Recovery Notes by www.peacewolf.org

“The gift of learning to meditate is the greatest gift you can give yourself in this life. For it is only through meditation that you can undertake the journey to discover your true nature, and so find the stability and confidence you will need to live, and die, well.” - Sogyal Rinpoche, The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying

All successful alcohol recovery programs include spiritual development, and  spiritual development requires prayer and meditation.  People who want to maintain their sobriety and improve the quality of their life will learn to meditate daily.  The peace it provides is astounding.

Most people know how to pray — that is, to make requests to a higher power.  And every college student has prayed around finals time.

Meditation, on the other hand, is much more mysterious and difficult for the recovering alcoholic and much of the general public as well.  Most of the world’s religions include meditation and meditation techniques.  Also, there is secular meditation whose only purpose is to relax mentally and physically.

Explore various meditation techniques to include in your recovery program.  Many find that group meditation is more effective, especially in the beginning phase.  One technique becoming more popular is Buddhist meditation.

According to wikipedia, “Buddhist meditation encompasses a variety of meditation techniques that develop mindfulness, concentration, tranquility and insight.

“Non-Buddhists use these techniques for the pursuit of physical and mental health as well as for non-Buddhist spiritual aims.^[1] Buddhist meditation techniques are increasingly being employed by psychologists and psychiatrists to help alleviate a variety of health conditions such as anxiety and depression.^[2] As such, mindfulness and other Buddhist meditation techniques are being advocated in the West by innovative psychologists and Buddhist meditation expert teachers such as S.N. Goenka, Jon Kabat-Zinn, Jack Kornfield, Joseph Goldstein, Tara Brach, Alan Clements, and Sharon Salzberg, who have been widely attributed with playing a significant role in integrating the healing aspects of Buddhist meditation practices with the concept of psychological awareness and healing.”

For more info:  For beginning meditation classes in the San Jose area, try the drop-in classes in Los Gatos, or San Francisco.

Visit www.peacewolf.org for AA Big Book Concordance

September is the federal government’s official “Recovery Month,”sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) of the Department of Human and Health Services.

Many local recovery organizations in San Jose and the Bay Area are hosting events to bring awareness of resources available to people seeking recovery.

“Friends of Recovery”, for example, are hosting a Recovery Fest ‘09 picnic with live music at Vasona Park in Los Gatos on the 19th.

To find recovery events in your area, nationwide, visit
http://www.recoverymonth.gov/Home/Community-Events.aspx

People in recovery have a wonderful quality — they love to celebrate their new path and share the recovery experience with those still suffering from addiction.

“Be there or be square.”

[For a recovery concordance based on Alcoholics Anonymous' "Big Book" visit Peacewolf.org]

Alcoholics Anonymous in Santa Clara County, which includes San Jose, has meetings for it’s diverse population as well as it’s “special interest groups.”  The table below lists the major meeting types.

An “open meeting” means the meeting welcomes the public, but especially to those who are not quite sure if they have a drinking problem.  Non-alcoholics, such as an accompanying partner, are welcome too.  In addition, people from other groups, such as Ala-non or Narcotics Anonymous attend open meetings.  Occasionally, psychology and medical students sit in on open meetings to help with their research.

A “closed” meeting means it is for alcoholics or people who are having problems with alcohol.  They need not be a member of AA, but perhaps have a desire to quit drinking.

None of these meetings, by A.A. traditions, are allowed to exclude anyone by race, creed, politics, sexual preferences, etc.  If they did then they could not call themselves an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting.  Whatever their preferences, alcoholics generally attend a variety of meetings, learning and helping others to achieve sobriety.

*Some meetings are Gay and Lesbian combined.

Other Resources:

Alcohólicos Anónimos

Tagalog (Angeles City, PI)

Vietnam (Vietnam Alcoholics Anonymous)

Carrying the A.A. Message to the Deaf Alcoholic, A.A. Guidelines

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