Anonymous


1. We admitted that we were powerless over an addictive personality, that our lives had become unmanageable.

2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.

4. Took a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

5. Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

6. Were entirely ready to have God remove these defects of character.

7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.

8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.

9. Made direct amends to such persons wherever possible except when to do so would injure them or others.

10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.

11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.

12. Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.



5. INVITED GUEST

(If you have invited a guest speaker you may now introduce him or her.)


6. BREAK

(You should thank your guest at this point so that he or she can leave.)


7. RESUMPTION OF MEETING


8. TESTIMONIES FROM MEMBERS IN RECOVERY


9. CLOSE OF MEETING

Our next meeting will be held on………….
We invite you to bring a friend.


Let’s end by together repeating the Serenity Prayer

THE SERENITY PRAYER

God grant us the serenity
To accept the things we cannot change
Courage to change the things we can
And the wisdom to know the difference






REMEMBER YOUR GROUP’S ANNIVERSARY



Date of our Group’s first meeting____________________________

Venue_________________________________________

__________________________________________

__________________________________________

Number of persons present_____________

Name of First Chairperson________________________

NAMES OF FIRST MEMBERS



If you have successfully started a group please let me know. Write in confidence to eric_ribeiro1@yahoo.com