Online meetings for alcoholics can help people struggling with alcoholism gain support and learn new skills to live a sober life. Many people who join online support groups have struggled with alcoholism themselves, and find it helpful to meet with others who are going through the same things. Whether you are dealing with a family member who has an alcohol problem or just looking for a way to cope with your own drinking, finding a group can help you deal with the stresses of everyday life.
Open or closed meetings
Open or closed online meetings for alcoholics are a great way to get help from others who have been there before. There are numerous types of meetings you can attend, and they can be both fun and educational. You’ll learn about the recovery process and the steps to success, while meeting with others who have been where you are now.
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An open online meeting for alcoholics will allow you to interact with members in real time. This is especially beneficial for friends or family members who live too far to come to the meeting. Getting in touch with them will help them understand what you’re going through.
The first meeting format you’ll likely see is a discussion. Discussions will be led by a chairperson. Generally, this type of meeting will last about sixty minutes. During this time, one member will share briefly about a particular topic.
Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other in order to help others recover from alcoholism. They use a 12-step recovery program to help people stop drinking.
The 12 steps are a spiritual foundation for a successful recovery. Each step helps you assess your disease and make positive changes. These include admitting past mistakes, making amends to people you’ve harmed, and a belief in a higher power.
Alcoholics Anonymous was founded in 1935. AA has since grown to over 50,000 groups nationwide. You can find a meeting near you by checking meeting listings. Some of them have online options, too.
In addition to AA, there are other recovery programs that use the same twelve-step model. Cocaine Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Sexaholics Anonymous, and Food Addicts in Recovery Anonymous are just a few examples.
Teenage drinking
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) reports that approximately 65 percent of teens in the United States have consumed alcohol before they turn 18. Teenage drinking can lead to alcohol use disorder, which is a disease that robs a person of control over their own alcohol usage.
Alcoholism in adolescents has been shown to be treatable with group therapy and multi-family educational intervention. However, the use of alcohol by youth is still an epidemic. In fact, nearly half of all violent deaths involving youth involve alcohol.
Fortunately, the rate of underage alcohol use has been dropping over the past 15 years. A study published in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research revealed that teens who attended recovery support groups experienced an increase in abstinence rates.
COVID-19 changed the face of AA meetings
Alcoholics Anonymous is a self-help recovery program with more than two million members in 180 nations. It has been credited with helping alcoholics who have gone through years of sobriety.
In the early years of AA, meetings were held in various locations. Meetings were usually in church basements, and required a dollar and an active desire to stop drinking. Eventually, the group began using outdoor meeting spaces. However, the COVID-19 pandemic presented a major challenge to the Twelve Step fellowship.
During the pandemic, some AA meetings decided to go back to in-person meetings. Others opted to stay online only. Despite the challenges, the virtual meetings have provided a crucial source of support during the pandemic.
The virtual meetings have also given people who were unable to attend the opportunity to participate. There have been reports of alcoholics who have been able to sustain abstinence by attending online meetings.
Coping with the challenges of living with an alcoholic
If you are coping with the challenges of living with an alcoholic, it’s important to realize that you have choices. You can either let the alcoholic take control of your life or walk away.
There are some key factors to remember if you want to protect yourself and your loved ones. If you are worried about someone you love, you should talk to a therapist or a support group.
You may also want to consider a formal intervention. This involves presenting a treatment option, as well as giving consequences for the person’s actions. It can be difficult to get your loved one to stop drinking on his or her own, so a formal intervention can be a helpful tool.