Kübler-Ross originally developed stages to describe the process that patients with terminal illnesses go through as they come to terms with their own death. It was later applied to grieving friends and family as well as divorcees. For instance, all seemed to undergo a similar process.
Losing the bottle to an alcoholic fits very well into this scenario of significant loss. Alcohol has been our savior. Our best friend. Only companion. Lover. End all. Be all. So, of course losing this avenue of escape is a significant loss. Whenever one suffers a similar loss, then one must go through all of the stages of grief.
Kubler-Ross first names 5 stages of this significant loss and grief recovery. She also reports that we all must go through the entire cycle in order to heal. Different people need to spend more or less time in each stage. But, all do go through it. The stages are, in order, Denial. Then, Anger. Followed by Bargaining. In addition to Depression. In conclusion, Acceptance. This may explain why we can suddenly go into a deep depression or funk along with not know where it came from.
How does one work our way through these stages of Significant Loss that affect us all? This is where the Spiritual aspect of the program jumps in, loud and clear. First, Step 2, there is a Higher Power and I can use Him. Then 3, God Help Me through this. As it says in How it Works, God could and would IF HE WERE SOUGHT. Followed by Step 11, daily reminders to talk WITH the Higher Power, NOT TO the Higher Power. Asking only for the knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry it out. Finally, Step 12, by working these principles it will get better just as soon as I believe, truly believe, it to be true (faith). I am truly Happy, Joyous, and Free and, of course, have suffered much significant loss, too.
YOU CAN BE TOO. Whether you are new to AA or an “Old Timer.” First, dive head and heart first into the AA program. After that, watch your life improve dramatically. Absolutely. In conclusion, it will! AND THIS IS A PROMISE!
We can be reached at Spiritualityandrecovery@gmail.com or 810-965-6140 usually within hours.
More can be found on our other pages. We have an AA Zoom meeting, blogs, and a podcast. Then is our Facebook page. They are updated regularly. We hope that you will join us on these sites. After that, please comment so that we can share with each other our experiences, strengths, and hopes. The Zoom meeting is every Monday through Friday, 3:00 PM EST. Meeting ID is 6035280704. Password 399778. It is simple to locate the blogs and Facebook pages. Just search @Spiritualityandrecovery. For the podcast, search Spotify.com for Spiritualityandrecovery. On iPhone say “Hey Siri, Play the podcast Spiritualityandrecovery.” Or, “Hey, Google. Play the Jim Boylan podcast.”
