AA Chat Rooms: A Virtual Substitute to AA Meetings

Alcoholics Anonymous, commonly known as AA, is an organization that can be found around the world, even online with AA chat rooms, where one alcoholic is helping another. AA and other self help organizations are often recommended to be used in addition to other forms of treatment for alcoholism. Other forms of treatment would include Cognitive-behavioral therapy and Family therapy.

AA groups can be found around the world meeting regularly. These meetings are designed to bring together those who wish to stop drinking alcohol. These meetings give individuals the chance to share with and listen to those who are suffering from the same affliction. This can provide a person with a better understanding of the disease of addiction.

Addiction thrives on isolation, so by attending these meetings you are (hopefully) connecting with others in recovery and seeing similarities with their journey and yours. Having a support system with individuals working their own recovery can be helpful in your challenging moments.

Many feel as though it is just as important to speak with individuals before and after a meeting as it is to share during the meeting. New comers are often encouraged to connect with individuals who have a recovery that they would like to have. For example, if a new comer has found themselves in legal trouble resulting from driving while under the influence of alcohol, they may find benefit from connecting with someone who had a similar experience and has experienced the consequences to their actions. It can be difficult to have similar interactions with individuals while in chat rooms due to not being in the same room.

According to the American Addiction Center, approximately 17 million people meet criteria for Alcohol Use Disorder. Individuals in any of the three stages of addiction can benefit from the Alcoholics Anonymous Program, including their online Chat Rooms. This would include individual who struggle with binge drinking, and those who have struggled with chronic alcohol abuse for years.

There are a large number of chat rooms floating around the internet and it does not take much searching to find a list of them.

It is highly recommended for you try out a free AA chat room to see if you are comfortable with the whole experience.

Some of the other chat rooms may require you to download special software but many are simple to use and browser-based.

This is important for you to get to know others better and enjoy the interaction which can be of great benefit to all those taking part. Many alcoholics find it beneficial to help another alcoholic.

If you have never tried chatting online before, it would be useful to accustom yourself to a list of acronyms and lingo commonly used in chat rooms.

With the plethora of acronyms used on the Internet these days, this might sound like a daunting task for a new user. It seems as though there are new acronyms and lingo used daily with social media. A simple search on the internet can provide you with a list of common acronyms used to date.

To make matters worse, certain AA chat rooms also have their own unique lingo which you will only learn after spending some time there. However, bear in mind that you do not need to remember everything. Read AA online meeting and chat room acronyms for a full list of popular AA acronyms. Just getting to know the popular ones will enable you to chat comfortably through any online or text-based media.

Let’s look an example to show the benefit of looking at the different lingo words. For someone not familiar with common the AA chat room lingo, they may this that “AA” is referring to Alcoholics Anonymous. Besides that, AA can also be mean:

• Absolute Abstinence
• Adventurers Anonymous
• Altered Attitudes
• Altruistic Action
• Attitude Adjustments

“FEAR” has at least 13 different meanings which could make misunderstanding common occurrence. As stated above, you do not need to memorize all the acronyms you find online. If something doesn’t make sense, you can always ask questions to gain clarification.

It is also important for you to remember that AA chat rooms were initially created to replace actual, formal meetings for those unable to attend. Hence, do try to take things seriously when you join the room.

There are some simple rules for engaging in the AA Chat rooms. Not surprisingly, there is an expectation for individuals to be polite and courteous. We do not know what other participants are going through, so try to have some empathy and compassion. It is encouraged that individuals remain civil when having a disagreement.

Similarly to in person and online AA meetings, it is asked that members avoid talking about old “war stories” from their previous drinking behaviors. The reasoning behind this is that it can often glorify drinking by focusing on the positive aspects and not recognizing the consequences. This can also romanticize alcohol which can have a negative impact on the person sharing as well as the other group members. Staying in the solution is one way to avoid glorifying drinking behaviors.

Another expectation is that when participating in the chat rooms, you are sober. Think about your behaviors when you are impaired- are you thoughtful, kind and considerate? Maybe not, and for those reasons it is best to reach out to a sober support via phone call or text compared to the AA chat rooms.

As every chat room is made up of different individuals and people tend to stick to their few preferred rooms, try to seek one that allows you to comfortably fit in.

If a particular free Alcoholic Anonymous chat room seems hostile and makes you feel unwelcome, do remember that you always have the choice of moving on to the next one. Only by feeling relaxed among a group of people you can relate to can you truly maximize the power of an online AA chat room. Should you feel someone is acting in an inappropriate way, responding to this is the responsibility of someone else in the chat room. It is not worth your time and effort to get involved.

It is strongly recommends that the AA Chat rooms are not be used to replace old-fashioned meetings due to the loss of the face-to-face interaction and support available there. While participating in a chat room, we can be easily distracted by what’s going on around us and lose focus of the meeting and its message. We also lose out on the opportunity to engage in social connections and a deeper helping relationship.

It may have been difficult finding an AA chat room in the past, however this is not the case anymore. It may be necessary to participate in multiple chat rooms before you find one that is a good fit for you. Try not to get discouraged with negative experiences, there are healthy options available.

The official AA Chat room can be located at AAchat.org. On this website, you will also find the guidelines for behaviors while in the chat rooms. An additional resource is the monthly calendar that lists the online meetings. Meetings shown vary in time from 8am until 10pm EST.

The following URLs will provide you with a substantial list of AA chat rooms for you to try out until you find one that is to your liking. Who knows, you might not just be helped with your drinking problems but end up making more than a few good friends along the way.

• Online Recovery
• StepChat
• Agapecenter

Do You Need Help on Your Journey to Sobriety?

Taking the road to recovery and sobriety is not an easy feat. For many people, it could be one of the toughest journeys they have to take. Nonetheless, you don’t have to take it alone. If you want to know more about which options. like AA chat meetings are right for you, please contact a treatment provider today.