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  1. Take a lesson I learned in the Caribbean…you can freeze them & eat it !
    Ahhhh, that’s better.

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  5. can’t is a different word than won’t. i know a lot of people who ‘won’t’ if you want to, you can. you need positive reinforcement and willpower. i am not a fan of the whole 12 steps thing. but if you find it will work for you. there is no recipe for quitting an addiction, any addiction. it’s what works for you, what gets you though your day and if you have to call all the self help numbers in the phone book, they can help you get back on the right path. it’s what they’re for. don’t feel like people in the helping professions are judging you or putting you down, they are helping you. and this is a not a battle you will fight alone. and it will be hard to do. but as my father says, “nothing that is truly worth it, is gonna happen way, you gotta work for it and know that you deserve it, and it will come.” and i wouldn’t be a bit surprised if he got that out of a book, or off a movie, but it has helped when i needed it to.

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  7. Moderation seems to be a rarely used word these days.

    The problem I have with AA is that they treat alcoholism as a ‘disease’, thus perceiving the alcoholic as a ‘victim’, like there aren’t enough of those in our society. However, it does act as a good support network so I won’t totally dismiss it. At any rate, OP, you really need help. Don’t wait.

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  8. hey mr luthor…that 12 step bullshit is what gets me, you must give yourself up to a higher power…what like 3 cubed?

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  9. The higher power doesn’t have to be god for it to work–it can simply be the small but looking-out–for-your-best-interests voice inside your head. That voice is good but weak. And if AA can provide more good voices to lend strength to that voice so that it can kick your destructive voice’s ass than it is worth trying.

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  11. I know = p…
    but to refuse some much needed help because of a technicality seems foolhardy. Redefining the ‘higher power’ allows you to gain access to the help you need without you feeling like you are required to join a cult.

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  12. i am not denying people help, but their are other avenues available…i am not speaking from personal experience. i do know folks that did find AA rather cult like

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  13. Frankly, AA and other setups like it make me uncomfortable but the bottom line is that it works for many people (I am not familiar with the other avenues). I think if you go into it being clear about what you want and need than you can just ignore any laughable or dubious stuff.
    Like holding hands and chanting…
    I’d feel really stupid having to do something like that.
    But, if its purpose is explained to me, and I agree that it is useful, I might give it a go.
    Nope. I still wouldn’t do it. = p
    But, I could try to find an alternative. It appears to be mantra-like, so meditation might substitute.
    But, if I were an addict looking for help, obviously I couldn’t do it on my own, so going into something thinking I know better than the ones who have already kicked their habit would virtually guarantee failure.

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  15. My thoughts on AA:

    The problem is that the whole concept of giving yourself up to a higher power to stop drinking is, in itself, flawed. It’s telling people that they are helpless and only with outside supernatural help can they stop drinking. That means that their sobriety is dependent on a higher power and thus the organization rather than on themselves. So when their faith in the higher power is shaken, or when they decide they want to leave the organization, they start to drink again. Fear of that happening often leads members to stay in the organization even after they want to leave. It’s manipulation in the worst possible way and frankly, cultish. This type of organization is damaging an already damaged individual. AA is a cult, steer clear.

    Why submit yourself to that when there are support groups grounded in reality that are focused on empowering YOU to gain control over YOURSELF.

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  16. there’s also some places around you can go to….
    one’s in the valley… supposed to be pretty nice there.

    and yeah, you can always make jello… you’re not technically drinking it.
    but still…
    it’s a more expensive habit than smoking if it gets hold of you.
    Likely worse for you as well though I don’t have anything to back that up.

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