Compare A Meeting And The Aa Meeting

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All evening I kept trying to put myself in the shoes of a potential client whom I have advised to attend one of these meetings. I was nervous enough to attend, and I am not an alcoholic. I was so nervous that I didn’t want to go alone. I asked my dad to go with me. I can only imagine what a terrifying experience that must be for an individual who has never been to a meeting and has no one to go with them. I also got nervous and sweaty just to announce to the group who I was. I’d be a wreck if I was attending the meeting as an alcoholic. I give those people a great deal of credit for coming to those meetings, especially the newcomers. It must take immense amounts of strength and courage to attend, let alone open up and share your experiences. …show more content…

The meeting was held at Chapel of the Cross Lutheran Church. We met on the upper level in a conference room, similar to the one when I attended the Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. This meeting, like AA, was nonsmoking and handicap accessible. This Alanon meeting and the AA meeting had several similarities. The structure for both of the meetings was fairly similar. We opened up in prayer, introduced ourselves, and read from the book. Twelve step books were used in both meeting to help guide and facilitate. In both meetings, members shared stories, whether they were about themselves or about a family member or friend. Neither group pressured members to talk. It is clearly evident that both of these twelve step meetings are spiritual in nature and place an emphasis on God, but neither group is considered religious. However, both groups did end with a prayer and handholding. I entered and left the Alanon meeting with many of the same feelings and experiences as I did when I attended the AA meeting. I was very nervous and anxious to attend this meeting because it was something I had never done before. However, as the meeting progressed I began to feel more and more comfortable. I left feeling relived that it was over yet hopeful for the members in

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