Sometimes I’ve thought I’m having a nervous breakdown, or I need therapy, or I need medication, or AA is not enough, or the God idea doesn’t work, or I need to go through the steps from the beginning, or I need a new experience, or I need a deeper experience, or I need another Step Four, or I need a new sponsor, or I need to go to Al-Anon, or I need to go to ACA, or I need to go to SA, or I need to go to SAA, or I need to go to SLAA, or I need to do inner child work, or I need to do family of origin work, or I have SAD, or I have ADHD, or I have borderline personality disorder, or I have narcissistic personality disorder, or I have depression, or I have anxiety, or I am genetically condemned to being miserable, or I was born under the wrong star sign, in the wrong country, in the wrong age, I need to change job, or I need to change country, or I need to get out of a relationship, or I need to get into a relationship, or I need more money, or I need a holiday, or I need to travel more, or I need to travel less, or I need to get a religion, or I need to drop a religion, or I need to change religion, or I need to change home group, or I need to do a special workbook, or I need to learn Tibetan, or I need to learn transcendental meditation, or I need to take holy orders, or I need to stop doing transcendental meditation, or I need to stop listening to religious radio, or I need to renovate my home, or I need to burn down my home, or I need to stop interacting with other alcoholics and addicts, or I need to set boundaries, or I need to stop seeing my family, or I need to get a pet.
What’s usually going on is I’m not doing the basics.
Am I doing the basics?
I ask myself these questions.
- Am I currently acting out?
- Am I 100% committed to abstinence, come what may?
- Each day, do I seek to serve God, and that’s literally it?
- Do I go to bed early enough to wake up naturally and on time?
- Do I eat healthy food I make myself?
- Do I exercise daily?
- Do I attend regular meetings?
- Do I do service?
- Do I carry the message?
- Am I doing anything I shouldn't?
- Am I not doing anything I should?
- When upset, do I drop it, turn to God, and trust?
- Do I talk to friends in recovery daily?
- Do I keep secrets?
- Do I practice everything on 84 to 88?
- Do I do daily step work / keep up with quarterly reviews?
- Do I hang out with God?