AA Meetings in Los Angeles

Alcoholics Anonymous is a group of people who share a common struggle with an addiction to alcohol. Founded by Dr. Bob and Bill Wilson, the organization allows alcoholics to share their experiences, learn from each other’s strengths and gain hope from their own triumphs. AA meetings follow the standard 12 steps and 12 traditions, which are the twelve principles of AA.

There are no requirements to join AA, the only requirement is the wish to stop drinking alcohol. There are also no payments for AA and they are not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization, or institution. However, it is a spiritual organization that discusses a higher power.

There are many different types of AA meetings, such as meditation meetings and candlelight meetings. Additionally, you might wonder if because there are celebrities in some meetings, can anyone attend AA meetings in LA?

What is an AA Meeting?

An AA meeting is a meeting organized for alcoholics, to have peer support. Going to an AA meeting is simple. There are many different meetings available, and all you need to is arrive. You do not have to plan to go to multiple meetings, just go to your first meeting. This is great because it allows you the opportunity to experience it and see if you like it. Most meetings are relaxed, friendly, and open.

These meetings can be in many different forms, but often they are simply a group of people discussing their feelings. Often, they discuss what drinking did to their lives, how it changed their personalities, what actions they took to help themselves to get help. Sometimes they will share inspiring stories or difficult stories about relapse.

There are many famous AA meetings in Los Angeles, which can sometimes make choosing an AA meeting in Los Angeles difficult. However, there are AA directories and online recovery resources.

The Purpose of AA

The primary purpose of AA is to help its members stay sober and offer help to others. Generally, AA members share their experience with anyone who is at the meeting that is seeking help with a drinking problem. This allows personal advice and even sponsorship to the alcoholic. The sponsor is someone who you can call in the event you feel like drinking, or if you relapse. There are 12 steps in AA, which help to guide you to a sober lifestyle.

Do I Need AA?

If you often drink more than you want to or plan to, then you may need to visit AA. The same can be said if alcohol gets you into trouble or if you often experience memory lapse when you drink. Everyone deserves to get help if they need it. There is no shame in facing the fact that you need help.

Most people come to AA because they want to control their drinking. Although they may not want to admit it, they cannot drink without it going to extremes. Most people feel lonely or guilty about drinking, but more drinking only leads to the same feelings of guilt and loneliness again.

Signs of Alcoholism

• Poor coordination
• Slurred speech
• Impaired thinking
• Memory impairment
• Wanting to stop drinking but not being able to do so
• Putting energy from work, family, or your social life in order to drink
• Being secretive about how much alcohol is used
• Engaging in risky behavior
• Being in denial about how much you drink
• Becoming upset about the thought of not having alcohol

Types of AA in Los Angeles County

Out of all of the categories of AA, there are 115,326 Alcoholics Anonymous groups in 175 different countries. This has led to two million members all over the world, and 60,143 groups in the United States alone. There are also many different types of AA programs. For example, there are AA groups for young people, AA groups for the LGBT community, AA groups for women specifically, and AA groups for elderly people. It is about feeling safe in your community and being able to associate with the people around you.

Open vs Closed Meetings

The purpose of all AA group meetings is to share experience, strength, and hope with one another. The hope is that the meetings give strength to recover from alcoholism. Because of this, there are both open and closed AA meetings.

Closed AA meetings are only available for those who are part of AA. They must openly have a drinking problem and a desire to stop drinking. An open AA meeting means that anyone can join. Even if someone is not an alcoholic, they may attend open meetings for support or as an observer.

Both meetings are similar, but there is one thing in common, the meeting must be anonymous. This means that participants confine their discussion to matters pertaining to recovery from alcoholism, and do not discuss the information shared outside of the group. Regardless if the group is open or closed, AA members are the ones who lead the discussion.

Peer Support and Long-Term Recovery

One of the main parts of AA is that it has shown the benefits of peer support in recovery. For someone who has been involved in treatment, it can be difficult to start a life that is free from alcohol or other addictions. That addiction may have been what their world surrounded them. When you take that away there is a lot to understand and settle into. Most often social circles are abolished because they were surrounded by drinking.

This is why participating in a mutual support group can be incredibly beneficial to someone in recovery. They showcase the benefits of being surrounded by other people who are looking to stop drinking as well and provide social support in the long term.

We Agnostics and Other Forms of AA

Groups such as AA and NA have many people who believe that these are solely religious organizations. This is not necessarily true, because there is science behind the disease that AA looks to attack. These groups often state to beware the 13th step of AA. This is a term that refers to a 12-Step participant hitting on a new person to the group, who has been sober for less than a year. It is essentially when someone who has more power, takes advantage of someone who is considered weaker.

“We Agnostics” is the fourth chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous. Rather than big book study groups, there are some parts of “We Agnostics” that can be discomforting for some. It speaks about saying you cannot have a spiritual awakening if you choose religion, which is somewhat the opposite of traditional AA. This leads to a different style of speaker meetings.

Al-Anon

Al-Anon meetings are resources for family and friends of alcoholics. These meetings are great for those who are trying to understand what their loved one is going through, and how to best support them. They can help family and friends learn how to set their own boundaries and protect themselves while navigating recovery.

12 Step Programs and the Discovery House

Although recovery itself might be hard, finding help for your addiction does not need to be hard. At the Discovery House, we offer treatment programs and AA meetings to learn how to best approach your recovery. Using a professional resource is your best chance at long-term sobriety. It might be difficult, but we are here to help you through it. Contact us today to learn more.