Dual Diagnosis Support Group

Hello all! My name is Adam and I'm all of the things above in the subject line, plus more. I have know I was bipolar for the last 10 years and let me tell you it's been a hell of a ride.

7 months ago I accepted the fact that I was an addict (I say addict because I am addicted to many things. Including alcohol, sex, shopping, whatever!). I have never been happier in my life. The last months have been a God send. I am fortunate enough to have gone into treatment at Valley Hope in Atchinson, KS (which is an awesome place BTW). While there I was reacquainted with AA and introduced to NA.

Now I have had some experience with AA in the past and have to admit, I did not like it. I used to go in there and look around the room and think "what a bunch of losers. All they do is bitch about their problems and drink coffee." Needless to say I needed a reality check and have had one since.

I love the AA program but have found it difficult to pay attention in there and get what I need out of it. I want to stay sober and have been doing a great job at it but life seems to be throwing constant curve balls at me and I'm trying to cope constantly.

The one thing that keeps me smiling and happy is my family whom I love so much. If I did not have them, I don't think I could have done all this...well I'm losing my train of thought here. But that's the story of my life. Thanks!

i can relate ...i have had similar feelings about a.a. in past ..im tryin n.a. now ...being on the bp rollercoaster is no fun for sure...welcolme to the group....

jwar, welcome to the group. I go to AA and have done so for 17 years and have been sober for 17 years. It hasn't been a perfect relationship. There have been times when I couldn't sit through a meeting, times I couldn't concentrate, people I couldn't stand to look at or listen to. But I kept going back and I kept trying to get a message at each meeting. If I can go into a meeting with even the slightest bit of an open-mind I will hear what I am supposed to hear, even if I can only pay attention to 15 minutes out of the hour. It never fails. I would say to you why don't you keep going to meetings and try to listen, try to pay attention. And if you don't like one meeting try another. I don't like every meeting there is where I live. But I have found the meetings that I belong in. If you keep trying it might work for you too. And welcome to MDJunction. Glad you're here.

Hey, I live in Atchison, I wonder if we bumped into each other at a meeting????Sara, alcoholic,addict. Atchison is my home group.

I went to an NA meeting yesterday and there was someone HIGH but then I went to VH and talked it out with John. I have no desire to use is just sent me into a tailspin. Glad you found us and by the way if you read my intro I have kicked the pill habit. Life couldn't be better.

Do you have a sponser. Please find a place that you are comfortable to go to meetings and work the steps. It is a way of figuring out your life.....I am just now working the steps after obstaining from alcoho and cocaine for 3 plus years. I didn't think I needed it but now I know why I needed it. I don't know how far Belton is from Atchison but we have great meetings here on ninth street. I wouldn't recommend the NA group to you though.

Thank you everyone for the warm welcome!

I'm not sure if we've ran into each other, but it's quite possible. I was at Valley Hope around 7 months ago and attended the AA meetings in town. I never did go to the NA meetings though because people told me they were kind of chaotic.

I do in fact have a sponsor but my doctor suggested I find a Dual Diagnosis group. She told me that because I'm bipolar that recovery is very different for me mentally than people who do not have it. Not exactly sure whether I understand or agree with her completely but hell I'm willing to try it.

John is a great guy! He was the leader of my small group near the end of my stay at Valley Hope. Before him it was Robin, who I might add is a wonderful person as well.

OH! And Belton is about 2 and 1/2 hours from Atchinson.

Jwar, I have bipolar and am an alcoholic. I never called myself duel diagnosed until recently. I went to AA to stay sober and went to my pdoc for treatment of my bipolar. It's just always been 2 seperate issues for me. I've always been honest with therapists and pdocs and regular docs about my alcoholism so that they know up front not to perscribe things that could cause addiction or cause the cravings to flare up. This is just how I've treated my problems.

There are no dual diagnosis meetings near me that I have been able to find so if I waited for that I'd still be drinking and I've not drank or used drugs for 17 years. There are meetings available for dual diagnosis but from what I can tell they are pretty few and far between. I really don't know how our recovery from alcoholism is any different from anybody else's. Over the years I've seen a lot of people recover from alcoholism and a lot of people not recover from alcoholism. It all boils down to the same thing, whether dual diagnosed or not, do you want to stay clean and sober or do you not? Being bipolar or depressive or having anxiety, etc. just adds an extra burden to the recovery in that we may have learned to use drugs and alcohol to self-medicate and we have to unlearn that behavior. But in reality everyone that drinks or uses drugs is self-medicating something. So, that's my experience, strength and hope for the day. I'll get off my soap box now.

Here's the link to DRA. I hope there's a meeting near you. I can't recommend the meetings to you because I've never been to one, there aren't any any where near me. But maybe there will be some near you.

http://draonline.org/

I'm newly diagnosed with bipolar, but have been dealing with that issue for 20 years and didn't know it. Thank god I finally found a Doctor who realized what the true issue is. Other Doctors would precribe anti-depressants to me. That only made my maniac phases worse. I too consider myself a alcoholic. I don't drink daily. But about one a week I would binge drink and that caused major issues at home.I've been to AA in the past, but it didn't seem to help. In my opinion I was only treating one of the symptoms of the true issue. My Bipolar The meds are helping and i really have no desire to drink these days.

I know how you feel. I know that I am an alcoholic but also know that like you I am only treating one of the symptoms. But the way I look at it is, at least I'm treating one. I can't take on the world but I can sure give it my best.