Living life with the Big Book

So i am going through something right now that is causing me alot of anxiety and worry. I was replying to someones thread and it got me thinking about the Big Book and how it teaches me not only about recovery but about how to live life. How to handle situations, how to respond to whats happening in life etc. So for everyone that knows anything about the Big Book, could i please get a few good passages or pages to read that might be able to help? I sort of remember the page on acceptance but cant remember what page number it is. Any suggestions would be super helpful!
Thanks
:butterfly:

11 Likes

Sorry to hear youā€™re going through some challenges, Dana. I can certainly relate. Life threw me some curve balls and I nearly lost everything (financially) in sobriety. Eventually I had to sell my home of 27 years to get out from under the mess, but Iā€™m grateful I got through it with the help of the friends here and in AA. I had to go back to step 3 over and over (pages 60-63 in the big book). Every single day I would wake up asking my HP for guidance ā€œwhat can I do today to help my situation?ā€ Some days I could only muster up enough energy to make a phone call, but at least it was something. Turning over my will didnā€™t come easy. I wanted to control the show and outcome. Something I think many of us addicts struggle with. I also kept reminding myself it was temporary and wouldnā€™t last forever. Extremely uncomfortable time in my life. But you know what? I never thought about picking up a drink or a drug. I discovered I can do hard things and you can too!
Sending you lots of love and strength. This too shall pass.

Btwā€¦Acceptance is on page 417.

Edit to addā€¦ @Bluekoolaid I wish you hadnā€™t deleted your post. It was very thoughtful and encouraging. :blush:

6 Likes

Oh manā€¦ i needed to read that. I had no idea u went thru all that financial stuff in recovery! Financial stuff is the worst and i cant even imagine how u mustve felt having to sell ur house. Im so sorry u went thru that.

I have attendancy to go to worst case scenerio and of course have done that with this situation. I also (like u mentioned) have a tendency to try and control the outcome. Yet all i truly have control over is what i can do to help the situation. Im doing everything i can right now to provide all the info they need. Then will have to wait like a month or so for the outcome. Im going to go over step 3, the piece on acceptance, and the morning piece that @bluekoolaid mentioned. I need to dig deep into my recovery. Im not used to living life that well lol drugs were always present and now that im clean and sober, i have to approach things differently. I have distanced myself away from the Big Book for some time but i really feel like I need it now.
Thank u for responding friend :slight_smile:

Also @bluekoolaid i also really found what u said to be helpful. I did read it but didnt have the chance to respond at that moment. But if ur up to it, Id love if u could tell me what page that morning prayer/routine was on :slight_smile:

4 Likes

These are the times when you need to lean on all of us. Keep sharing and stay close friend. :heart:

4 Likes

I absolutely will! Thank u so much šŸ©· I dont feel like using or drinking thankfully. Im actually quite pissed off at addiction for the positions that it has put me in. But i have to trust in doing the next right thing and asking my HP to guide my thinking and acting on a daily basis. I have to be of service to others as that will get me out of self. I just really need to get back to the basics of recovery and that means getting back to my readings, prayer, and Big Book :slight_smile:

4 Likes

Thank you. Sometimes I overthink my post and often delete them usually right away. I also sometimes get paranoid that Iā€™m not qualified enough to speak on the big book but thatā€™s just fear. Just in case For anybody else itā€™s page 86 The on awakening part. I often go to this. I also like the chapter more about alcoholism. I like bills story where he talks about his countless times to control his alcoholism even despite the consequences and the ups and downs Or money will solve this or moving or whatever but he ends right back at the bar. I like the stories at the end. Iā€™m definitely not a big book thumper. But for me the big book of Alcoholics Anonymous explains me perfectly. I used to get mad at the book But thatā€™s because I knew it was right. I definitely would like to learn more about the history of AA. I guess the whole point is that we canā€™t do it alone but if we do it together and work together and are able to relate we have a better chance at recovering.

5 Likes

I think anyone thatā€™s read it has something to offer. Iā€™m no expert on the BB. Iā€™ve been reading it for the past 5 years and something new sticks out each time. Your thoughts are just as valuable as mine and the next person. Sharing our experience is what the program is all about. Glad you decided to repost.

4 Likes

Those are very good points. I appreciate that. And I agree itā€™s probably the only book that I continue to learn from or things stick out. I donā€™t know much about the history but from what I do know itā€™s really came along way. But still sticks to the traditions. And the anonymity. I know it talks about in the book sometimes we have to get past the physical part first before we can address the spiritual and emotional problems I canā€™t imagine going through this in 1930 whatever. They didnā€™t even have detoxes. I think if you were lucky you were hospitalized. But you had to sweat it out. And when this book came out and the program It was probably much needed. Because they didnā€™t have answers back then they just thought you were hopeless Or had Poor willpower than this book comes out and tells us it has nothing to do with willpower. We have a spiritual problem And the allergy As they call it to alcohol. And once we start we donā€™t stop. Itā€™s all pretty amazing thatā€™s for sure

2 Likes

Im 30 days in its great

2 Likes

Oh yes you are!
And youā€™re good at it.
:pray:t2::heart:

5 Likes

While many quote the ā€œPromisesā€ from the BB on pp 83 & 84, I like to point out the following often overlooked paragraphs starting at the bottom of p 84 with: ā€œAnd we have ceased fighting anything or anyone - even alcohol.ā€

ā€œInstead the problem has been removed. It does not exist for usā€¦so long as we keep in fit spiritual conditionā€.

I often hear new comers and those with a bit of clean time talk about this monumental daily struggle to stay sober. Thais is normal, but sobriety, when we work it becomes easier the longer we dedicate ourselves to it. I could not imagine being 40 years sober after a daily struggle to avoid relapse. Most of my time has been enjoying sobriety. It is much easier for me to pursue a positive outcome than to dwell on resisting a negative outcome.

3 Likes

Sending you love @Butterflymoonwoman :heart::kissing_heart:you help so manyā€‹:palm_up_hand: I liked this ā€¦ā€¦.Hindrances to Accepting Life on Lifeā€™s Terms
Accepting life on lifeā€™s terms means we take things as they come and live in the awareness that things arenā€™t under our control. Life happens to all of us. We experience sickness, relationship problems, financial loss, and pain. On top of the major problems, we also experience irritations such as slow traffic, long lines, mistakes, miscommunication, difficult people, and other normal annoying stuff.
The following things prevent us from accepting life on lifeā€™s terms:
ļ¶ Holding on to our own expectations. We struggle with the fact that life ā€œshouldnā€™tā€ be this way because we didnā€™t plan it, donā€™t want it, and shouldnā€™t have it.
ļ¶ Staying stuck in ā€œif only.ā€ We dwell on thoughts like: ā€œIf only he/she/ I were .ā€ ā€œIf only he/she/I would have done__, then _________.ā€
ļ¶ Comparing ourselves to others and becoming envious.
ļ¶ Refusing to deal with reality and thereby staying stuck in denial.
ļ¶ Bathing ourselves in self-pity and martyrdom.
ļ¶ Refusing to trust God.
Refusing to accept life on lifeā€™s terms results in:
ļ¶ Wasted energy and time.
ļ¶ Inability to change what we can.
ļ¶ Absence of peace or rest and the presence of turmoil and negativity.
Accepting life on lifeā€™s terms results in:
ļ¶ Closer relationship with God because we trust Him and know Him on a deeper level.
ļ¶ Better relationships with others because we stop trying to control and change them and instead do our part to improve the relationship by changing our own actions.
ļ¶ Freedom to change the things we can.
ļ¶ Presence of peace and resting in God.

When you accept life on lifeā€™s terms, you live in the awareness that you will not be able to keep life from happening, so you prepare yourself to make the necessary healthy adjustments that allow you to respond appropriately.
By Karla Downing


3 Likes

I really enjoyed reading this and absolutely agree with everything u mentioned. Thank u SO much for posting this šŸ©· I will be reading this often

2 Likes

Thank u so much for replying. I read ur post this morning and went into my BB and made sure to include that paragraph in my morning readings. I love that part about how we ceased fighting anything or anyone. That really applies to where im at right now.

1 Like

Me too :pray:t2::people_hugging:

2 Likes