1990, General Hospital, Krembs 5 psych unit. I'm tired of the same ole thing, so I decided to get honest with my psychiatrist. Dr. Shah asks me how much I drank. I told him a 12-pack a day. He asks if I thought that was alot, I said no. Then he says "do I think I'm an alcoholic?" I said yes. He tells me there's an AA meeting up the street and says I could go. I say I'll go. I had no idea what to expect. Saturday night I walked up to the church for the meeting thinking how can they help? I got to the church, there was a few people smoking outside. Some said hello. I smoked a cigarette then went inside. The meeting started and the leader that night asked if there was any new people. I raised my hand. I told them I wanted to stop drinking. They gave me chip. This chip was a metal coin they give out to newcomers. The meeting went round the table, each person telling their names and talking a bit. When it was my turn to speak, I told them I had a drinking problem and needed help. They told me to" keep coming back." I joined that group to make it my home group. I made alot of cool friends there. We were a tight knit group. Everyone cared about each other.
Fast forward 18 years. I'm still alcohol free. I'm quite proud of that. AA taught me so many things. I learned how to listen. I learned to keep it simple. I learned to take it one day at a time. I learned to trust the human spirit. I learned self-esteem. I'm grateful for AA, they saved my life. They gave me a new hope. They always told me to keep coming back.
My life changed 18 years today. It's been a journey. It hasn't been all good, but I made it.
Live, love, laugh, learn, listen,
David
