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SELF - ANALYSIS
ANSWER YES OR NO TO THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:
We AA members came to the program because we finally recognized that we couldn't control our drinking. At first we were reluctant to admit that we could never drink safely. But experienced AA members explained to us that we were suffering from a disease. (It had seemed that way to us for many years!) We learned that many people were afflicted with the same feelings of guilt, loneliness, and despair that we were. We discovered that we had these feelings because we suffered from the disease of alcoholism. We make the decision to try to face the reality of the effects of alcohol in our lives. Below are some of the questions we try to answer honestly. If we answered YES to four or more questions, we took that as an indication that we had a serious drinking problem. Try it yourself. Remember, there is no shame in facing the fact that you have a problem.
1. Have you ever tried to stop drinking for a week or more without being able to meet the deadline?
Most of us AAs made all kinds of promises to ourselves and our families. We couldn't fulfill them. Then we came to AA, and AA told us: Try not to drink today. (If he doesn't drink today, he won't get drunk today.)
2. Do you get annoyed by other people's advice about your drinking—would you like them to stop meddling in your business?
In AA we don't tell anyone what to do. We just talked about our experiences with drinking, the trouble we got into, and how we managed to stop drinking. We would be happy to help you if you wish.
3. Have you switched from one kind of drink to another in order to avoid getting drunk?
We try lots of tricks. We made soft drinks. We only had beer. We didn't have cocktails. We only drank on weekends. Everything you can think of, we have already tried. But if we drank something that contained alcohol, we usually ended up getting drunk.
4. Have you had to have a drink after getting up in the morning in the past year?
Need a drink to get going, or shake off the shakes? This is a pretty sure indication that you are not a "social" drinker.
5. Are you envious of people who can drink without getting into trouble?
Almost all of us have wondered at some point why we are not like most people, who can really take it or leave it.
6. Have you had any drinking-related problems in the past year?
Be sincere! Doctors say that if you have a problem with alcohol and you keep drinking, the problem will get worse, never better. In the end, he will die, or end up in an institution to spend the rest of his life confined. The only hope is to stop drinking.
7. Has your drinking caused difficulties at home?
Before we came to AA, most of us used to say that what made us drink were our family problems or the people we lived with. It never occurred to us that drinking made everything worse and worse, that it never solved any problem.
8. Do you try to get "extra" drinks at parties, fearing you won't have enough?
Most of us used to have "a few" drinks before going to a party, if we thought our ration was not going to be enough. And if we weren't served quickly enough, we went elsewhere to get more.
9. Do you keep saying you can stop drinking anytime you want, even though you keep getting drunk when you don't want to?
Many of us fooled ourselves by saying that we drank because we wanted to drink. After joining AA, we learned that once we started drinking, we couldn't stop.
10. Have you missed work or school because of drinking?
Many of us now recognize that we were often out "sick" when in fact we were hungover or drunk.
11. Have you had "blackouts"?
Have you spent hours or days drinking without being able to remember what you did or what happened to you? Upon coming to AA, we discovered that this was a pretty sure indication of alcoholism.
12. Have you thought that you would have a better life if you didn't drink?
Many of us started drinking because drinking made life seem more enjoyable, at least for a while. Then we feel trapped. We were drinking to live and living to drink. We were fed up with being fed up and turned to AA