It can be argued that certainly almost everyone has their own cliché idea about what an alcoholics anonymous meeting looks like. I surely did.
On September 24, 2015, my two classmates and I attended one of these Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings not knowing exactly what was to come. To write a thorough reaction paper, it is important to first provide the expectations one held, followed by the initial reactions or thoughts, and of course the final conclusions or what was taken away from the overall experience.
Alcoholics Anonymous meetings can often be seen on television, generally through comedy sitcoms. The way such shows portray these meetings is most often misleading. They usually take place in a very official meeting place with at least some security guards to keep the peace and make sure everything goes smoothly. They tell of implied crazy people who more than likely are there as the result of a court-ordered mandate. This is assumed because these people appear to be uninterested in the meetings and they behave as if they are aching to get out and get their next fix. In these comedy sitcoms the AA meetings always seem to start as follows:
“Hi. I’m Tom and I am an alcoholic.”
The crowd responds with “Hi Tom”.
After this brief introduction, either the show switches scenes and leaves the audience guessing about the rest of the meeting, or even worse, portrays the alcoholic as a criminal or a mentally unstable human being. This is all for comedic relief. Having seen television shows as described by the preceding few sentences, it is obvious that I would go into this meeting with a very skewed expectation of how it was going to go.
On the way to alcoholics anonymous and in the days leading up to it, I had been picturing just how it would be. In my nonsensical mental image I saw a large circle full of twitchy, middle-aged men with aggressive faces and bad five-o'clock shadows. I had been preparing myself to take on all the stories that were to be shared with the group of ex-convicts and folks straight out of the mental institution. I was ready to hear about the disturbing stories that brought all these people to AA in the first place. Upon pulling into the driveway all of my misjudged apprehensions slowly started to fade away.
Despite the conclusions drawn from television shows, I immediately started to realize my vision of alcoholics anonymous meetings were way off. The meeting took place just down the road; and it wasn’t at some intimidating corporation style meeting place- it was in a very nice home. Much to my surprise, the parking lot was not overcrowded with dangerous, drug addict, forty-year-old men, rather there were groups of normal-looking human beings both male and female ranging from all ages young and old. These people were exchanging pleasantries in polite conversation, making small talk, and hugging one another adoringly in admiration. My friends and I were even greeted warmly and welcomed wholeheartedly when asked to be directed to the chairperson.
Interestingly enough, the chairperson is different every meeting and is a fellow member of alcoholics anonymous. We introduced ourselves to her to let her know that we are college students from Jamestown Community College and that our purpose for attending the meeting was academic. In the meeting room, I sat quietly with my friends watching as late comers were continuing to exchange greetings. When the meeting had begun it was obvious that the steps to follow were a routine procedure. It occurred to me that the readings were done ritually along with moments of silent reflection and the reciting of The Lord’s prayer. In light of the presence of college students and some newcomers, the chairperson decided to go around the room having people introduce themselves and give the reason they are at the meeting. I still am not clear on whether or not that is done every time or if it was a special circumstance. I had to deal with my amusement internally when the introductions went just as I had pictured them with the “Hi. I’m Tom and I’m an alcoholic” followed by “Hi Tom”. This went on for every introduction. This may be the only aspect of the AA meeting that I had actually anticipated, correctly. I couldn’t help but wonder if the meetings ever became boring or seemed overly routine to anyone, being that the setup is the same each time.
Surely after a few days or weeks it must get old, or so I though. When the turn came for a young man to present the group with his name and reason for his attendance, he made note that he was a heroin addict and that it was his first time at a meeting. After his greeting, he was given a list that contained the contact information of all the men who attend the meetings. This, they explained, was for him to utilize the next time he felt the urge to use and needed to have the support and encouragement from fellow addicts to make the right decision. At this point, I was thinking “Wow, the amount of respect and love these people have for one another and the empathy and support they have for struggling strangers is just phenomenal”.
Once the introductions had come to an end, the chairperson decided that the day's topic would be steps one through three of the twelve step program. These steps involve the addicts: one, admitting they were powerless over alcohol and that their lives had become unmanageable, two, they came to believe that a power greater than themselves could restore them to sanity, and three, they made a decision to turn their will and their lives over to the care of God as they understood Him (Overcoming). It was so fascinating to hear their stories- how they came to realize they were powerless, when they found their hope, and what it took to make the decision to change their lives for the better. The fact that people voluntarily shared their stories with an entire group of people including strangers helped me to realize that people really were there for the sake of getting better and seeking help. It seemed that no one, or a very little percent of people, was there out of obligation or forced to be there.
During the testimony time several people shared. They spoke of their inspiration to seek help and of how exactly alcoholics anonymous had changed their lives or was currently changing it for the better. It occurred to me that while several people spoke of God and their newly found faith, others had no implication of a belief in God at all. Though we weren’t at a church I was lead to believe, through testimonies and the recital of The Lord’s prayer and such, that AA was a religion based program. After the meeting I decided to ask about this topic. One of the men there explained to me that the higher power that they speak of is not the same for everyone. Some indeed believe this power to be a God, while others may believe that the power is their supporters, or even the program in general. One of the ladies that greeted my classmates and I decided to share. She had been so friendly and welcoming to us before. I personally was excited to hear her story. She spoke of many things. One being how she had been clean for more than ten whole years. It amazed me that she hadn’t touched a drink in ten years yet she was attending an AA meeting. This helped me realize two things. One, that alcoholics anonymous meetings can truly empower people to change for good, and two, that although it may seem repetitive, people will attend for years because of the impact it has had on them and for continuous support. This realization was astounding to me as I had first thought that AA was more on a temporary basis rather than a lifelong commitment.
Overall, it can definitely say that the alcoholics anonymous meeting I attended truly was an educational and eye opening experience. My previous misconceptions were proved to be wrong, -well, most of them- and I feel as though my understanding of the entire operation has significantly developed. This is all a result of one meeting. I have come to many conclusions as the preceding text describes such as: most times the people at the meetings are there as a desire to change and a willingness to accept that this change is necessary do to the inability to control the addiction which has tied them down, AA is not just a quick fix or a temporary solution to addiction, it’s more of a lifelong commitment (by choice), alcoholics anonymous may be a religious experience for an individual but is not necessarily specific to any one God or belief system, AA is not intended to be an intimidating setting that pushes people to come or change, and several other conclusions. The most important one being, however, that alcoholics anonymous is a conduit for refuge to everyday “normal” people- moms, dads, brothers, daughters, professionals, students, and people from all backgrounds and lifestyles. It’s not a type of punishment for criminals or terrible people. I personally feel absolutely grateful for the experience that I may not have otherwise had without the push from my field of study. I would recommend anyone trying to obtain an understanding of alcoholics and their options to attend an open meeting sometime.
Works Cited
"Steps 1 2 & 3 - Overcoming Addiction." Overcoming Addiction. WebPress, n.d. Web. 25 Sept. 2015.
