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Sad and crying.....blah
(Preview)
Tonight I spent the night with my bf's family. They are a completely dysfunctional group. Filled with alcoholics. I played the hostess and we all had a lovely time as we were celebrating his dad's 77th birthday. But, I miss my family. MY OWN DYSFUNCTIONAL family! I'm crying now because all I want to...
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andromeda
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12
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2284
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I have no words
(Preview)
I posted yesterday the my husband called me at work to yell at me for talking to his sister. Today he got home from work way later than he should have and fell out of the car. He was so drunk he could hardly make it in the house. When he finally does he starts in on how I've betrayed him, I should have his back, an...
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Isthisreallife
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6
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471
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I am tired of just 'existing'
(Preview)
Have any of you felt like this? Even after being away from the xeAH, I feel like I just watch life go by. I am in college, but have little money. I did take a painting class, and I enjoy it. But I still feel like I have nothing to offer anyone...the people I live with are musicians. I don't sing, I don't play a...
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Marie71
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9
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564
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Early morning vent session
(Preview)
Morning all! I woke this morning to that maddening, obsessive thinking about the xAB. It truly is over. I need to stop looking back, but how? This man did not love me yet I stayed with him for over a year of my life. And here I am feeling so sad this morning thinking about how he's with someone else? As if he's...
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WhewWee
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8
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433
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Courage To Change 15/4
(Preview)
Today's C2C is about personal safety. It begins by reminding us that when people come to al-anon, they often have a lot of questions that they want answers to. Should I stay? Should I leave? What should I do about the financial/practical/(insert difficulty here) problem? The reading suggests that...
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MissM
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1
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217
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So frustrated
(Preview)
My Husband missed family Easter last weekend with his family. Yes missed get togethers since last 4th of July. Including our daughters birthday in December bc he was too drunk to wake up. His family knows but don't really acknowledge it. His sister called me yesterday to see if they needed to an interv...
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Isthisreallife
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3
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368
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All my recovery fell apart
(Preview)
You may remember that my ex-AH is staying with us temporarily. I've been sick so that's been an extra stress. But tonight all my hard-earned emotional health just fell apart. To make a long story short, he did several of the kind of things he used to do. For instance, he need to file an extension for h...
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Mattie
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9
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492
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I got sucked in
(Preview)
Tonight I couldn't help myself. My AH called around the time he was supposed to be home to say "oh still at the office having an important meeting" (yes like almost every night, and these meetings are always at a bar) - he swore up and down he was still at the office and not a bar. Annoyed I moved on, but then h...
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VickiR
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3
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454
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Divorced now
(Preview)
My attorney advised me to stay off social media, so I haven't been posting. Thursday, we had a mediation and reached a settlement agreement. He gets the house and $100K from my IRA. (I was always worried that he didn't have enough saved for retirement. I was right. Ha.) What did I get? I get to keep m...
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Mcat54
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9
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587
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Broke up
(Preview)
My now Xabf contacted me yesterday and I agreed we should talk in person. I went to his flat today.It turns out he hadn't contacted me for over a week since I left because he felt hurt by my leaving (not for the first time), feeling he's had enough of it. From his pov, I guess he sees me as this flighty gf who ju...
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Aline
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6
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247
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Courage to Change (C2C) 4/14/17
(Preview)
In Courage to Change today, the reading discusses 'stinking thinking'. For many of us, we develop a heightened awareness of our thoughts as we recover. In time, we are able to notice when our thinking becomes distorted. If we want to stop the negative thoughts, we have the tools taught by our progr...
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Iamhere
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2
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385
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Cathy
(Preview)
You are still helping people in your sad times Cathy. I applaud you, you are quite a woman. Thank you for what a good example you are putting forth. I can't imagine what you are going through now but there is still a certain "bright spirit" in you that will never die. I am amazed. Linsc
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LinSC
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6
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322
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AD Estrangement Continues
(Preview)
It's been awhile since I've posted, but I still try to check in here now and then. Today is my twin daughters' 30th birthday. One of my twins is my qualifier. We have been in very little contact since my AH's passing four years ago. She continues to play the victim and still blames my AH's death on my leavin...
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Green Eyes
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7
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501
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Decisions-Need Advice
(Preview)
Hello, I'm new to Al Anon. I haven't attended a meeting yet, but plan to do so soon. I have an AH, who just started drinking again. We have been married less than 3 years. I didn't know he was an alcoholic when we married. Soon into the marriage he became an active drinker, and then it all came out. He has been...
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At a crossroads
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22
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677
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I got sucked in
(Preview)
Tonight I couldn't help myself. My AH called around the time he was supposed to be home to say "oh still at the office having an important meeting" (yes like almost every night, and these meetings are always at a bar) - he swore up and down he was still at the office and not a bar. Annoyed I moved on, but then h...
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VickiR
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3
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390
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My Son
(
1 2
)
(Preview)
Dear Family I lost my beautiful son tonight. He is finally at peace. I'm lost Oh God let him be happy
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Cathyinaz
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50
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5483
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New to Al Anon - Already a Bump
(Preview)
I attended my first meeting on Monday and my second last evening. I'm hopeful that being in a supportive environment will help me work through my issues. It has been exhausting trying to keep up an appearance of normalcy. Like many families, problems weren't talked about much in my family; everyone w...
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Lee51
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12
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512
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Courage to Change (C2C) 4/13/17
(Preview)
Good morning/afternoon all - sorry for the late daily - my morning has gone different than planned! Today's reading talks about how we improve in our responses, relationships and intuition with recovery. We consider responding with kindness when we are uncertain because - why not? We also can ac...
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Iamhere
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2
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243
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Super Sad Newbie
(Preview)
My abf broke up with me. I'm not surprised. I've been trying to detach for a while, because I know this is ultimately what's best for me. I couldn't even say that I would have fallen in even the top four things that matter to him in his life. He had no future plans for us. I could tell that he didn't truly care a...
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WhewWee
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10
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478
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Detachment = coldness
(Preview)
Sorry if this is long. I am sitting here alone another night. I posted last week, but my AH and I had a particularly bad week last night, he was drinking every night and didn't come home after work a few times and then Friday he stayed out until 6:30 in the morning doing god knows what. He missed a family outi...
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VickiR
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12
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649
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My story
(Preview)
Hi all, I want to share my story (so far). I had been living with my ABF for close to 10 years and we've been together since I was 16, so for around 12 years now. We used to drink together, the two of us or in larger company, a lot and often, but I didn't see a big problem with that for a long time. At some point I re...
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Aline
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7
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495
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Powerless over everyone -ESH?
(Preview)
I am trying to apply program tools to all areas of my life; I want to improve all relationships and be the best me that I can. I am really struggling with my brother and his obvious disinterest in what is happening here with his family; meaning our elderly mother and myself. He lives out of state and comes t...
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El
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8
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294
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Alcoholism is a disease
(Preview)
I have often thought about alcoholism being a disease. I don't struggle with the label but I do struggle with all the differences of what family members go through. Let me list them: 1. Alcoholics lie about many things 2. Alcoholics keep secrets 3. Alcoholics apologize for their condition 4. ...
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wifeofalcoholic
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5
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295
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New to the program, not the disease
(Preview)
Hello all! I am 53 and have been in relationships with A's my whole life. It started with my father, then mother and step father. My first marriage was to an emotionally unavailable man (I was pregnant.) My second was to a momma's boy. My third to the very definition of an addict. I, too, tend to have an add...
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MissKid
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3
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384
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I'm hurting right now
(Preview)
I'm at a loss...I go to meetings. I listen. I apply what I hear. But sometimes circumstances .. Situations...Feel hopeless...My son's decisions do affect me..They affect my grandchild..They affect my relationship with my grandchild..It's just a vicious circle of swirling s**t...And it's very...
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Tthump
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14
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367
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Serenity obliterated today
(Preview)
I failed myself and my recovering AGf today... This was my first trip away from home since she finished her 90 day in house rehab. I failed and resorted to my old ways of tracking and questioning. I lost my focus. She was doing what she felt necessary for her recovery and all I could see was her going back to...
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Rickbrins
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17
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453
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Compulsive behavior
(Preview)
I mentioned earlier that my ex-AH is staying with us for a while to see our kid. He is a binge drinker and he is not drinking at this particular juncture - in fact he is so feeble that I would be surprised if he could get out to buy any alcohol. We don't have a car and although we are in a city, I think the neares...
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Mattie
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7
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373
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tired of living with Alcoholism
(Preview)
I've been trying to write this post on and off for more than a week but I just can't figure out exactly what the point of it is. So I keep deleting it and starting over. This time I am going to get it out. I feel like I'm starting to accept that my AH is in fact an AH and that our relationship isn't healthy. ...
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KT2015
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11
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413
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what is denial???
(Preview)
what is denial and what does it look like in daily life? detachment with love? when is it denial and when is it detachment and how do i tell the difference.
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runi
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8
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561
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4/12/17 One Day at a Time in AlAnon
(Preview)
Who of us hasn't felt despair at one time or another, especially before recovery: the feeling of hopelessness and no way out. Today's page describes despair as an absence of faith, felt when we expect solutions to come only from us. Perhaps we lost our faith, maybe we never had it. AlAnon gives us the op...
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Enigmatic
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3
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466
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can't look away. long long reflection
(Preview)
Coming out of denial is a bit like chipping off a cast. At first, little pieces come away and you can see the bits underneath. You keep chipping away, little pieces keep falling, then get bigger. Keep chipping, chipping then in a soft but fast crumble, the whole thing is revealed and its Very different t...
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a4l
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3
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297
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Now I'm the selfish jerk. Ugh.
(Preview)
HE has a court-date tomorrow morning. I've been worried about it and the high potential for jail-time, but when I spoke to him a couple of weeks ago he told me he'd spoken to a lawyer who said he was sure he could get an adjournment as he needed time to review the case etc. So I put it out of my mind until there w...
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MissM
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6
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624
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Kids and Medicine
(Preview)
I'm adjusting to a new norm of having someone who steps in where in the moment don't have the ability to always be there. I enjoy some aspects of it .. however I still have triggers that are very valid based upon the issue of dealing with someone who lacks common sense and was in an altered state of mind. T...
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SerenityRUS
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5
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257
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I am stoked!
(Preview)
What a beautiful day! I just want to share my day w you. The sun is shining on this beautiful spring day. I am so excited to get out & enjoy the sunshine. We have had a long winter & it is time to get out finally! I am so grateful for anything positive that happens to me. It is my God-given gift to share t...
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Hoot Nanny
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4
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394
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Sometimes I complicate it
(Preview)
Al-Anon provides me with simple tools to make my life more manageable. But sometimes I make it complicated, by overthinking a process, a step or a slogan making them complex and confusing. I get stuck in my head and I'm unable to move forward in my recovery. This is when I have to remind myself to "keep it...
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_bunny_
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4
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453
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my anxiety response to the anger, help!
(Preview)
So yesterday I found myself in a mess of my own doing. Wallowing and such... I quickly recognized and tried to change my attitude around. Jump to today. Sundays are always the hardest. I wake up with anxiety wondering if my A was going to follow thru on plans and promises he has made to the boys. Today is no...
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pumkin26
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21
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589
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Apr 11 hope for Today
(Preview)
Good morning Everyone: Today's reading is about the influence of alcoholism on our feelings. Do we try to draw attention to ourselves? Do we avoid having attention on ourselves? Do we try to control and manage our feelings? Personally there are two points that stand out to me in today's reading- one...
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yanksfan51
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2
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304
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The Insanity of the Disease....
(Preview)
We all know, experience and hear how cunning, baffling and powerful this disease is.....For me, yesterday was an interesting day. I say interesting instead of maddening, sad, crazy, insane as it was all that and then some. I'll be as brief as I can - nobody likes to read long, long posts. My oldest so...
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Iamhere
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32
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846
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This isn't the roller coaster I want to ride
(Preview)
This is my first post, I've read many of yours and hope I'm following group guidelines. I've been to two meetings the last two weeks after avoiding them for months. I suppose I don't want to admit that this is my new normal, that this did indeed happen in my life. I have an AH who was mostly sober for 13 years...
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Foomamapop
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5
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253
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Awareness,acceptance,action and people pleasing
(Preview)
Today I'd like to share on the 3 As and people pleasing,and jade. ive come to realize that I am still a people pleaser even when sick,and then jump to jadeing ,justifieing defending and explaining as to why I can't do some things when I'm sick,as in not get out around others to spread my virus,or just real...
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lookingup
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8
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328
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Arguing with a fence post ..
(Preview)
I seem to attract difficult people who have little to do with me in all reality. They always seem to be on the outskirts of my life. The good news is I am learning that trying to talk rationally to some of them is like arguing with a fence post .. and as someone very close and wise recently pointed out to me ....
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SerenityRUS
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3
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399
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Nervous...
(Preview)
Briefly, my A is being discharged today, after weeks in detox followed by in-patient. He'll be doing out-patient at the same facility, but we pick him up tonight after that. My son is worried...rightly so...about "who" is coming home. And you know what? So am I. I've had my ups and downs this who...
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ForwardMotion
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3
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373
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A wolf in sheep's clothing
(Preview)
Today my A ex=bf called me and started talking about how I do not want to see him. Last night he was depressed and called me. I actually have not said that I did not want to see him, I just do not want him spending the night at my house. He does not drive and he is expecting to be able to get someone to drop him off a...
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shrnp
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4
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264
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4/10/17 Courage to Change
(Preview)
Today's author notes how we may view ourselves as victims, especially as it relates to the effects of the disease of alcoholism. Work in Steps 4 and 8 can help us see and address where we, too, have caused harm to others. This is an opportunity for balance, for not swinging from one extreme to the other by...
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Enigmatic
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4
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420
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How we teach others to treat us ..
(Preview)
One thing that keeps coming back to the forefront of my mind is how I teach others to treat me. The biggest thing I ask myself is what would I say to my best friend if she came to me telling me the same story? Since finding Alanon it is easier to be gentle with myself and ask harder questions in terms of if thi...
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SerenityRUS
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9
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570
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Oh the Anger....
(Preview)
WOW. I've been on the receiving end of my AH's anger before (not physically, just emotionally and verbally) but DANG, he's on a new level this weekend. Maybe it's because he can't drink and he knows it. He's on his last leg at work and his oldest child refuses to even speak to him since he missed her bir...
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SoLost
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2
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377
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Did You Ever Consider This?
(Preview)
My AH is still actively drinking. Not pass out drunk anymore, but the kind where he tries to hide it, all the while promising he will get help. He never follows through on that. I have moved on to ACCEPTANCE, b/c I have to.But because of his continued usage, he health is deteriorating. He has some decent...
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PosiesandPuppies
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6
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434
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Odat Reading (4-9-2017)
(Preview)
The ODA T reading for April 9 talks about being in a crisis that lasts for what seems like an eternity. When we are involved with these difficult experiences, we can find no escape and the problem occupies our thoughts continually. This is the time that we must remind ourselves that we need to recal...
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hotrod
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6
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389
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Feeling like a jerk
(Preview)
So this weekend, hubby and I need to call the A (hubby's brother) and the A's fiancee and let them both know very clearly that we will not be paying A's bills, handling his paperwork, finding new housing for him, or all the other myriad things that A has chosen not to take care of while he drinks and gambles...
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makebelieve11
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6
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427
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Being and staying sick
(Preview)
ive heard a lot of folks talking about being sick all the time around my town,with upper respiratory infections,stomach problems. same with me,now it's eco me a concern of mine, i live in a small town,old house. a year ago,a man had to go up into my attic,(very small crawl space), when he came down he imm...
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lookingup
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4
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423
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the straw breaking my back
(Preview)
in despair. my partner/fiance has been sober 5 months. yesterday he broke into my phone and read my journal. we've been down this road before. previously he broke into my computer, put in spyware, altered my contacts, then wrote to my ex boyfriend to try to replace some information he had deleted. he w...
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Junenine
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13
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612
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stuff
(Preview)
I had the most ridiculous conversation with my drunk mother. When she dies, she wants champagne and flowers and she doesn't ever want to be buried with the spiders and the slimy things and yuk. Then she spoke of my death like it's going to happen next week. She asked me to plan my tombstone. What do I want i...
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MissM
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3
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475
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Financial advice please!
(Preview)
I am asking for help here, I have seen messages from other members talking about minimizing the terrible financial toll of an alcoholic spouse and I need some guidance!
My husband has been out of control with money for a while - pretty sure he is racking up a personal line of credit at the moment. Is it w...
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VickiR
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7
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488
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Something is bugging me
(Preview)
Last Staurday, the people I live with went to a wedding. As some of you know the husband's mom lives here and has dementia. In lieu of rent I take care of her while they are gone out to work, dinner, etc. The wedding was at 5. But that morning, they both got up showered and got ready and the woman informed me...
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Marie71
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7
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501
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Tonight, I did things differently
(Preview)
This is my first time posting. I've only been to 2 meetings, but I could immediately tell I was in the right place. My 32 year old brother and my father are both alcoholics. My brother lives with my parents (major enablers) and recently I've been working on my own boundaries - taking more space from them....
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Bon17
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3
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396
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Courage to Change (C2C) 4/7/17
(Preview)
Today's reading discusses humor, expectations and right-sizing our life and recovery. It gives an example of a member anticipating speaking at a meeting. She envisions a large group of serious minded members, in a perfect location with a perfect format. She of course gives a marvelous share co...
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Iamhere
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3
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377
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Anxiety!!!
(Preview)
My little brother was a wonderful person, and an alcoholic. He passed away suddenly last November. He had lived with my alcoholic parents and took care of a lot for them...cleaning, yard work, etc. I have talked to my parents every day since he passed away, and I get very anxious when I call and leave a m...
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katiebug76
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9
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707
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Learning, forgetting, relearning...
(Preview)
So for those of you who read my first post, you'll know that I've been in panic-mode a bit after the last contact with my A who is currently in rehab. While in intensive detox, he was communicating with me daily. But when he transitioned into rehab they cut off all his contact. A very combative phone cal...
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ForwardMotion
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1
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401
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Today was a day for resentment
(Preview)
Before I posted this, I was reading other posts, trying to absorb some ESH. So thank you all for posting... it helps more than you know... or maybe you all DO know! Why was this day a "resentment" day? Mainly b/c I get so sick and tired of my AH focusing on himself all. the. time. My AH works very weird hour...
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PosiesandPuppies
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5
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444
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Explaining ah is leaving to a 9 year old
(Preview)
Hi everyone! I was wondering if anyone has any advice on how to tell kids. My daughter is 9 and her biological father has been terrible with her and she thinks of her step dad as her best daddy. However, he is a alcoholic that just can't stay dry longer than a couple of months. He moved out before and she begg...
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Helpangel
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6
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400
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