Narcotics Anonymous Message Board

erasmus · erasmus

I've got 5 months and some change clean time, and I'm getting married next summer. We want to have a dry wedding, but there's some resistance from other family members. We think we've got it settled, especially as the park where we'd like to host the reception BBQ doesn't allow alcohol. Just wonder...

Dave R · Dave R

"We learn that a simple, loving hug can make all the difference in the world..."Basic Text, p. 91=Perhaps there have been times in our recovery when we were close to someone who was in great pain. We struggled with the question, "What can I do to make them feel better?" We felt anxious and inadequate t...

Dave R · Dave R

"One of the biggest stumbling blocks to recovery seems to be placing unrealistic expectations on...others."Basic Text, p. 82=Many of us come into Narcotics Anonymous feeling pretty poorly about ourselves. By comparison, the recovering addicts we meet at meetings may seem almost super-human...

Dave R · Dave R

"We need not lose faith when we become rebellious."Basic Text, p. 35=Many of us have lived our entire lives in revolt. Our initial response to any type of direction is often negative. Automatic rejection of authority seems to be a troubling character defect for many addicts.A thorough self-exam...

Dave R · Dave R

"Where there has been wrong, the program teaches us the spirit of forgiveness." Basic Text, p. 12 In NA, we begin to interact with the world around us. We no longer live in isolation. But freedom from isolation has its price: The more we interact with people, the more often well find someone steppin...

Dave R · Dave R

"We have learned from our group experience that those who keep coming to our meetings regularly stay clean." Basic Text, p. 9 = The NA program gives us a new pattern of living. One of the basic elements of that new pattern is regular meeting attendance. For the newcomer, living clean is a brand-...

jjduffy1377 · jjduffy1377

I'm coming up on a year and it seems to be getting harder and harder. I'm struggling building and maintaining relationships. i shared last night and im feeling worse then I did and I don't know what to do. I feel alone and disconnected and angry. any suggestions would be great.

Dave R · Dave R

"We find that we suffer from a disease, not a moral dilemma. We were critically ill, not hopelessly bad." Basic Text, p. 16 = For many of us, Narcotics Anonymous was the answer to a personal puzzle of long standing. Why did we always feel alone, even in a crowd, we wondered? Why did we do so...

Dave R · Dave R

"We try to remember that when we make amends we are doing it for ourselves."Basic Text, p. 41=As long as we still owe amends, our spirits are cluttered with things we don't need. We're carrying the extra load of an apology owed, a resentment held, or unexpressed remorse. It's like having a messy hous...

Dave R · Dave R

Humility is a by-product that allows us to grow and develop in an atmosphere of freedom and removes the fear of becoming known by our employers, families, or friends as addicts.Basic Text, pp. 75-76=Many of us may not have understood the idea that anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our trad...

Dave R · Dave R

Daily practice of our Twelve Step program enables us to change from what we were to people guided by a Higher Power. Basic Text, p. 86 = Who have we been, and who have we become? There are a couple of ways to answer this question. One is very simple: We came to Narcotics Anonymous as addicts, our addic...

Dave R · Dave R

"We become able to make wise and loving decisions based on principles and ideals that have real value in our lives." Basic Text, p. 105 = Addiction gave us a certain set of values, principles we applied in our lives. "You pushed me," one of those values told us, "so I push...

Mav · Mav

I am new here n also new in the program., i really dont know whether i should ask this or not., anyways my question is ( n also i am a little confused)., if i am born in a disfunctional family., are my parents responsible for my disease to grow?

Dave R · Dave R

"Hopeless living problems have become joyously changed. Our disease has been arrested, and now anything is possible."Basic Text, p. 106=The NA program has given us more freedom than we ever dreamed possible. Sometimes, though, in the daily routine, we lose track of how much we've been given. ...

Dave R · Dave R

"We examine our actions, reactions, and motives. We often find that weve been doing better than we've been feeling."Basic Text, p.43=The way we treat others often reveals our own state of being. When we are at peace, we're most likely to treat others with respect and compassion. However, when we...

Dave R · Dave R

"The steps offer a big change from a life dominated by guilt and remorse. Our futures are changed because we don't have to avoid those who we have harmed. As a result... we receive a new freedom that can end isolation." Basic Text, p. 39=Many of us come to Narcotics Anonymous full of regrets about our p...

Dave R · Dave R

"These defects grow in the dark and die in the light of exposure."Basic Text, p.32=The Fifth Step asks us to share our true nature with God, with ourselves, and with another human being. It doesn't encourage us to tell everyone every little secret about ourselves. It doesn't ask us to disclose to th...

Dave R · Dave R

"Change from self-destructive patterns of life became necessary."Basic Text, p. 15=Active addiction is a smoldering death-wish. Each of us courted death every time we used. Our lifestyles, too, put us at risk. The life of an addict is sold cheaply with every day and every dose.In recovery, the...

Dave R · Dave R

"We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it."Step Ten=A daily Tenth Step keeps us on a sound spiritual footing. While each member asks different questions, some questions have been found to be helpful to almost everyone. Two key Tenth Step questions are,...

Dave R · Dave R

"We are achieving freedom from the wreckage of our past."Basic Text, p. 42=When we start the Ninth Step, we've reached an exciting stage in our recovery. The damage done in our lives is what led many of us to seek help in the first place. Now, we have a chance to clean up that wreckage, amend our past,...

Dave R · Dave R

"We learn to be careful of praying for specific things."Basic Text, p. 46=In our active addiction, we usually did not pray for knowledge of God's will for us and the power to carry it out. On the contrary, most of our prayers were for God to get us out of the mess we had made for ourselves. We expected mir...

Dave R · Dave R

"Before we got clean, most of our actions were guided by impulse. Today, we are not locked into this type of thinking."Basic Text, p. 90=Life is a series of decisions, actions, and consequences. When we were using, our decisions were usually driven by our disease, resulting in self-destruct...

Dave R · Dave R

"We recognize our spiritual growth when we are able to reach out and help others."Basic Text, p. 58=To make a difference in the world, to contribute something special, is perhaps the highest aspiration of the human heart. Each one of us, no matter what our personal makeup, has a unique quality to off...

Dave R · Dave R

"Our friendships become deep, and we experience the warmth and caring which results from addicts sharing recovery and a new life." IP No. 19, Self-Acceptance=Most of us come to Narcotics Anonymous with few genuine friends. And most of us arrive without the slightest understanding of what it tak...

Dave R · Dave R

"Often we have to face some type of crisis during our recovery, such as the death of a loved one..."Basic Text, p. 102=Every life has a beginning and an end. However, when someone we love a great deal reaches the end of their life, we may have a very hard time accepting their sudden, final absence. Our...

Dave R · Dave R

"We apply effort to our most obvious problems and let go of the rest. We do the job at hand and, as we progress, new opportunities for improvement present themselves."Basic Text, p. 56=It's been said that recovery is simple--all we've got to change is everything! That can seem a pretty tall order,...

kitty doyle · kitty doyle

It's been awhile but as I remember my life changing day (22 years ago today) I can't help but think of all of you and how much you all helped me when I needed it most! Your kindness, your tremendous listening skills and of of course your amazing insight! Excited to report that my son is also still sober sinc...

Dave R · Dave R

"The way to remain a productive, responsible member of society is to put our recovery first."Basic Text, p. 106=The meetings have been great! Each night we've attended, we've gathered with other addicts to share experience, strength, and hope. And each day, weve used what weve learned in the mee...

Dave R · Dave R

"A symptom of our disease is alienation, and honest sharing will free us to recover."Basic Text, p. 83=Truth connects us to life while fear, isolation, and dishonesty alienate us from it. As using addicts, we hid as much of the truth about ourselves from as much of the world as we possibly could. Our...

Dave R · Dave R

"We found that we do not recover physically, mentally, or spiritually overnight." Basic Text, p. 27 = Have you ever approached a recovery celebration with the feeling that you should be further along in your recovery than you are? Maybe you have listened to newcomers sharing in meeti...

Topic		Started By	Replies	Views	Last Post
	Dry Wedding (Preview) I've got 5 months and some change clean time, and I'm getting married next summer. We want to have a dry wedding, but there's some resistance from other family members. We think we've got it settled, especially as the park where we'd like to host the reception BBQ doesn't allow alcohol. Just wonder...	erasmus	1	549	Sep 10, 2017 by Davethewave
	JFT September 10 More powerful than words (Preview) "We learn that a simple, loving hug can make all the difference in the world..."Basic Text, p. 91=Perhaps there have been times in our recovery when we were close to someone who was in great pain. We struggled with the question, "What can I do to make them feel better?" We felt anxious and inadequate t...	Dave R	1	710	Sep 10, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT September 9 Feet of clay (Preview) "One of the biggest stumbling blocks to recovery seems to be placing unrealistic expectations on...others."Basic Text, p. 82=Many of us come into Narcotics Anonymous feeling pretty poorly about ourselves. By comparison, the recovering addicts we meet at meetings may seem almost super-human...	Dave R	1	890	Sep 9, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT September 8 Rebellion (Preview) "We need not lose faith when we become rebellious."Basic Text, p. 35=Many of us have lived our entire lives in revolt. Our initial response to any type of direction is often negative. Automatic rejection of authority seems to be a troubling character defect for many addicts.A thorough self-exam...	Dave R	1	573	Sep 8, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT September 7 Resentment and forgiveness (Preview) "Where there has been wrong, the program teaches us the spirit of forgiveness." Basic Text, p. 12 In NA, we begin to interact with the world around us. We no longer live in isolation. But freedom from isolation has its price: The more we interact with people, the more often well find someone steppin...	Dave R	1	713	Sep 7, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT September 6 Regular meeting attendance (Preview) "We have learned from our group experience that those who keep coming to our meetings regularly stay clean." Basic Text, p. 9 = The NA program gives us a new pattern of living. One of the basic elements of that new pattern is regular meeting attendance. For the newcomer, living clean is a brand-...	Dave R	1	685	Sep 6, 2017 by Dave R
	Recovery and the introvert (Preview) I'm coming up on a year and it seems to be getting harder and harder. I'm struggling building and maintaining relationships. i shared last night and im feeling worse then I did and I don't know what to do. I feel alone and disconnected and angry. any suggestions would be great.	jjduffy1377	2	446	Sep 5, 2017 by mikah
	JFT September 5 Not hopelessly bad (Preview) "We find that we suffer from a disease, not a moral dilemma. We were critically ill, not hopelessly bad." Basic Text, p. 16 = For many of us, Narcotics Anonymous was the answer to a personal puzzle of long standing. Why did we always feel alone, even in a crowd, we wondered? Why did we do so...	Dave R	2	884	Sep 5, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT September 4 Cluttered spirits (Preview) "We try to remember that when we make amends we are doing it for ourselves."Basic Text, p. 41=As long as we still owe amends, our spirits are cluttered with things we don't need. We're carrying the extra load of an apology owed, a resentment held, or unexpressed remorse. It's like having a messy hous...	Dave R	2	676	Sep 4, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT September 3 Humility expressed by anonymity (Preview) Humility is a by-product that allows us to grow and develop in an atmosphere of freedom and removes the fear of becoming known by our employers, families, or friends as addicts.Basic Text, pp. 75-76=Many of us may not have understood the idea that anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our trad...	Dave R	1	914	Sep 3, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT September 2 Higher powered (Preview) Daily practice of our Twelve Step program enables us to change from what we were to people guided by a Higher Power. Basic Text, p. 86 = Who have we been, and who have we become? There are a couple of ways to answer this question. One is very simple: We came to Narcotics Anonymous as addicts, our addic...	Dave R	2	769	Sep 2, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT September 1 Real values (Preview) "We become able to make wise and loving decisions based on principles and ideals that have real value in our lives." Basic Text, p. 105 = Addiction gave us a certain set of values, principles we applied in our lives. "You pushed me," one of those values told us, "so I push...	Dave R	2	3342	Sep 1, 2017 by Dave R
	Disfunctional families (Preview) I am new here n also new in the program., i really dont know whether i should ask this or not., anyways my question is ( n also i am a little confused)., if i am born in a disfunctional family., are my parents responsible for my disease to grow?	Mav	2	428	Aug 31, 2017 by MIKEF
	JFT August 31 Gratitude (Preview) "Hopeless living problems have become joyously changed. Our disease has been arrested, and now anything is possible."Basic Text, p. 106=The NA program has given us more freedom than we ever dreamed possible. Sometimes, though, in the daily routine, we lose track of how much we've been given. ...	Dave R	1	644	Aug 31, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 30 Doing good, feeling good (Preview) "We examine our actions, reactions, and motives. We often find that weve been doing better than we've been feeling."Basic Text, p.43=The way we treat others often reveals our own state of being. When we are at peace, we're most likely to treat others with respect and compassion. However, when we...	Dave R	1	727	Aug 30, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 29 Don't look back (Preview) "The steps offer a big change from a life dominated by guilt and remorse. Our futures are changed because we don't have to avoid those who we have harmed. As a result... we receive a new freedom that can end isolation." Basic Text, p. 39=Many of us come to Narcotics Anonymous full of regrets about our p...	Dave R	1	660	Aug 29, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 28 The light of exposure (Preview) "These defects grow in the dark and die in the light of exposure."Basic Text, p.32=The Fifth Step asks us to share our true nature with God, with ourselves, and with another human being. It doesn't encourage us to tell everyone every little secret about ourselves. It doesn't ask us to disclose to th...	Dave R	1	714	Aug 28, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 27 Choosing life (Preview) "Change from self-destructive patterns of life became necessary."Basic Text, p. 15=Active addiction is a smoldering death-wish. Each of us courted death every time we used. Our lifestyles, too, put us at risk. The life of an addict is sold cheaply with every day and every dose.In recovery, the...	Dave R	1	719	Aug 27, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 26 Tenth Step inventory (Preview) "We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it."Step Ten=A daily Tenth Step keeps us on a sound spiritual footing. While each member asks different questions, some questions have been found to be helpful to almost everyone. Two key Tenth Step questions are,...	Dave R	1	584	Aug 26, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 25 The Ninth Step--reclaiming life (Preview) "We are achieving freedom from the wreckage of our past."Basic Text, p. 42=When we start the Ninth Step, we've reached an exciting stage in our recovery. The damage done in our lives is what led many of us to seek help in the first place. Now, we have a chance to clean up that wreckage, amend our past,...	Dave R	1	595	Aug 25, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 24 Seeking God's will (Preview) "We learn to be careful of praying for specific things."Basic Text, p. 46=In our active addiction, we usually did not pray for knowledge of God's will for us and the power to carry it out. On the contrary, most of our prayers were for God to get us out of the mess we had made for ourselves. We expected mir...	Dave R	1	2646	Aug 24, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 23 Decision-making (Preview) "Before we got clean, most of our actions were guided by impulse. Today, we are not locked into this type of thinking."Basic Text, p. 90=Life is a series of decisions, actions, and consequences. When we were using, our decisions were usually driven by our disease, resulting in self-destruct...	Dave R	1	705	Aug 23, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 22 Contribution (Preview) "We recognize our spiritual growth when we are able to reach out and help others."Basic Text, p. 58=To make a difference in the world, to contribute something special, is perhaps the highest aspiration of the human heart. Each one of us, no matter what our personal makeup, has a unique quality to off...	Dave R	1	3417	Aug 22, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 21 Friendship (Preview) "Our friendships become deep, and we experience the warmth and caring which results from addicts sharing recovery and a new life." IP No. 19, Self-Acceptance=Most of us come to Narcotics Anonymous with few genuine friends. And most of us arrive without the slightest understanding of what it tak...	Dave R	1	2905	Aug 21, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 20 Facing death (Preview) "Often we have to face some type of crisis during our recovery, such as the death of a loved one..."Basic Text, p. 102=Every life has a beginning and an end. However, when someone we love a great deal reaches the end of their life, we may have a very hard time accepting their sudden, final absence. Our...	Dave R	1	3077	Aug 20, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 19 First things first (Preview) "We apply effort to our most obvious problems and let go of the rest. We do the job at hand and, as we progress, new opportunities for improvement present themselves."Basic Text, p. 56=It's been said that recovery is simple--all we've got to change is everything! That can seem a pretty tall order,...	Dave R	1	3756	Aug 19, 2017 by Dave R
	Hello Again Everyone! (Preview) It's been awhile but as I remember my life changing day (22 years ago today) I can't help but think of all of you and how much you all helped me when I needed it most! Your kindness, your tremendous listening skills and of of course your amazing insight! Excited to report that my son is also still sober sinc...	kitty doyle	2	2210	Aug 18, 2017 by MIKEF
	JFT August 18 How long do I have to go? (Preview) "The way to remain a productive, responsible member of society is to put our recovery first."Basic Text, p. 106=The meetings have been great! Each night we've attended, we've gathered with other addicts to share experience, strength, and hope. And each day, weve used what weve learned in the mee...	Dave R	1	612	Aug 18, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 17 Tell the truth (Preview) "A symptom of our disease is alienation, and honest sharing will free us to recover."Basic Text, p. 83=Truth connects us to life while fear, isolation, and dishonesty alienate us from it. As using addicts, we hid as much of the truth about ourselves from as much of the world as we possibly could. Our...	Dave R	1	2610	Aug 17, 2017 by Dave R
	JFT August 15 Over time, not overnight (Preview) "We found that we do not recover physically, mentally, or spiritually overnight." Basic Text, p. 27 = Have you ever approached a recovery celebration with the feeling that you should be further along in your recovery than you are? Maybe you have listened to newcomers sharing in meeti...	Dave R	3	1677	Aug 15, 2017 by Dave R
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