It was important for me to get a support group. I got a little black book and I would listen to people share in meetings, and when I heard their shares and then when I saw them walking their talk, I asked them for their phone number.
I had a sponsor, a co-sponsor a woman who was Native-American because I had such a strong connection to their teachings, and a had a Service Sponsor. When I went to NA, I got a NA sponsor, the woman I got for a sponsor didn't think I was a real addict, because I didn't do street drugs, so that relationship did not last long. I ended up going to a fellow in AA, who was an addict, who had the NA literature and chose AA for his recovery. My last AA sponsor was a woman who was a recovering heroin addict who chose AA for her recovery. Their addictions started with alcohol. I went to AA, NA, ACoA, and then to Al-Anon to find myself. I also went to outside counselling. At 15 years sober, I had to go for extra counselling for sexual abuse counselling, even though I had it on my 4th Step, I had more feelings triggered by a relationship that ended and I had to have professional help. It is about being willing go to go any length to stay clean and sober. Life is, and I have to deal with it, or I will end up back out there, and that isn't an option. I choose life.
