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Post Info TOPIC: step 1


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step 1
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Im going to be going through my sponsees step 1 today, any advice?



-- Edited by dboy on Tuesday 28th of June 2016 05:49:04 AM

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Welcome to MiP Dboy.

I believe , if you start at th "WE" bit . When I got here , it was all ME , ME , Me.

Collectively , you told me . "You Alone , have to do this . But , you don't have to do it alone"

The 1st of Many paradoxes in "OUR" programme.

Weeks after I got here . I was sitting in a steps meeting at MARS . Yep Mars . Stands for-

Marrickville Addictions Referral services . Marrickville is a suburb in Sydney . Australia.

Five people sitting around a table Every Wednesday night at 6:00PM doing "stepswork" , it took us 18 months,

to go through the steps . But for you , with step One -

We - meaning Us . not me me me.

Admitted - we surrendered to this programme . NO . WE did Not give up.

We - Us again

Were  - I could Not do this on my own , but We CAN.

Powerless - were spiritually bankrupt , and a power greater than ourselves could restore Us.

over alcohol - booze had us beaten , it Had robbed us , spiritually , mentally , physically & emotionally.

that our lives had become unmanageable - we had been under attack from a malady of mind body & spirit.

Whenever we picked up that 1st drink . We could not stop.

A Higher Power , gave us a 2nd chance . Led us to a group . That Had Recovered.

YES . WE , could Live a Normal life , without alcohol.

I Hope this Is of help.



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John R


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thank you so much for that, yes that helps alot, look at me being all like "I'm" doing this, "im" going through step one. What does Mip stand for?



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Miracles in Progress.

Yes Dboy . WE Are . Miracles In Progress.



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John R


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Welcome to MIP dboy, ... keep one thing in mind right now ... 'TOTAL HONESTY' ... I lied to myself for so many years and hated the idea of admitting I had a problem with anything ... but I did ... until I admitted it, I was lost ...



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'Those who leave everything in God's hand will eventually see God's hand in everything.'



MIP Old Timer

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This is the Step I kept tripping over.



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For me, the issue is not merely that once we take the first drink a craving gets triggered and we are no longer in control over our drinking. The most important aspect of step one for me is understanding the insanity of the first drink - It is the series of insane alcoholic thoughts which can go through our heads BEFORE we actually take that first drink, and which we will listen to and act upon if we don't have the tools of AA, that tell us that it will be okay to take that first drink. That this time will be different. It is the insane idea that we will somehow be able to control and enjoy our drinking, when all evidence has proven long ago that we cannot, and when all evidence has proven long ago that this isn't even anything which ought to be considered any kind of sane 'goal' anyway.

It is the insane obsession to keep trying to drink successfully, rather than accepting the fact that we should be trying to NOT drink successfully.

Until I understood, fully, this process of the insanity of the first drink, and what the solution was in the rest of the steps, I was at constant risk of falling victim to it at any time.

The analogy of 'the problem jaywalker' in Chapter 3 is a good example of this type of insanity.



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thanks everybody, it went well. Thanks for all your contributions.

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I try to keep it simple myself, at least that's what I tell my sponsee's.

Once I accepted the powerlessness concept as outlined in step 1, it was easy to maintain a quality of life from that point forward.

I had to relinquish 'all' control (first) and then focus my efforts on 'maintaining' a sober lifestyle. I accomplish that feat by attending meetings.

Every time I step through the doors of an A.A. meeting, I'm admitting to myself and others that I'm still powerless over this disease.

If I stop attending meetings at any point in my sobriety, God forbid, then I'm exercising my free will all over again, and we know where that can lead.   

So, I keep attendance high  and my participation rate higher. It seems to solve that never ending battle of self will and plausible deniability, at least it has for me. 

I hope this helps. 



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Mr.David


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leavetherest wrote:

This is the Step I kept tripping over.


 Put it in writing.

So you'll have evidence that you actually did do it.

Show me your written work and I'll tell you why you relapse. :)

 

Marc

 

 



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I don't remember anywhere in the Big Book that says Step 1 has anything to do with admitting being powerless over alcohol and.... "put it in writing so that you'll have evidence that you actually did it and show your written work to another alcoholic so they can tell you why you relapse". I already know why I have relapsed in the past. I drank again.

Thanks for caring just the same though :)

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Step 1 is for me an understanding deep inside of myself that I am well and truly powerless over alcohol and that my life was indeed unmanageable by me.

Everything that had happened in my life up to that point reinforced both of those ideas.

When I talk to someone about Step 1, I talk about my life and the examples of powerlessness with respect to alcohol, and about the unmanageability of life the way I had been living it. By sharing about what happened to me, I can only hope that it helps someone else see it in themselves (if it's there).



-- Edited by jhamlett on Saturday 16th of July 2016 09:32:35 PM

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