Customer Reviews

Living Sober

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

As I recovering alcoholic for 14 years, this has always been a helpful tool for staying in touch with the simplicity of every day soberiety. I highly recommend it for newcomers and people interested in stopping alcohol use.

I am a counselor working with recovering alcoholics, and I highly recommend this book to anyone who has a problem with drinking or just wants to learn more about how AA works. It is easy to read and upbeat. There are words of wisdom on each page, and suggestions which are easy to apply. A lot of the advice could work for anyone whether they are a recovering alcoholic or not. We can all learn to get active with healthy activities, use the serenity prayer, and practice gratitude. The 12 steps are not covered in this book, but you can learn a lot about other ideas which form the foundation of the recovery movement. The book is written in short chapters on each topic, which makes it easy to read exactly the part you want to learn more about. Although it was written in the mid-70s, the information here can easily be applied to today's lifestyles.

...right after "Alcoholics Anonymous" aka "The Big Book". First, as a recovering alcoholic myself, I must comment on some of the previous statements here that border on reckless endangerment:
"unfortunately--reinforces the stereotype of vulnerabilty (sic) and fragility inherent in recovery".
Maybe it's a "stereotype" (?) because it's TRUE. We are fragile. We are vulnerable. Just like anyone else would feel if they were dying. Especially in the first days, sometimes hours, of "living sober". That's why newcomers to A.A. are encouraged to attend "90 in 90"- ninety meetings in the ninety days- when the craving is likely to be the strongest. Why try to stop drinking on your own (which almost never works) when there's free, caring, help and support readily available? I hope I don't sound condescending or anything; it took me a LONG time to figure out what was practically staring me in the face. And it didn't have to be that way.
"nor is sobriety so rigidly intolerant that mouthwash should be avoided like the plague" - "intolerant"?! - A.A. is the most tolerant group of people I know of; this has nothing to do with "intolerance", it's about precaution/necessity, given the physiology inherent in all alcoholics. ETOH (alcohol) is to be avoided COMPLETELY, even in seemingly harmless amounts. Our bodies just don't process it like normal people's do. And I'm honest enough to admit- not proudly- that I once drank an entire bottle of Scope- that's the kind of power alcohol can have over a desperate, and yes, insane, drunk in the throes of withdrawal. (Tom's of Maine & Tea Tree Therapy make alcohol-free mouthwash- there are a couple of others I can't remember offhand- they're not hard to find.) Has anyone ever witnessed someone with the shakes drinking vanilla extract to get the alcohol in it? Well, I have, and it ain't pretty.
Lastly is my favorite: "sobriety entails fundamental strength of character". That is so patently false it's almost laughable. What's NOT funny about it is that we're talking about a DISEASE here. It has absolutely nothing to do with any sort of weakness. Do cancer sufferers die because they're not "strong enough"?!? Hardly.
Here's one of A.A.'s many sayings: K.I.S.S.
K.= Keep
I.= It
S.= Simple
S.= Stupid (or Silly, or - my favorite - Sweetheart)
It's not a difficult program if one just follows the suggestions, or at least most of them. OK, at least some of them. Nobody I know of has ever failed at this by being "too dumb" to get it. But I do know of many people who've failed by being "too smart".
I highly recommended this book to any alcoholic, or "alcoholic-in-training". (And has been said already- there's good stuff in here for "normies" too!)
And to the alcoholic reading this who is still suffering- I understand your predicament all too well. All you need for A.A. "membership" is the desire to stop drinking. That's it. Period. The phone number for A.A. is listed in every directory in the country, and nearly every directory in the world. The phone can be your best friend right this minute- instead of the bottle- (which is your current best friend; one whose ultimate goal is to kill you.)

I love this little book of wisdom and I feel very lucky that a friend gave me a copy. It's almost too bad it's branded AA because I think anyone could benefit from the wisdom here about living a joyful and a peaceful life.

Incredible little book that I discovered when I first got sober. Practical suggestion for daily living without a drink. This book was exactly what I needed when I began my life transformation. Highly recommended for anyone that desires to live a day at atime without a drink.

I rejected much of the AA model, but I still found this short book to be extremely helpful in my early days of recovery. Just a lot of practical common sense ideas to help keep you sober for another day.

This is an AA book addressed not to members but to people who are in deep trouble with alcohol and don't know where to turn.

Long before I joined AA, my sister gave me this book (hint, hint). I was a little huffy about it at first; all I knew about AA was that you could never drink again.

I expected preachiness. And at the time I thought I was a disgusting female drunk and I expected to be treated as such in the book. But from the beginning, the tone of the book was so kind that it made me less afraid of AA.

I know some reviewers found it simplistic, but given that its audience was composed largely of practicing alcoholics, I think it was just right.

I know that this is by far the most useful book I've read for people who are pretty sure their drinking is not normal,but are still afraid to seek help.

I can't recommend it highly enough.

In an effort to give back something to the Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous, I devote a good deal of time to sponsoring newcomers. This sponsorship relationship is aimed -- primarily -- at helping the newcomer work the 12 Steps of the program. This excellent book -- on the shelves of many, many sponsors -- is aimed at helping the newcomer in those critical early days. Loaded with tips, suggestions, and just plain comment sense about how not to pick up that dangerous first drink. A wonderful assistant to the sponsor helping the newcomer.

Gary P in Tampa, Florida (yeah, we have drunks here, too :-) )

This book has great, practical suggestions on dealing with situations and feelings that are troublesome for alcoholics. It does not "preach" or talk down to the reader. Every AA meeting should make this book available!
k.

this is an easy to understand, very practical book, especially for those in early recovery. It gives the reader concrete steps, advice, tips for staying clean when a craving to use alcohol or drugs appear.

this book also makes a great gift to give others who struggle with drug issues, without being judgemental.