Читать книгу Still Standing - Bucky Sinister - Страница 9

INTRODUCTION

FROM GET UP TO STILL STANDING

The last book I wrote, Get Up, was meant to inspire people to give 12-Step recovery another chance, or a first chance, as well as to encourage them to stick with it when it became difficult. With this book, I want to help people beyond that phase and into the next phase. Now that you've found a 12-Step group and gotten your act together, what do you do?

Get Up talks about the 12 steps and the misconceptions people have about how the whole thing works. Still Standing is for people who are already in a program of some kind and might need a nudge.

The obvious first problem addicts and alcoholics have with 12- Step programs is that they don't join. Showing up for the first time is necessary. That's the problem I tackled in Get Up.

The second problem that addicts and alcoholics face is that they don't stick with the program. One of two things happens here: they relapse and are out drinking and using, or they quit going to meetings, what we call white-knuckling it.

Relapse comes in many forms. I'm fascinated with it. I've seen both newcomers and old timers go out. What makes someone relapse when they have a lot of time in a program? Why isn't the success rate 100%? Seems like somebody would have figured this out by now. If you look at how much the world and technology has changed since the advent of the 12-Step process, it's astounding. Yet we've still not come up with anything better for long-term treatment of addiction.

The relapses that are easy to understand are the ones that come when people are just a few days clean and sober, before a full detox. The physical pull is so strong. All you have to do to make it go away is get your fix, have your drink, whatever it is.

Then there are the social problems people have that make them relapse. If drugs and alcohol are in your house, it's going to be hard to stay away. If your relationships revolve around using, you're going to have trouble. If your lifestyle or your job puts you in front of drugs and alcohol, whether you're a rock star or a drug dealer, it's going to be hard on you.

The relapses that baffle me and scare me the most are the ones people have after a long time in a program. They work the steps, they attend meetings, they change their life, yet one day, they go out.

I can't find a surefire formula to explain why a person with a long time goes out. It's definitely a case by case basis. Sometimes the person can point to an event, and sometimes it just seems to happen without a reason.

After Get Up came out, I received a lot of emails from people who were going back after being away. Some of them were relapsed, and some were disheartened with the program of their choice. I got a lot of questions and was asked for advice on topics I didn't know about. So I, in turn, asked other people.

That's how this book came about. Still Standing covers the rough part of sobriety/recovery: living it. Anyone can get it in a good facility. Living it will take a strong spiritual and emotional core.