Saturday, January 14, 2017

Starting Out

26 years ago today I entered a detoxification unit in Mesa, Arizona. It was the first time in my life that I'd voluntarily gone anywhere to get sober. But I was willing to do whatever they told me if it would keep me from drinking and using drugs. I was in that much pain.

I had a lot of questions when I went in. One was about what kind of 12 step program I should attend? At this place they had Alcoholics Anonymous, Cocaine Anonymous, and Narcotics Anonymous. Since I used all of those things did that mean that I had to attend each one of them?  Boy, I'd be really busy.

How long would I have to stay there? Where would I go when I left? And there were a lot more.

But the longer I remained there, these questions more or less answered themselves. After attending different meetings I decided I would go to A.A. After all, I liked to drink and it seemed that something like 65% of A.A. members also used other kinds of substances. Mostly whatever they could get their hands on.

Another thing that attracted me to A.A. is that the speakers who came to talk about the program seemed more grounded and solid in their recovery.

After 11 days I was sent from the detox to a nearby halfway house. I was fortunate because they were willing to accept me without money. They told me they'd give me time to find work. And they were true to their word.

A new life began the day I went to the detox. And since then I've learned not only how to stay sober, but also how to enjoy life while doing so.