idontknow13, that is much what my friend experienced. She used other ways of staying sober once she left AA, but she is very grateful for the launch she got into sobriety with AA's help. She too found her AA friends to be very judgmental once she stopped attending meetings and was instead using other support tools and groups that were just as effective for her. Her AA friends were not interested in her or would not believe she could have success without AA. They "dropped" her--wouldn't even return phone calls, meet for lunch, etc. It was very sad, I think, and the opposite of supportive. I guess I didn't understand why people she knew from AA wouldn't keep being her friend. Is that a rule of AA?

I think part of what contributes to some people's impression that AA is a cult is this undercurrent of "AA is the one true way", whereas there are actually a number of programs or methods that can help a person achieve and maintain sobriety. The "one true way" belief is common in a number of religions and cults, hence I think the association. I am not agreeing with this "AA is a cult" view, but just speculating as to how it arose. I have a friend, for example, who was very active in a particular Christian church, but later found another Christian church that was a better fit for him and so moved to that one. He was ostracized by the first group--people he had thought were very close friends dropped him. It is this element that brought to mind my other friend's experience when she stopped going to AA.

Yes, and others do not relapse and they are happy. (for completeness' sake)