Our primary purpose is to stay sober and help5 Most of us in A.A. made promises to ourselves or our...

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Transcript of Our primary purpose is to stay sober and help5 Most of us in A.A. made promises to ourselves or our...

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS® is a fellowship of menand women who share their experience, strengthand hope with each other that they may solvetheir common problem and help others to recov-er from alcoholism. • The only requirement for membership is adesire to stop drinking. There are no dues or feesfor A.A. membership; we are self-supportingthrough our own contributions.• A.A. is not allied with any sect, denomination,politics, organization or institution; does not wishto engage in any controversy; neither endorsesnor opposes any causes.• Our primary purpose is to stay sober and helpother alcoholics to achieve sobriety.

Copyright © by The A.A. Grapevine, Inc.;reprinted with permission

Copyright © 1989Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.

475 Riverside DriveNew York, NY 10115

Mail address:Box 459

Grand Central Station,New York, NY 10163

www.aa.org

100M 6/08 (DG3) Printed in U.S.A.

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Is A.A. for me?All of us in A.A. have asked thisquestion.

We found out that many people hadfelt like us.

With the help of A.A. we tried tounderstand what alcohol had doneto us. We were not alone. We couldget help.

Answer each question yes or no.Yes answers will tell you if A.A. isfor you.

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Have I tried to stop drinking for a week or so but could not do it?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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Most of us in A.A. made promisesto ourselves or our families. Wecould not keep them. Then wecame to Alcoholics Anonymous.A.A. said, “Try not to drink today. If we do not drink today, we cannotget drunk today.”

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Have I wished people would stop talking aboutmy drinking?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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In A.A. we do not tell anyone whatto do. We talk about what we did.We talk about our drinking. We talkabout how we stopped. We will helpyou if you want help.

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Have I changed drinks totry not to get drunk?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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We tried not to get drunk. We madeour drinks weak. We just drankbeer or wine, or we just drank onweekends. But if we drank anythingwith alcohol in it, we got drunk.

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Do I ever need a drink to getgoing in the morning?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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We found that if we needed a drinkwhen we woke up, then we neededalcohol too much. If we need adrink to start the day, drinking is aproblem.

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Do I envy people who can drinkwithout getting into trouble ?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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Other people seemed to be able totake it or leave it. We were different.We did not know why.

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Does my drinking cause problems at home?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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Before A.A. we thought people orproblems at home caused ourdrinking. Now we know drinkingmade things worse at home.

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Does my drinking causeproblems with other people?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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People treated us in a different waywhen we drank. They asked howmuch we had. We found that welost friends when we drank.

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Do I try to get extra drinks?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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Sometimes we had a “few” drinksbefore we went out. There neverseemed to be enough. Drinks nevercame as fast as we wanted them.

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Have I tried to stop drinking butstill got drunk ?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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We kidded ourselves that we couldstop anytime. We learned that once we started to drink, we could not stop.

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Have I missed work or cut schoolbecause of drinking?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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We called in sick or told lies to getout of work or school. We werereally hungover or drunk.

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Do I have blackouts — times Icannot remember?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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In A.A. we learned that blackoutsare a sign that we have a drinkingproblem.

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Would my life be better if I quitdrinking?

Yes ■■ No ■■

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Many of us drank to make thingsbetter. But when we got to A.A.,alcohol had taken over our lives.

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How does it add up?Is A.A. for you?

A.A. cannot take care of all yourproblems. But we can show youhow to live one day at a time with-out alcohol. Many people havebeat their drinking problem. Onlyyou can decide if A.A. is for you. If your answer is yes, call us.

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1. Have I tried to stop drink-ing for a week or so, butcould not do it?

2. Have I wished peoplewould stop talking aboutmy drinking?

3. Have I changed drinks totry not to get drunk?

4. Do I ever need a drink to get going in themorning?

5. Do I envy people who candrink without getting intotrouble?

6. Does my drinking causeproblems at home?

7. Does my drinking causeproblems with otherpeople?

8. Do I try to get extradrinks?

9. Have I tried to stop drink-ing but still got drunk?

10. Have I missed work orcut school because ofdrinking?

11. Do I have blackouts —times I cannot remember?

12. Would my life be better ifI quit drinking?

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For more information look for “A.A.” or “Alcoholics Anonymous” in your local telephone book, or call or write:

A.A. General Service OfficeBox 459, Grand Central StationNew York, NY 10163Telephone: (212) 870-3400

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