“It is said that in Zen practice, one should maintain an immovable mind. This means that if the mind is not attached to anything, there are no obstacles, so in all of life, nothing is an obstacle”
And as simplistic as it may sound - a person doesn’t have to be attached to the thing that they consider to be addicted to.
As Buddha claimed, the best approach is to follow the middle path, meaning not to go to any extremes— not to overdo anything, nor to deny oneself anything completely.
Going to one extreme or the other will cause suffering, so to avoid such suffering, it is necessary to moderate things in such a way that there is neither too much nor too little of them.
I used the distance as one of the excuses not to go to a recovery dharma meeting recently. Now they started one much much closer. So that excuse doesn’t work no more. Will go tonight. I can do with some calm and some reflection.
You had that good excuse set up and now those pesky people moved closer. Honestly 
Have a good meeting 
Going to the meeting was good, even (or maybe especially) when I didn’t feel like going. Meditating in a group feels safe and good. Started to fall asleep twice though, a dream was starting one of those two moments. 
“Why is there so much suffering in the world?
Because human beings cannot understand the mind of equality, respecting some things while not respecting others.”
Kierann said:
How many guys do not masturbate in the world? 2%?I’m fighting here the force more powerful than anything ever created.
My comment:
We don’t really know if it’s 2%, 20% or 50%, we will never know, because there’s no good way to measure such a thing.
You know why I changed my nickname on Discord from ENERGY RETENTION to ART OF DETACHMENT?
Because with detachment You basically free Yourself from the things that can potentially hold You back 
You can detach Yourself from thinking, that sexual/vitality energy is the most powerful force ever created.
Therefore if it’s not the most powerful force ever created, then You shouldn’t feel afraid to confront with this force
You can examine this thinking/idea of it being the most powerful force ever created:
Is it really true?
How did I find out about it being really true?
Is there a rational way to have a prove that it’s the most powerful force?
Do I know all possible forces that exist?
See? There’s plenty of things to consider, and even with one of the answers to these questions can easily cause uncertainty.
That’s why it’s important to be able to detach oneself from an idea of something being true.
If it’s not true, then it simply doesn’t have a power over You.
Hey guys. I’m interested in checking out a RD meeting virtually for the first time. I’ve done a lot of research and this program appeals to me and the way i want to do my recovery more than any other. I have crazy social anxiety though. Do any of you do virtual meetings or have a recommendation for a non-scary first one?
Hey Madeline 
I totally get the social anxiety part. The first few weeks I would just walk in circles around my tablet and try to build up the courage to log into a meeting.
One day I actually clicked on the „Join“ button. The zoom window opened, I saw several faces pop up in little squares, heard voices talking, panicked instantly, disconnected and dropped the tablet. That was enough excitment for me for a while.
I figured out I could set the mic and the cam to muted before the meeting in the zoom app. I also changed my name there to something somewhat anonymous. And then I did it, clicked the button, joined the meeting and stayed.
After a few times of only listening, not sharing, not turning on the mic or the camera, step by step I started feeling more safe. At some point I introduced myself, after a while I would turn on my cam. And at some point I shared.
I tried several meetings at different times, and in the end ended up with those that fit my time schedule the best. For a while these would be evenings. There was a time when the early afternoon worked for me the best. Currently I attend one that happens to be in the early morning for me. I like starting my day like that.
I can very much recommend the following ones: RDLA, RDO, Souls Center, West Coast Winddown, Daily Non Dhukka. But there are also many other great ones. Just join one, keep mic and cam off and listen. That is perfectly ok. Noone will expect you to participate beyond what you feel comfortable.
I have never encountered a scary one.
Hi @acromouse
Thank you so much for this advice. I tried a meeting yesterday, but they started off with required introductions, and i panic-left. I’ll try another meeting today. I couldn’t explain to myself afterwards why it would have been a problem to introduce myself. I really do want to give RD a chance, i think it sounds like a great program. I probably need to be braver. I really appreciate all the information.
hows that work with stopping alcohol completely . 
I can relate a whole lot to this - I’ve still to go to an in-person meeting and only lurk in the big 24 hour AA zoom
Recently learned about RD tho and it does appeal a lot more than the more Christian and Alcohol centred AA culture I’ve found so far - hoping there’s something at my local recovery centre gonna try to be brave a go there tomorrow - probably not make a meeting but honestly just crossing the threshold will be a big step in the right direction
Also just wanna follow this thread to learn more about RD tbh - Christians make me nervous tbh lol
I totally get the panic-left thing. If this were my first meeting, I would have left as well.
There are some affinity meetings I know of that will require visual identifikation.
Just try a few meetings until you find one that works for you. The courage will come over time.
Probably would require work with subconscious mind, to program one’s body into alcohol not bringing effects that it does 
My counsellor told me about Plum Village yesterday. Very intriguing and interesting. I was raised in a Catholic home but have had no interest in it for many years but always wanted to learn more about Buddhism. This seems a perfect introduction.
Went to one of their retreats a few years ago and really enjoyed it.
Hey @Bekah212
Did you find a RD meeting? I still haven’t. This week was crazy just with life, but I still intend to follow up and try another virtual one.
I did virtual AA meetings for a long time, and i could never fully buy into the program because of the higher power and christian focused rhetoric. It made me nervous too. I grew up super catholic but i am notttt that anymore. I think its cool that there are so many other programs out there to check out. I wish I’d found them sooner.
Thank you so much, i will!