Have you wondered why someone would choose Al-Anon? Or why those “long timers” keep on coming?

Spencer and Amy tell their stories of coming to Al-Anon, and the reasons they're still coming years later. We used this outline to guide our conversation.

• What brought you to Al-Anon originally?
  • What was your situation?
  • Was there active alcoholism in your life at the time?
  • What was your relationship to the alcoholic(s) in your life?
  • How did you “hit bottom”?
• What was your first meeting like?
  • What did you expect?
  • How were your expectations met?
  • How were they not met?
• Did you keep coming back after your first meeting?
  • Why or why not?
• How and when did you start to understand what the program was about?
• What did it mean to you?
• Did you find help for the situation that brought you to Al-Anon?
  • Was it the kind of help you had expected?
• How long have you been in Al-Anon?
• Is the original situation the same?
  • How or how not?
• What keeps you coming to Al-Anon?
  • Do you still have active alcoholism in your life?
  • Did you “discover” more alcoholism around you?
• Are you still dealing with the same issues as when you came in?
• Do you attend Al-Anon primarily to help you deal with the alcoholism in your life, past or present?
• Do you attend because of the growth and change in yourself you have found here?
• Do you attend because if you don’t, you get crazy again?
• Do you attend to pass the help on to others who are still suffering?

Our topic for next week is “Stay or Go?” Why would someone stay in a relationship with an alcoholic? What led others to decide to leave the relationship? If you would like to share your experience, please call us at 734-707-8795 or email feedback@therecoveryshow.com. Or just leave a comment right here.

Music from the show

Laughin' With – Regina Spector

Ordinary People – John Legend