The First Time I Asked Someone to Sponsor Me Online
For the first few months I attended ACA meetings online, I didn’t think much about finding a sponsor. Honestly, I was still getting used to being in the meetings at all. Sometimes I kept my camera off. Sometimes I wanted to share but couldn’t make myself raise my...
I Didn’t Think a 12-Step Program Was for Me Just Because I Grew Up In a Dysfunctional Home
When I first heard that ACA was a 12-step program, I wasn’t sure what to do with that. I thought 12-step programs were for people who had a specific addiction they were trying to stop. Drinking. Drugs. Gambling. Something obvious. Something you could point to and say,...
Reclaiming Play: Joy, Healing, and the Inner Child
One of the most surprising discoveries in my recovery has been that healing is not only about facing my pain. It is also about reclaiming my joy. Many of us grew up in homes where play was interrupted by chaos, addiction, neglect, fear, or overwhelming responsibility....
Becoming My Own Loving Parent: How Tradition 6 Brought Me Back to Myself
There are moments in my recovery where I can feel myself leave. Not physically—but internally. It happens when I start focusing on what other people are doing or not doing, when I notice who isn’t working the steps, when I feel frustrated that others aren’t taking...
Why I Feel Responsible for Everyone’s Mood
I used to think I was just really good at reading people. Like weirdly good at it. I could tell when somebody’s tone changed by like two percent. I could tell when a room felt “off” almost immediately. If somebody got quiet, irritated, awkward, distant, or tense, I...
Why Contribute to WSO?
The question “Why contribute to WSO?” can be answered in practical terms, but equally as importantly it can be answered in a values-based sense. Certainly, contributions help ACA’s World Service Organization carry the message to adult children who still suffer. They...
Just for Today
Today, I choose to step off the emotional merry-go-round, put down my desire to grasp that brass ring and ride again for free. Today, I know there is no free unless I make it so. Today I choose to step off the leadership ladder, knowing that the steps go down as well...
Sharing our Success Stories
We know that as ACA‘s we sometimes focus on our problems and not on our successes. Some years ago, my home group decided to add to its format the question “Does anyone have a success in program to report this week?” We discovered two remarkable things. First, asking...
A Lake of People
When I was growing up and when I was an adult, I didn’t see myself as a separate entity. I would go through life like a person standing in a lake and all the other people I see are in the lake too. When someone has a feeling or a thought or a want or a demand, it was...
My Inner ACA Meeting
Sitting in a circle, listening, and sharing has been my weekly anker for the last 13 years and I’m still amazed by this way of support in ACA. Through literature, I’ve learnt about reparenting my inner children. The biggest breakthrough in connecting with my inner...