Could not agree with you more….sounds like you have seen exactly what I have seen over and over again: people getting “stuck” in traditional recovery.

Half of the solution is to know that you need to get “unstuck.” But the other half of it is how to motivate and inspire people to do just that. And that is what I struggle with…finding ways to motivate and inspire people into new action.

Thanks for your comment and your insight.

thanks for the awesome resource.

I am a big proponent of the Holistic approach…… I never called it that…….. it’s just what my natural progression led me to.

I have two friends invloved in recovery who are a bit frustrating to me in different ways.

One is a big time 12 stepper with close to 3 years recovery.

The other has a relatively small amount of clean time and has decided the religious approach is for him.

I basicly think that the best way to a good solid recovery starts with a 12 step group.

If you cant stop dirnking and using on your own, the cumulative wisdom towards this end in these groups is really quite staggering.

I say, lay aside whatever differences you might have with some of the ideas long enough to learn how to stay sober… which will probably take a couple of years.

One thing is certain, when you first show up, you don’t know how to stay sober… and they do.

Once you’ve established you can stay sober with a relative degree of certainty …(this amount of time varies from person to person)

it’s time to really start challenging yourself and trusting your own intuition.

If you are totally content with your recovery in the tradional 12 step model, then good for you.

If, not… I say it’s time to find out what the hell you really made of.

I believe that if you fearlessly challenge yourself toward growth in ALL AREAS OF YOUR LIFE (not just spiritual)… you will invariably find that you are stronger than you ever gave yourself credit for.

More on my two freinds the holes in their recovery approaches….

The religious guy.

I have seen plenty of people over the years come to AA, get sober, then after a while, gravitate to a Religious approach.

I believe this is a viable option if thats where your heart leads you.

I cannot think of a single instance where simply going to church has gotten a true alcoholic sober…. perhaps it does happen, but I have never come into contact with anyone who can personally attest to this.

There simply is not enought systematic structure offered at these places to teach someone how to stay sober.

And a structured system is imperative in early recovery.

My freinds life is a mess, he recently contracted botulism as a result of his drug use… and is only now getting somewhere close to comlete recovery from the paralysis caused by the botulism.

He told me an elaborate story about how God had allowed this awful thing to happen to him so that he could finally “see the light”.

He claimed that he didn’t need a 12 step group and that he was going to be a solid church goer from here on out and that he would never again take this gift of life for granted.

He had turned over a new leaf.

Next time I saw him, he had already started smoking again and I am currently waiting for the “other shoe to fall”

I wish him luck.

My other friend…. big time 12 stepper.

3 years sober

He KNOWS HOW to stay sober.

His phone rings constantly…. he sponsors a ton of people.

Goes to a ton of meetings and does a lot of work at a local recovery house.

He also….

makes bad relationship decisions constantly and wont make any solid decisions towards moving forward with his life.

He’s in an early rocovery stasis, in my estimation.

He thinks if he CLEANS HOUSE, TRUSTS GOD and HELPS OTHERS, he will magically have this awesome life. Be “rocketed into the forth dimension of existence” if you will.

It’s simply not materializing.

It’s more that just staying sober and helping others.

It’s about being ALL you can be.

BODY MIND AND SPIRIT.

The holistic approach is, in my mind, the only way to true and complete recovery.

The path to a life without regrets.

12 step groups don’t push TOTAL recovery…. the accent is too heavy on the spiritual.

It’s great for getting sober initially, but the resources for Holistic growth just aren’t there.

It’s clear that you and I have both come to similar conclusion…

and thank you for spending your time compiling resources and commentary to help fill in the gaps.

I think I’m going to really start pushing this web-site.

The information here is sorely needed.

Thanks again Patrick.