chalmette, i don't go to AA and neither does my "sponsor" -I highly suggest going to AA because it is a great support system, but it just did not work for me. My trusted friend has been there for me--held my hand when things were rocky and told me to get off my duff when I grew complacent. I think the most important thing is that you develop relationships with people who are sober and who support you.

I have been to AA and I have a lot of their literature that I still sometimes read. I work a program every day. My steps are a little different but I have taken what works for me from AA and it has made my life so much better--I have really grown as a person--into the type of person I can be happy with.

Since I did not go to AA, I really had to work on reaching out to others and I immersed myself in readings about recovery. There are numerous self help books in the bookstores. Some of them AA based and some of them not. I tried to keep myself focused on recovery and I journaled about my thoughts and feeling each and every day--sometimes more than once a day. I had to really be proactive and pay attention to my thought process--keep it focused on developing as a person...keeping my frustration, self pity and other emotions in check.

For me, it was the hardest to not drink when I got off work. If work really did not stress me out, I would invent stress...my illness would do anything to tempt me to drink. I have been taking antabuse for 20 months. It is not a replacement for a recovery program but it has been a useful tool in keeping me sober. My resolve to stay sober is the strongest in the morning--that is when I take the antabuse. Then when I get home in the evenings I know I can't drink. Antabuse stays in your system for up to 2 weeks. There have been days where I did not take it and I thought about drinking, but I always came back to my senses before the 2 weeks was up. I am a very impulsive person and the antabuse has always bought me the time I needed to get in touch with my support system.

You will find wonderful support here in this forum and if you want, feel free to PM me. Talking/writing to others is an important part of me staying sober.