Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The importance of communication
The importance of communication in general
The importance of communication
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: The importance of communication
AA MEETING IN OAKLAND’S HEART Never have I ever been to an AA meeting in my entire life, but I can surely say that it was the most exhilarating experience of my life. I have never been introduced with such matters in my entire academic years, and I’m very pleased that I got the chance to go & visit an AA meeting by my own eyes. I did, however, go with few of my classmates, but in advance, I did make sure if were invited to their facility as a group. We each had our notebook and were individually writing notes on it. As things settled down during the meeting, the leader welcomed everyone, even us with tremendous applause. He asked our names, the reason of coming, and where we came from. After the welcoming, he introduced himself, and openly …show more content…
As he mentioned, “What would make certain individuals/human beings do such things, as to drinking alcohol, and taking drugs.” I knew that my classmates were just as dazzled as I was when the question was given to us. The leader also underlined the fact that doing such things had consequences to it. He mentioned that he didn’t want to talk with anybody, and hated himself as an individual overall. The AA meeting was held in Oakland on International Blvd, and we went on a Wednesday around 1:30 pm on 11/2/2016. The age limit varied during the meeting. We had all sorts of a group of people. It started from very young as roughly twenty-eight to highest seventy years old. The atmosphere was very illuminating, and jolly. It almost felt like we were at a party, and were having a good time as best friends. That’s how the meeting felt to me; as there were very deep experiences and joyful laughs. We had about 30 people in a large room, and …show more content…
As mentioned, “people come here faithfully, watch and observe how people behave with each other generously, and after that, you just change as a decent human being.” Some even mentioned how they needed directions in life when they were deliberately taking harmful actions, such as continuous nonstop drinking. There’s an actual message that I also picked up from this meeting and that was that, most of the people in the AA meeting role model was, in fact, God itself. Recovery was made accessible when most of them meditated or prayed during the day. It gave them satisfaction, relief, relaxation, tranquility, sense of well-being and positive mood. As one of the members mentioned, “addictive behavior lead to fear, distrust, what is happening to my life, with fucked up people, but those were learning through perspectives of life.” Rehab literature of the true wisdom of life, gave that certain individual intelligence of inner vision; which, he mentioned that the God granted himself through great literature books. Praying and meditation gave him inner peace, which allowed his conscientious to have full freedom. Health benefits that can result from this meeting is that you have a useful resource to communicate your feelings with members that are already
Coming into the substance abuse meeting the student nurse was scared and nervous. She was scared of the reaction of the consumers and feared all the stereotypes she heard about typical alcoholics. Innervison gave the student nurse a new outlook on these types of consumers. She no longer looked at them as people who were just drunks and wanted to use AA as an excuse to make it seem like they are getting help. She never really looked at alcoholism as a true addiction; it seemed like more of an excuse to escape life’s problems. Sitting in and listening to these consumers gave the student nurse a dose of reality. The student nurse now understands alcoholism better and AA helped her realize recovery is truly a process that takes one day and one step at a time.
This was evident in the meeting as well. Of the ten members, only one was attending their first ever A.A. meeting (two others were attending their first Brown Bag Meeting). Ann declined to speak the first time they went around the circle, but she seemed very nervous. She later decided to speak, and related her experience to us. She had been sober for 10 days now, and when she woke
Alcoholism is as prevalent in my family, as blood is in our veins. When previously asked to observe 12-step groups, I ritualistically flocked to Alcoholics Anonymous, without consideration of the possibility that other groups had any potential to make an impact on me. I always pride myself in my ability to identify as an individual that is not ensnared in alcoholism, but unfortunately am an individual that was highly tormented by alcoholism. Through observation of the group and how it processed, as well as identifying how I felt as a new attendee, I was able to understand why self-help, support groups are so vital for individuals in recovery. I finally realized, I too am in recovery.
The one thing that is still difficult for me to grasp is the idea that addiction is the heart of the problem and mental health comes second. When touring Lakeside Milam, Mary explained that they treat the addiction first because they believe mental health problems will dissipate along with the addiction and if there are still mental health issues then it will be treated next. As a mental health counseling I understand that it is important for a client to not be under the influence during counseling, but I do not necessarily think substance abuse counseling is more important than mental health counseling and vice versa. I believe a lot of times they go hand in hand.
Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) has been around for more than 75 years. The biggest controversy about AA is if it is effective or not. Some people find AA to be an effective aid to sobriety; others find AA to be damaging and can lead to increased drinking. AA meetings are groups of people with the desire to quit drinking that help one another achieve and maintain sobriety. These meetings may include readings from the Big Book, sharing stories, discussing the traditions and 12 steps, and celebrating members’ sobriety. Because AA is anonymous, many people feel that participating in a study would be a breach
On February 27, 2014, I visited an Alcohol Anonymous (A.A) therapeutic group meeting called Another Chance. Another Chance is an intergroup meeting located inside the Concord Baptist Church of Christ, at 833 Gardner C. Taylor Boulevard, Brooklyn, NY 11216. Another Chance has been in operation for over thirty years, and holds open discussion meetings on alcohol use and prevention, every Thursday from six in the evening until seven o’clock. This group interaction with alcohol substance use and abuse focuses on helping all members regardless of race, ethnicity or culture, to abstain from drinking one day at a time; and encourages them to maintain healthy thoughts and emotions through the use of the “Twelve Steps and Traditions” of recovery and intervention approaches.
By attending these sessions, I hoped to gain a better understating of support groups and enhance my ability to effectively lead groups. Beyond doubt, both of my objectives were met and so much more. From the onset, I learned that it is important for a group leader to encourage and support the group members. Many of the members who attended the Anchor Club wanted to be loved, understood and not judged. Most importantly, they were striving to maintain their sobriety. As a group leader encouragement and support would help members deal with anxiety and share their feeling openly (Jacobs, Schimmel, Masson, & Harvill, 2016, p.
Attending an A.A meeting for anyone may be hard. According to, “Psychiatry and Wellness”, “Practically nobody looks forward to going to their first AA meeting.” Alcoholics or recovering addicts may feel the same way I felt when attending their first A.A meeting. Some alcoholics may feel worse than I did. Some alcoholics may feel ashamed to attend an A.A meetings. Some alcoholics may be scared or have fear to go to an A.A meeting because they do not know what to expect. The thought of attending an A.A meeting may be worse than actually attending an A.A
Severe mood swings, violent rages, memory loss—each of these problems were a part of my family life during the past two or three years. These problems are the result of alcoholism. Recently, a member of my family realized his abuse of alcohol was a major problem to not only himself, but also to those around him. He would lose control of his temper and often would not even remember doing it the next day. Alcohol became a part of his daily life including work, home, and any other activities. His problem was that of a "hidden" and "high-society" alcoholism. When he was threatened with the loss of his job and the possibility of losing his family, this man knew it was time to get help. After he reached his lowest point, he took the first step towards recovery—admitting his problem.
The crippling effects of alcoholism and drug dependency are not confined to the addict alone. The family suffers, physically and emotionally, and it is the children who are the most disastrous victims. Frequently neglected and abused, they lack the maturity to combat the terrifying destructiveness of the addict’s behavior. As adults these individuals may become compulsively attracted to the same lifestyle as their parents, excessive alcohol and drug abuse, destructive relationships, antisocial behavior, and find themselves in an infinite loop of feelings of emptiness, futility, and despair. Behind the appearance of calm and success, Adult Children of Alcoholics often bear a sad, melancholy and haunted look that betrays their quietest confidence. In the chilling silence of the darkest nights of their souls, they yearn for intimacy: their greatest longing, and deepest fear. Their creeping terror lives as the child of years of emotional, and sometimes physical, family violence.
One thing I admired about each of the individuals at the meeting was that all of them held their selves accountable to fight their addiction. Each one of these people could have been consumed with something else on that Wednesday night, but instead, they all choose to come together to become a better version of themselves. They stated that if they didn’t attend the meeting that night they would all feel more likely to fall back into their addictions. Many of them reported attending a meeting multiple times a week. Thus, I was impressed when learning how frequent NA meetings are held. One of the members had informed me that some groups will run every night of the week. Therefore, making it hard for someone to come up with an excuse to miss a
The Heart Sutra is a Mahayana Buddhist text. Mahayana means “The Great Vehicle” (41). This refers to the bodhisattva vow and path, which involves developing the ten perfections. The Heart Sutra is a text centered on the training to develop the perfection of wisdom. At the heart of this training is the realization about the truth about emptiness.
I introduced myself. I learned that the facilitator for the night is actually a member, a 30-year sober member. I was asked to enjoy refreshments and was greeted cordially by present members. The meeting was held in a church reception hall and the room was set up with 3 tables parallel from each other. I participated in this group as an observer, although, I did introduce myself at the beginning. The issue of this group was alcoholism and how to stay sober. The purpose of the group is to be a support system for those who are struggling with sobriety and those who have been successful in sobriety. The group focuses its healing around the 12-steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. This support group is open and provides no limit to the attendee
The AA meeting I attended took place at a church. The church that holds the meeting has a beginner AA meeting that meets Monday nights at 7 pm. However, I decided to go to the regularly meeting which takes place an hour later at 8 pm. I felt as though I would get more out of the regular meetings and get a sense of what regular AA members talk about. Before arriving at the meeting, I was a little anxious because I felt like as though I would be out of place, and I would be intruding on the members who come to the meetings for support. Also before attending, for some unknown reason, I imagined the meeting would to be similar to AA meeting featured in movies. Contrary to what I thought, the meeting was completely different. When I arrived at
Bob Smith in Akron, Ohio. AA says that its primary purpose is to help alcoholics "to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety"."That it is made for men and women of all ages, including young people who have a drinking problem. It is not a professional setting but self supported group that helps everyone no matter your race, your political stand and one of the greatest advantages is that you can find it practically anywhere. There are no age or education requirements to receive help. Membership is open to anyone and everyone who wants to do something about his or her drinking problem.