[madisgram]

There is a certain characteristic that is shared by a lot of chemically dependent people. It's something that often stays with us after we get clean and get dry. It's something we're going to have to work on if we're going to have good sobriety. If, simply, we're going to be at all happy in this life. It's something that seems to be born of our loss of personal freedom. This characteristic is immaturity – egocentricity. It's what we call the ‘King/Queen Baby Syndrome' .

Another type of King Baby alcoholic, one that fakes a lot of us out sometimes is the Falsely Humble Person . This type of alcoholic says, in one way or another, “I'm no damned good; I've failed at everything I've tried; I'm a noxious worm. Please, everybody, step on me. I deserve to be stepped on. In fact, if you don't step on me you're no damned good either”.
He might say he's crazy, a psychopath, or something. He always goes around saying that he doesn't deserve all this wonderful help he's getting but just scratch him a little bit and, underneath, you'll find a self-loving, omnipotent, arrogant human being – an egomaniac too. Kind of a disguised one but a valid one nonetheless.

The Ego Tripper . I guess we've all heard of marijuana trips and acid trips and speed trips. The Ego Tripper is on some kind of a trip like that. It's a person getting high on himself.

i'd like to add to this article, "The Great I am."
i've witnessed ppl who are alcoholic, myself included, have a full dose of these traits. and false pride and ego i had...abundantly. my defects of character holding me back from the freedom i deserved.
Poor me, poor me, Pour me a drink.

Unless we are willing/wanting to change, we remain as we are.

[lynn P.]

This is all very interesting madisgram. I had to chuckle over the titles and definitions.

[RapidFlyer]

Madisgram, The way I have heard this is and egomaniac with an inferiority complex. I know when I was drinking and when I got sober I was the center of the universe and everything had to revolve around me. Be done for me, when I decreed and how I wanted it. Yet, I truly believed I was a piece of crud lower than a dung pile and didn't deserve to live, let alone get credit for anything I might accomplish that was positive or good.

I was loaded with false pride and false humility. I really believed that I could only be at the top of the mountain or underneath the dung pile. Never could I simply meet my fellow man eye to eye.

Today I can meet my fellow man and woman eye to eye most days. I am not better or worse than anyone. It is one of the greatest gifts of sobriety.

I am an ego tripping fool....

and I even got off on saying that

[solarpowered]

Yes, I am "out of wack", but I need a certain degree of ego and a bit of immaturity helps me to be carefree. For me, it's all about getting right sized. I try my best and relax, and my HP uses my stubborn defects for the benefit of others. Sometimes I've noticed people grow new ones in sobriety. For awhile, I thought I was washed white as snow & became "Holier Than Thou" aka Big Book Thumper. It could be my defects just don new disguises.

[notz]

Right sized - bingo!

What a tough place to find.

I heard this one that I liked:

The efforts of attaining sobriety is like an airplane on auto pilot. It's impossible to stay on a straight line but the line is drawn from Point A to Point B because it's the smartest thing to do. The plane follows the straight line but veers a little off the line to the left and self corrects and goes a little off to the right and self corrects. You get the idea.

Life/staying sober is like auto pilot, you're in constant self correct. If you think you've got it all solved and in one nice package...you're fooling yourself. Some days are better than others, of course, imo/jme.

Being attune to you and your part in your life with others is where the action's at!

Thanks Madie!

Originally Posted by madisgram

i'd like to add to this article, "The Great I am."
i've witnessed ppl who are alcoholic, myself included, have a full dose of these traits. and false pride and ego i had...abundantly. my defects of character holding me back from the freedom i deserved.
Poor me, poor me, Pour me a drink.

Unless we are willing/wanting to change, we remain as we are.

about the other part mainly at the beginning there...the king baby part.
I read this now that I am sober again and it worries me and especially that whatever I respond with will ironically defend the truth in those descriptions.
I think I am worried enough that I'm so much like all that ....I don't want to be....

but if I respond with nothing...will it mean anything?

I don't want to be a king baby ego tripper....I know I am in particular when I am drinking....I think I am just a lost person more when I am sober...

wow! I don't know what else to say which worries me because according to that it's just me playing dumb all over again...ouch!

I leave it there for now

[madisgram]

Originally Posted by dubblemonkey

I don't want to be a king baby ego tripper....I know I am in particular when I am drinking....I think I am just a lost person more when I am sober...

j, yes i think we are lost ppl when we first get sober. we've numbed who we are. it's no wonder we feel lost. when we sober up we don't know ourselves. that's part of getting sober-the discovery of self. so abide with that feeling until you find yourself. it may take time but know we've been there too. i took a psychological test early in sobriety. i only answered 1 question that indicated anything bout who i was. the other 19 indicated i had no idea!
just keep going in the right direction. everything will be revealed as you grow in sobriety.