Recovery from alcoholism is more than about mechanically attending a meeting each day. It's about radically changing the way I think and live. Meetings are an initial entry point to that. But meetings are not the medicine; they're the drugstore. The AA programme is what you start to learn about at the meetings and the place you find a guide to how to apply the AA programme, which we refer to as a sponsor. Going to meetings no more treats the problem than going to a drugstore treats a headache. You have to take the product. But meetings are where the product is available.