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When beginning your journey in sobriety there are a lot of unknowns and uncertainty. You may have just attended your first meeting and have a lot of questions about where to begin on the path to recovery.
First and foremost, welcome. You are making the first steps to the most important decision to get sober and live a spiritually fit life. You are always welcome in the fellowship in AA.
Remember we all started at the bottom of our broken foundations of ourselves, and it was through the simple beginnings that created the powerful people you will come to meet in your meetings and fellowship.
If this your first time in AA, we recommend downloading the Meeting Guide AA app and attend your first meeting as soon as possible. There are many options for both online and in-person meetings.
You can find that link here:
Meeting Guide AA app - https://www.aa.org/meeting-guide-app
We also recommend downloading the Everything AA App, which has many resources, including the Big Book and the 12 Steps and 12 Traditions.
You can find that link here for Apple Users: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/everything-aa/id1565768051
& Android / Google Users -
First, find a meeting and group that you can connect with. There are many age ranges, backgrounds, and groups that cater to people from all walks of life. There are Men's Only and Women's Only groups, and those who celebrate recovery from buildings of worship such as churches or other religious buildings.
When attending your first meeting, find someone you can relate to and available to sponsor you and provide you with guidance as soon as possible. You may not relate to everything someone has gone through, but you can enjoy the relation to your similarities and ignore the differences.
Below is a list of 7 Things To Do Daily In Sobriety which is the start of your journey to recovery.
Keep in mind, that we are not saints. The point is we work towards spiritual progress, not spiritual perfection.
You will not be a sobriety rockstar every day, but do your very best to do everything you can.
The most important and critical step is to not drink.
Take it one day at a time. Moment by Moment. Minute by Minute.
Again, Welcome!
#1. Ask God To Keep Me Sober Each Day
When you first come into AA, you may be connected with God or perhaps you are disconnected from your higher power. Wherever you sit at the table with God or whom you call your higher power, you are welcome there. The prayer can be as simple as waking up and saying "God, keep me sober, Amen." and that is great! We recommend to keep it simple and do whatever is most comfortable for you.
#2. Read pages 63 in the Big Book,
Pages 86-88 in the Big Book,
The Daily Reflection from the Daily Reflections Book,
and conclude with Prayer and Meditation
There is a set of readings you will do daily which can be found in the Big Book, which is the main text and literature of AA. You can get a free copy from your local AA meeting or the AA apps listed earlier in this post. To make it simple, we will also post them here.
Page 63 is the Third Step Prayer and can be found here:
Consult with your sponsor for more information
When we sincerely took such a position, all sorts of remarkable things followed. We had a new Employer. Being all-powerful, He provided what we needed, if we kept close to Him and performed His work well. Established on such a footing we became less and less interested in ourselves, our little plans and designs. More and more we became interested in seeing what we could contribute to life. As we felt new power flow in, as we enjoyed peace of mind, as we discovered we could face life successfully, as we became conscious of His presence, we began to lose our fear of today, tomorrow or the hereafter. We were reborn.
We were now at Step Three. Many of us said to our Maker, as we understood Him: "God, I offer myself to Thee-to build with me and to do with me as Thou wilt. Relieve me of the bondage of self, that I may better do Thy will. Take away my difficulties, that victory over them may bear witness to those I would help of Thy Power, Thy Love, and Thy Way of life. May I do Thy will always!" We thought well before taking this step making sure we were ready; that we could at last abandon ourselves utterly to Him.
Pages 86-88 are split into two sections
1. Read a section when you
wake up in the morning known as:
"On Awakening",
There is a digital version of this read as well on YouTube that can be found here:
"On awakening" let us think about the
twenty-four hours ahead. We consider our plans for the day. Before we begin, we ask God to direct our thinking, especially asking that it be divorced from self-pity, dishonest or self-seeking motives. Under these conditions, we can employ our mental faculties with assurance, for after all God gave us brains to use. Our thought life will be placed on a much higher plane when our thinking is cleared of wrong motives.
In thinking about our day we may face indecision. We may not be able to determine which course to take. Here we ask God for inspiration, an intuitive thought or a decision. We relax and take it easy. We don’t struggle. We are often surprised how the right answers come after we have tried this for a while.
What used to be the hunch or the occasional inspiration gradually becomes a working part of the mind. Being still inexperienced and having just made conscious contact with God, it is not probable that we are going to be inspired at all times. We might pay for this presumption in all sorts of absurd actions and ideas. Nevertheless, we find that our thinking will, as time passes, be more and more on the plane of inspiration. We come to rely upon it.
We usually conclude the period of meditation with a prayer that we be shown all through the day what our next step is to be, that we be given whatever we need to take care of such problems. We ask especially for freedom from self-will, and are careful to make no request for ourselves only. We may ask for ourselves, however, if others will be helped. We are careful never to pray for our own selfish ends. Many of us have wasted a lot of time doing that and it doesn’t work. You can easily see why.
If circumstances warrant, we ask our wives or friends to join us in morning meditation. If we belong to a religious denomination which requires a definite morning devotion, we attend to that also. If not members of religious bodies, we sometimes select and memorize a few set prayers which emphasize the principles we have been discussing. There are many helpful books also. Suggestions about these may be obtained from one’s priest, minister, or rabbi. Be quick to see where religious people are right. Make use of what they offer.
As we go through the day we pause, when agitated or doubtful, and ask for the right thought or action. We constantly remind ourselves we are no longer running the show, humbly saying to ourselves many times each day “Thy will be done.’’ We are then in much less danger of excitement, fear, anger, worry, self-pity, or foolish decisions. We become much more efficient. We do not tire so easily, for we are not burning up energy foolishly as we did when we were trying to arrange life to suit ourselves.
It works—it really does.
We alcoholics are undisciplined. So we let God discipline us in the simple way we have just outlined."
#2. AND one to read before you go to bed known as:
"When We Retire At Night",
There is a digital version of this read as well on YouTube that can be found here:
Conclude each with a prayer.
Consult with your sponsor for more information:
"When we retire at night,
we constructively review our day. Were we resentful, selfish, dishonest or afraid? Do we owe an apology? Have we kept something to ourselves which should be discussed with another person at once? Were we kind and loving toward all? What could we have done better? Were we thinking of ourselves most of the time? Or were we thinking of what we could do for others, of what we could pack into the stream of life? But we must be careful not to drift into worry, remorse or morbid reflection, for that would diminish our usefulness to others. After making our review we ask God's forgiveness and inquire what corrective measures should be taken."
The Daily Reflection is a Daily Reading that can be found in the Everything AA App,
and also here on the AA Website:
#3. Call Your Sponsor
When you’re in recovery, “sponsor” is a word you hear often. What is a sponsor? A sponsor is simply a mentor or a guide who has been in recovery and worked through the steps and no longer has to drink or use. At the end of AA meetings, the chairperson will ask available sponsors to raise their hands to make themselves known to the group if anyone needs a sponsor.
Approach someone you can relate to, and ask them to be your sponsor. Every day, call your sponsor to check in and ask any questions you may have and update them on your day. Your sponsor is there to walk you through recovery, but it is up to you to take their advice and create
the actions to produce solutions and recovery.
Here at Misfits, we also have a contact list where you can reach out to available support and members available to sponsor. Visit our "Contact" section to learn more.
#4. Call Another Sober Alcoholic
You will meet many people in your AA meetings, and they will be critical to your sobriety and their sobriety too! Just as much as they are helping you stay sober, you are helping them. We give back what we have been freely given in AA.
When we call another person in the program and get out of our own minds and problems, we are helping another person and working our program. Call another person in the fellowship daily!
#5 Make a Meeting Daily.
It is critical in your first 90 days of sobriety to attempt to make 90 meetings in 90 days.
You can attend multiple meetings a day if needed, whatever takes to keep you sober! This will also keep you involved in sobriety, and learning the literature and program of AA.
There are many options for both online and in-person meetings.
Misfits Meets every day at 12 ET, including weekends and holidays.
Meeting Guide AA app - https://www.aa.org/meeting-guide-app
#6 Journal and Reflect
A journal is a safe place for you to express your innermost thoughts, feelings, and difficulties in recovery. You can also watch your progress as you recover and reflect on your struggles and triumphs. We recommend listening to meditation, lofi, or worship music while you write.
Here is a list of the best 7 digital journal apps if you prefer that outlet: https://zapier.com/blog/best-journaling-apps/
Here are a couple of playlists of music recommendations for journaling.
Meditation:
Lofi:
Worship:
#7. Thank God For Keeping Me Sober Today
When you first come into AA, you may be connected with God or perhaps you are disconnected with your higher power. Wherever you sit at the table with God, you are welcome there. The prayer at night can be as simple as before bed and saying "God, thank you for keeping me sober, Amen." and that is great! We recommend to keep it simple and do whatever is most comfortable for you.
You can also see a list of other prayers on our "Prayers" Blog.
You got this...One day at a time.
Sincerely with you in serenity,
Evander S.
Misfits Website Editor In Chief
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