Alcoholism is a UNIQUE DISEASE in that it is two
fold. We have a physical allergy which ensures that each and every time
we put alcohol into our system, we'll get sick, we'll get drunk, we'll
get into all kinds of trouble. But more importantly we have a mental
obsession which ensures that even though we don't want to drink, sooner
or later our mind will tell us it's ok, we'll put the alcohol into our
system, we'll trigger the physical allergy and we'll get drunk again.
Dr. Silkworth, the chief medical benefactor of AA suggests
that the thought process of the mind has to be transformed. The thought
process of the mind of an alcoholic must have a psychic change, and this
change is essential and must be complete. As Dr. Silkworth states "on
the other hand and strange as this may seem, once a psychic change has
occurred the very same person who seemed doomed, who has so many
problems they despaired of ever solving them is easily able to control
their desire for alcohol, the only effort necessary being that required
to follow a few simple rules."
The transformation of
thought that is necessary to recover from a seemingly hopeless state of
mind and body occurs through the grace of God received by the practice
of the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Having
admitted complete defeat, having admitted to our innermost selves that
we are alcoholic, understanding that our human power could not overcome
our alcoholism, having begun to trust in God as a solution to our
problems we were now at Step Three as "I decided to turn my will and my
life over to the care of God." Our will is our thoughts and our life is
our behavior as we always think before we act. "God I offer myself to
Thee, to build with me and to do with me as Thou wilt, relieve me of the
bondage of self that I may better do thy will. Take away from me my
difficulties so that victory over them will bear witness to Thy power,
Thy love and Thy way of life. May I do Thy will always.
A simple solution to a complicated and UNIQUE DISEASE
Having been sober in AA for many years, it is now more important than ever to underscore that the essence of my alcoholism and of my recovery is one and the same - spiritual! My thirst for alcohol was, in reality, the "spiritual thirst of my being for wholeness." Sitting in a bar with music and lights and action may not have appeared to have been a spiritual problem but that is exactly what it was for me. I was trying and plying to revive my unawakened spirit through drinking. It didn't work then and it will never work for an alcoholic like me. My spiritual intervention came in the form of The Twelve Steps and The Big Book which precisely outlined both the problem and the solution. In that process, I was introduced to The Power Within me to guide me to my spirit and to awaken me to its love. What makes alcoholism unique in me is the understanding that the solution to the problem is a matter of having my always-present spirit awakened. It is The Spirit and only The Spirit that moves me.
ReplyDeleteMichael The Third Step of Alcoholics Anonymous is where we decide, a final choice, to turn our will and our life over to the care of God. The beginning of the transformation of thought that must to occur to awaken as you say "my always present spirit."...Thank you...Armand
DeleteI’ve been stuck in a blank spot in which, even though I didn’t go so far as drinking or using, the spiritual malady that this disease is procured the inevitable separation from the Spirit (surely caused by me pushing it away). This leaves me in an empty (blank) place - where I’ve not only reverted back to thinking like a completely different person (the addict) again, but taken control over my mind and allowed a void to cloud and drain out everything meaningful. What I realized after coming out of my last blank spot, which I did through prayer and focusing on others, is that I in fact got to come out. The place I was in is where some people die, never getting a chance to reboot and breath in the air of God again. The simplest, clearest way to live and thrive is with God, and to be forsaken that chance because of this disease is another reason why it is so unique. It has the ability to take away as much as it does give us another chance at something better. Only those of us who live through the dark actually get to see the light. I am grateful to be one of those.
ReplyDeleteCaitlin The transformation of thought that must occur if we are to recover from a seemingly hopeless state of mind and body is that our thought process can no longer be propelled by our human nature but rather by the will of God through inspiration. This is the decision which is made in the Third Step. The fruit of that decision, leading a life directed by the thoughts of God, occurs in the back half of the Eleventh Step where we are praying only for God's will for us and the power to carry that out. Loved when you wrote "the simplest, clearest way to live and to thrive is with God." There we will maximize our nature and become the human being we were created to be...Thank you...Armand.
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