AA Recovery Interviews with Howard L.

Dan D. showed up in the rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous at the tender age of 18. His undeniable qualification for the Program was gleaned from a difficult childhood that included divorced parents at age 3, after which a rageful alcoholic became Dan’s stepfather at age 6. From a childhood rife with family dysfunction, fear, and uncertainty, Dan emerged into adolescence where he found alcohol and drugs to sooth the inner-turmoil and emotional pain. Left largely unchecked by his disarrayed family, Dan was free to run the streets as a teenager while his budding alcoholism and drug addiction paved the way to certain ruin. By the time he was an older teen, cocaine had taken over his Dan’s life, and he started stealing from his employer and robbing houses to support his habit. At age 18, he’d stepped over the line by robbing his parents’ home for the umpteenth time Their ultimatum to Dan was either go into treatment or be booted out onto the street. He spent 90 days in treatment followed by an intensive AA program in which he was guided by a thorough sponsor and several old timers into service-oriented sobriety that continues to this day.

But Dan’s story became truly extraordinary in 1994 when, with eight years in AA, he somehow managed to stay sober after being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. MS is an incurable and disabling disease that attacks the brain, spinal cord, and the entire central nervous system. After eight years of sobriety, Dan’s prospects with MS were those of certain pain, constant struggle, and debilitation of his entire body. But he has endured MS by utilizing the spiritual tools of the Program with to battle that chronic disease. What amazes me most about Dan is how he has taken his experience fighting MS and put it into practical use in his AA program. Residing in the center of “double A”, as Dan calls it, his service work with newcomers and as a sponsor is incredibly inspiring to anyone seeking sobriety. I’ll let Dan tell you the rest of the story. I’m confident you’ll come away with a new perspective of experience, strength, and hope told from Dan’s unique and inimitable point of view. So listen closely for the many gifts over the next hour served up from my friend and AA brother Dan D.

Visit the AA Recovery Interviews website for more information and to contact me, Howard L.

Check out Howard’s Big Book Podcast, the complete unabridged audio version of the First and Second Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. The Big Book Podcast is an engaging cover-to-cover, word-for-word reading of all 11 chapters and Personal Stories, many of which were left out of the Third and Fourth Editions. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Or listen on https://bigbookpodcast.com

To contact Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, visit aa.org.

[Disclaimer: In strict adherence to A.A.’s traditions, my anonymous guests and I speak for ourselves only, not for Alcoholics Anonymous at large. We share only our personal experiences with A.A. recovery. We acknowledge that AA’s sole concern is the recovery and continued sobriety of those alcoholics who turn to the Fellowship for help. As members of AA, our primary purpose is to stay sober and to help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. – Howard L.]

Diane’s story is wrought from a difficult childhood in which being the youngest of four meant being largely ignored by her parents, especially when her father was drinking. Until he died at 56, his alcoholism also fed a mean streak that landed hard on her family, with verbal abuse and derision often aimed at Diane. As a teenager, she found alcohol as a way to escape and her drinking followed her into four booze-soaked years in the air force. At age 22, she met and married the father of her two children with high hopes of a happy marriage. She dreamed he would support and encourage her pursuit of a career as an attorney. But her continued drinking, and lack of support from her husband, resulted in her filing for divorce after a rocky 10-year marriage. On her own, with two kids to raise in the midst of a escalating alcohol use, Diane somehow managed to work as a paralegal and also attend law school in the evenings. Through God-given talent, and the tenacity of a functional alcoholic, Diane’s career as a lawyer took shape. Unfortunately, as her drinking increased, as did her alcoholic behavior. The subsequent years took their toll until she hit the wall shortly after Christmas in 1996. With little knowledge of AA, her chance encounter with a woman in the Program, led Diane to her first AA meetings and onto the road of recovery.

Diane’s is a classic AA success story of full immersion in the Program. She got a sponsor, worked the steps, went to lots of meetings, and sponsored women along the way. But the greatest enrichment of her life, via service work, took the form of helping others find sobriety through her work as an attorney in the civil and family court systems. Laying her own personal anonymity aside, Diane has become an ambassador for sobriety by helping clients and their families find treatment alternatives. As importantly, she also imparts her knowledge, understanding, and first-hand experience to other lawyers and judges throughout the family court system. She’s also passionately involved in a lawyer assistance program that helps those with substance abuse find the right solutions.

Diane’s selfless and successful work in recovery, both within AA and in the legal system, demonstrate the overall quality of a solid Program. I’m grateful to be her friend and am impressed by her efforts in helping others. I think you’ll be impressed, too, as you spend the next hour and ten minutes with my friend and AA sister, Diane S.

Visit the AA Recovery Interviews website for more information and to contact me, Howard L.

Check out Howard’s Big Book Podcast, the complete unabridged audio version of the First and Second Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. The Big Book Podcast is an engaging cover-to-cover, word-for-word reading of all 11 chapters and Personal Stories, many of which were left out of the Third and Fourth Editions. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Or listen on https://bigbookpodcast.com

To contact Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, visit aa.org.

[Disclaimer: In strict adherence to A.A.’s traditions, my anonymous guests and I speak for ourselves only, not for Alcoholics Anonymous at large. We share only our personal experiences with A.A. recovery. We acknowledge that AA’s sole concern is the recovery and continued sobriety of those alcoholics who turn to the Fellowship for help. As members of AA, our primary purpose is to stay sober and to help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. – Howard L.]

As an alcoholic and drug addict throughout his teenage years, Randy L. got sober before being old enough to legally drink.  His difficult childhood was ruled by compulsive behavior, limited attention, and hyperactivity. Later diagnosed with ADHD, Randy was treated with meds that worked, but left him craving a calmer and steadier mental state. He soon relief in alcohol and marijuana. Though the damage occurred while he was a teenager, Randy’s rise to full-blown addiction was both rapid and severe. He exploited every opportunity to drink and use in high school and early college. Increasing isolated from his family, his behavior soon deteriorated into that of a drug-selling addict and alcoholic. His flawed belief that he was getting away with it fooled nobody but himself. Fortunately, his family arranged a very dramatic rescue plan for Randy that landed him in a 90-day treatment program, from which he emerged into accelerating participation in AA. At only 20 years of age, Randy relaunched his life by getting a sponsor, working the steps, going to meetings, and establishing a close fellowship in the Program with older men who taught him how to live sober.

Randy labels himself a high-bottom alcoholic. But the work he’s done in the program demonstrates the deep dive he’s taken into understanding his own life and the behavior that influenced his personal growth and success. Of particular insight was a highly traumatic event he experienced when he was six that greatly informed his thinking and actions throughout his life. Today, Randy’s total commitment to AA, his young family, and the businesses he runs, makes for a full and busy life. But the men who he’s both sponsored and befriended, will tell you that he’s a man of passion and empathy who is always ready to help. From first-hand knowledge, I know that to be true and I’m confident you’ll find his story to be both compelling and uplifting. So, without further ado, let me introduce to you my good friend and AA brother, Randy L.

Visit the AA Recovery Interviews website for more information and to contact me, Howard L.

Check out Howard’s Big Book Podcast, the complete unabridged audio version of the First and Second Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. The Big Book Podcast is an engaging cover-to-cover, word-for-word reading of all 11 chapters and Personal Stories, many of which were left out of the Third and Fourth Editions. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Or listen on https://bigbookpodcast.com

To contact Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, visit aa.org.

[Disclaimer: In strict adherence to A.A.’s traditions, my anonymous guests and I speak for ourselves only, not for Alcoholics Anonymous at large. We share only our personal experiences with A.A. recovery. We acknowledge that AA’s sole concern is the recovery and continued sobriety of those alcoholics who turn to the Fellowship for help. As members of AA, our primary purpose is to stay sober and to help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. – Howard L.]

Given up for adoption at 18 months old by a mother who later committed suicide, Jane was raised by an older loving couple who never quite understood her pre-teen drinking or streak of independence which included running away from home at 14. Early attempts to become a good girl in a Christian youth group gave way to a dark side fueled by emerging alcoholism, wild behavior, and self-harm in the form of cutting. As alcohol and blood flowed over the next years, Jane’s foray into London’s early punk rock scene, preceded a marriage that endured 15 tumultuous years, only to end in divorce. Known to many as Mad Jane, the insanity of the intervening years precipitated her rapid descent toward alcoholic ruin. Fate, however, met her at the edge of the abyss, where she was snagged by the remembered words of a friend who had told her about Alcoholics Anonymous many years earlier. In sheer desperation, Jane flew to the U.S., where her friend helped her find AA. She returned to London with renewed hope and a suggested program of recovery. Though she slipped after a year and a half, Jane re-doubled her efforts, found a good sponsor, worked the steps, and ultimately claimed her current sobriety date over 26 years ago.

Through the years, Jane’s active involvement in AA has included service to her groups and sponsoring other women. Because her sobriety has been concurrent with abstinence from self-harm and cutting, Jane’s unique understanding and empathy related to that disease have been extended to others facing that same mental health issue. It’s rare service that goes above and beyond, but is so crucial in these days of multiple addictions.

There’s a gentleness in Jane’s recounting of her life’s story that’s both touching and poignant, but also quite impactful. In many ways, her story illuminates how another realm of addiction can encumber the ability and effort to get and stay sober. After you’ve listened to the next 60 minutes of AA Recovery Interviews, I think you’ll appreciate the wisdom and optimism of my friend and AA Sister, Jane P.

Visit the AA Recovery Interviews website for more information and to contact me, Howard L.

Check out Howard’s Big Book Podcast, the complete unabridged audio version of the First and Second Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. The Big Book Podcast is an engaging cover-to-cover, word-for-word reading of all 11 chapters and Personal Stories, many of which were left out of the Third and Fourth Editions. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Or listen on https://bigbookpodcast.com

To contact Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, visit aa.org.

[Disclaimer: In strict adherence to A.A.’s traditions, my anonymous guests and I speak for ourselves only, not for Alcoholics Anonymous at large. We share only our personal experiences with A.A. recovery. We acknowledge that AA’s sole concern is the recovery and continued sobriety of those alcoholics who turn to the Fellowship for help. As members of AA, our primary purpose is to stay sober and to help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. – Howard L.]

At age 13, Charlie suffered hydrocephalous and underwent the first of 5 brain operations over the next 8 years. By 15, he had begun using alcohol and pot both recreationally and to relieve his head pain. With sports out of the question, Charlie learned guitar and started playing in bands. His alcohol and drug use escalated through high school and college, and ultimately through law school. By the time he passed the bar exam and embarked on his childhood dream of being a lawyer, Charlie had become a functional alcoholic, drinking daily as he chased the goal of winning a multi-million dollar lawsuit. But even after he achieved that goal, Charlie realized that money and acclaim did nothing to fill the spiritual hole in his psyche. In fact, it resulted in him drinking more than ever, seeking relief and release. As years passed, his alcoholism was fueled by a fifth of scotch per day. A failed first marriage, and 3 arrests for DWI, drove Charlie into AA in 1992. But his refusal to do the work, and his resistance to God in the Steps, eventually washed him out of the Program. By the time he dragged back into AA in 1997, after 5 years of increasing drug use and sordid behavior, Charlie had finally had enough. He got a sponsor, started working the Steps, and established a relationship with a power greater than himself.  Regular meetings, sponsoring other men, and doing service work all drew him into the center of the Program where he lives today. A healed relationship with his current wife and children as the result of the Program further solidified his commitment to sobriety above all else.

When you listen to Charlie’s story on today’s AA Recovery Interviews show, you’re sure to hear similarities to your own story. As with all my interviews, Charlie’s willingness to share intimate parts of his life with listeners speaks to his love and concern for recovering alcoholics everywhere. His dedication to the Program and his ongoing desire to help other alcoholics achieve sobriety are radiant in his words and enthusiasm.

So, savor the next 60 minutes of this episode of AA Recovery Interviews with my friend and AA brother, Charlie D.

Visit the AA Recovery Interviews website for more information and to contact me, Howard L.

Check out Howard’s Big Book Podcast, the complete unabridged audio version of the First and Second Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. The Big Book Podcast is an engaging cover-to-cover, word-for-word reading of all 11 chapters and Personal Stories, many of which were left out of the Third and Fourth Editions. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Or listen on https://bigbookpodcast.com

To contact Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, visit aa.org.

[Disclaimer: In strict adherence to A.A.’s traditions, my anonymous guests and I speak for ourselves only, not for Alcoholics Anonymous at large. We share only our personal experiences with A.A. recovery. We acknowledge that AA’s sole concern is the recovery and continued sobriety of those alcoholics who turn to the Fellowship for help. As members of AA, our primary purpose is to stay sober and to help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. – Howard L.]

Alisha's story will resonate with those who have battled not only alcoholism and drug addiction, but mental health issues as well. The product of a broken home in which addiction was rife, the chaos of her upbringing resulted in an early suicide attempt at age 12. With ever-increasing alcohol and drug use, she staggered through her troubled teenage years, into her early 20’s during which time she married and had a child. But the substance abuse soon prevailed over Alisha’s mostly unhappy marriage, and she found herself divorced and rapidly spinning out of control. A period of escalating self-destruction ensued with 3 DWI’s, including a body-shattering crash which left her with brain injury and plenty of trouble with the law. Jail time, legal troubles, and a stark inability to stop drinking and using accelerated Alisha’s downhill slide. Stints in treatment, both inpatient and outpatient, were attempted which included some AA meetings at the time. But little impact was achieved, and she quickly found herself using again, in some cases with other former patients of the treatment center. With her bottom looming and despair at-hand, Alisha finally surrendered to a comprehensive program that addressed both her substance abuse and her mental health issues. She emerged months later and dove into an AA Program that has helped sustain her sobriety for the past 12 years.

To say that AA changed Alisha’s life would be an understatement. Since her sobriety date she has worked a Program that includes lots of service work and sponsorship. She has faced major upheavals along the way that severely tested her resolve to stay AA, but she survived them by staying firmly tethered to the center of the Program. Along the way, she has turned her challenges into triumphs, including a successful career change and a renewed relationship with her daughter.

Listen closely to Alisha’s story and you may find that with which you identify, especially with regard to co-occurring mental health issues. As with all the interviews on my show, Alisha’s story is one that needs to be heard by both active and recovered alcoholics, and certainly by those that love them. So, I invite you to tune-up and tune-in for the next 60 minutes to this episode of AA Recovery Interviews with my friend and AA sister, Alisha C.

Visit the AA Recovery Interviews website for more information and to contact me, Howard L.

Check out Howard’s Big Book Podcast, the complete unabridged audio version of the First and Second Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. The Big Book Podcast is an engaging cover-to-cover, word-for-word reading of all 11 chapters and Personal Stories, many of which were left out of the Third and Fourth Editions. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Or listen on https://bigbookpodcast.com

To contact Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, visit aa.org.

[Disclaimer: In strict adherence to A.A.’s traditions, my anonymous guests and I speak for ourselves only, not for Alcoholics Anonymous at large. We share only our personal experiences with A.A. recovery. We acknowledge that AA’s sole concern is the recovery and continued sobriety of those alcoholics who turn to the Fellowship for help. As members of AA, our primary purpose is to stay sober and to help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. – Howard L.]

Ernie's story is a fascinating excursion into a high-class lifestyle of fast cars, flashy clothes, and glittery nightclubs, all underwritten by a high paying day job and cocaine dealing on the side. As his alcohol and cocaine use turned into alcoholism and drug addiction, all accountability to career, family, and friends evaporated. His risky behavior escalated until he was arrested in a DEA sting and jailed in federal prison. When he got out, he managed to avoid cocaine, aided by increasing use of alcohol. Meanwhile, his marriage and parenthood suffered irreparably. Separation from his wife and daughter ensued and culminated in divorce. Left alone and still addicted, Ernie returned to his nightclubs every night of the week to find relief, but those days were gone. Incomprehensible demoralization was hastening his demise, until his moment of clarity during a hungover visit to his largest business client, who also paid for Ernie’s inpatient treatment. From there, three AA members, including his present day sponsor, pulled Ernie into a Program of hard work, prayer, and service. His relationships with his daughter and ex-wife finally began to heal. Today, nearly 16 years later, he is still sober and his life reflects the willingness of a man who unconditionally allowed the grace of God and the Program of AA to change his life.

There’s a lot more of Ernie’s story that you’re going to enjoy, some with which you may identify. Like all my other interviews, it’s both unique and entertaining, while conveying the serious message of possibilities and hope available in Alcoholic Anonymous. So, enjoy listening to this episode of AA Recovery Interviews with my friend and AA brother, Ernie G.

Visit the AA Recovery Interviews website for more information and to contact me, Howard L.

Check out Howard’s Big Book Podcast, the complete unabridged audio version of the First and Second Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. The Big Book Podcast is an engaging cover-to-cover, word-for-word reading of all 11 chapters and Personal Stories, many of which were left out of the Third and Fourth Editions. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Or listen on https://bigbookpodcast.com

To contact Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, visit aa.org.

[Disclaimer: In strict adherence to A.A.’s traditions, my anonymous guests and I speak for ourselves only, not for Alcoholics Anonymous at large. We share only our personal experiences with A.A. recovery. We acknowledge that AA’s sole concern is the recovery and continued sobriety of those alcoholics who turn to the Fellowship for help. As members of AA, our primary purpose is to stay sober and to help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. – Howard L.]

With an astonishing 48 years of sobriety, Dyanne credits her longevity to the AA service work she has done since the earliest days of her Program. Whether it was making coffee, cleaning up after meetings, or representing her groups at the district or area levels, Dyanne refers to this vital service work as both “life-changing” and absolutely necessary to her sobriety. Of particular importance was the role she played as Area Secretary, which required intensive listening during business meetings to accurately record the minutes. As she honed her listening skills, she found that her focus shifted from herself onto others. She discovered a new love for her fellows in AA by simply listening more. Over the many years, her service activities, as well as sponsorship of many women, have anchored Dyanne firmly in the middle of the Program.

Forty-eight years is an unfathomable amount of time, especially when viewed by newcomers to the Program. It naturally creates some apprehension about even approaching “old-timers.” But Dyanne goes out of her way to welcome newcomers and help them understand the relationship between service performed and sobriety maintained. She embodies the truism that long-term contented sobriety is the natural result of staying actively engaged in the Program on a daily basis.

Dyanne’s story is chocked-full of simple wisdom that anyone can use to stay sober a day, a week, a month, years, or even decades. Her sobriety date is the only part of her story that sounds old. The rest of her message is a fresh as the next meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous and just as inviting.

Visit the AA Recovery Interviews website for more information and to contact me, Howard L.

Check out Howard’s Big Book Podcast, the complete unabridged audio version of the First and Second Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. The Big Book Podcast is an engaging cover-to-cover, word-for-word reading of all 11 chapters and Personal Stories, many of which were left out of the Third and Fourth Editions. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Or listen on https://bigbookpodcast.com

To contact Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, visit aa.org.

[Disclaimer: In strict adherence to A.A.’s traditions, my anonymous guests and I speak for ourselves only, not for Alcoholics Anonymous at large. We share only our personal experiences with A.A. recovery. We acknowledge that AA’s sole concern is the recovery and continued sobriety of those alcoholics who turn to the Fellowship for help. As members of AA, our primary purpose is to stay sober and to help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. – Howard L.]

A Viet Nam veteran from a family fraught with alcoholism, Bob’s post-war progression into the disease of alcoholism accompanied a long and hard-driven business career in the banking industry. But, by the time he had raised three children and accumulated a great deal of material success, Bob’s alcoholism and other addictive behaviors severely bit into his home life. His marriage unraveled and his relationship with his adult children deteriorated. Completely dispirited by his late 50’s, Bob contemplated the same deadly exit plan his father had taken some 25 years earlier. Fortunately, his turning point was towards sobriety and AA. Interestingly, Bob’s sobriety through active participation in the Program had little impact on his other addictive behavior, which he struggled with for years after he got sober from alcohol. But, with the help of a sustained AA program, Bob finally surrendered his other addiction on his road of recovery.

There’s a lot more to this story that you’ll hear shortly. After nearly 14 years of west coast AA, Bob made it back to Houston in 2016, which is where I caught up with him. Though divorced and estranged from his family in California, in the past nearly 5 years he has re-built a new and happier life for himself. His story is one that I admire greatly. I think you will, too. So settle back and enjoy the next hour of my interview with my good friend and AA brother, Bob W.

Visit the AA Recovery Interviews website for more information and to contact me, Howard L.

Check out Howard’s Big Book Podcast, the complete unabridged audio version of the First and Second Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. The Big Book Podcast is an engaging cover-to-cover, word-for-word reading of all 11 chapters and Personal Stories, many of which were left out of the Third and Fourth Editions. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Or listen on https://bigbookpodcast.com

Join our Facebook Group and share your own experience, strength, and hope with other AAs.

To contact Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, visit aa.org.

[Disclaimer: In strict adherence to A.A.’s traditions, my anonymous guests and I speak for ourselves only, not for Alcoholics Anonymous at large. We share only our personal experiences with A.A. recovery. We acknowledge that AA’s sole concern is the recovery and continued sobriety of those alcoholics who turn to the Fellowship for help. As members of AA, our primary purpose is to stay sober and to help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. – Howard L.]

After a long period of sobriety, Marcia let up on her Program and plunged into a 7-year relapse. Seduced by the disease, she was convinced she could drink normally. That illusion took her to the depths of despair from which few survive. That she barely made it back to AA and sobriety is nothing short of a miracle.

Marcia G. first got sober in 1990. But 8 years into that sobriety, her interest and involvement in AA started to wane. She went to fewer and fewer meetings, becoming increasingly convinced that her real problem was with drugs, not alcohol. By the time she slipped after 12 years, and during the early years of that relapse, her experimentation with social drinking seemed to be working. She believed herself no longer an alcoholic. Seduced by alcohol, her misguided belief soon deteriorated as she began a tragic downward slide back into the bottle. With a child and husband, and previous experience with AA, she had lots of reasons to get sober again. But it took a 7 year beating by the disease before she barely made it back to AA. Thoroughly devastated, she got a sponsor and started to work the Program in earnest. As the years multiplied, Marcia stayed in the middle of the Program, going to lots of meetings, continuing service work, and sponsoring many women from a treatment hospital she herself had attended.  Today, Marcia is once again sober 12 years, but this period of sobriety is infused into every facet of her life.

Marcia’s story of long-term sobriety, interrupted by a lengthy slip, should be particularly instructive to anyone who’s ever inhabited the outer regions of the Program where alcohol’s seduction seems the greatest. That Marcia made it back to even tell the story is a worthy demonstration of a power greater than herself. That she has anchored her sobriety to such a strong AA Program, by continuously doing the work, is fine encouragement to anyone struggling to get to the center. This is the 32nd interview in the AA Recovery Interviews podcast. Take a deep breath…exhale, and enjoy the next 60 minutes listening to my friend and AA sister, Marcia G.

Visit the AA Recovery Interviews website for more information and to contact me, Howard L.

Check out Howard’s Big Book Podcast, the complete unabridged audio version of the First and Second Editions of Alcoholics Anonymous. The Big Book Podcast is an engaging cover-to-cover, word-for-word reading of all 11 chapters and Personal Stories, many of which were left out of the Third and Fourth Editions. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Or listen on https://bigbookpodcast.com

Join our Facebook Group and share your own experience, strength, and hope with other AAs.

To contact Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, visit aa.org.

[Disclaimer: In strict adherence to A.A.’s traditions, my anonymous guests and I speak for ourselves only, not for Alcoholics Anonymous at large. We share only our personal experiences with A.A. recovery. We acknowledge that AA’s sole concern is the recovery and continued sobriety of those alcoholics who turn to the Fellowship for help. As members of AA, our primary purpose is to stay sober and to help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. – Howard L.]