Hello, I am Maggie, an alcoholic.

Before I even knew I wanted sobriety, I was powerless over things and events, such as, hangovers, jail, having no money, being arrested, not knowing where I had been, or where I was going. I was unwilling to admit that alcohol had much to do with my problems, or that my life was being lived as a problem at all. I was convinced that my life was as God had created for me to live, and to try to change it would be futile. Until I became willing to move towards admitting powerlessness over alcohol, my chances were next to nothing for recovery. Today, I am convinced that the healing began when I said, "Yes, I know I am truly an Alcoholic." A neat thing my sponsor recently showed me was that sometimes I can work Step One backwards, because I don't always recognize when I am powerless, but I certainly notice when my life becomes unmanageable! Then, I can look and remember that when I'm feeling insane, I'm forgetting my powerlessness and once again trying to control outcomes or other people. Powerlessness, surrender, and acceptance hold no pain; the pain is in the resistance. My Higher Power, the Creative Force in the universe, doesn't have to push to get me what I want. When I ease up, even just a bit, I experience the miracles of what He does on my behalf!

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