You’re not alone. Meet others who have had a problem with alcohol.
Speak to a sober alcoholic 24-hours a day. 804.355.1212
We have volunteers here to help answer your questions.
A Few Things to Know About AA
We have but one singular focus: to stay sober ourselves and to help others who may turn to us for help in achieving sobriety.
We are not reformers, and we are not allied with any group, cause, or religion. We have no wish to make the world stop drinking. We do not recruit new members, but we do welcome them. We do not impose our experience with problem drinking on others, but we do share it when we are asked to do so.
Within our membership may be found people of all ages and many different social, economic, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds. Some of us drank for many years before coming to the realization we could not handle alcohol. Others were fortunate enough to appreciate, early in life or their drinking careers, that alcohol was already unmanageable.
The consequences of our alcoholic drinking have varied. A few of us had become indigent before turning to A.A. for help. Some had lost family, possessions, self-respect, or even their homes. Some of us had even been hospitalized or jailed. We had committed grave offenses — against society, our families, our employers, and ourselves.
Others among us have never been jailed or hospitalized, nor have we lost jobs or families through drinking. Regardless, all of us had finally come to a point where we realized that alcohol was interfering with normal living. When we discovered that we could not live without alcohol, we, too, sought help through A.A.
We do not think we are the only people who have the answer to the problem of drinking. We know that the A.A. program works for us, and we have seen it work for every newcomer, almost without exception, who honestly and sincerely wanted to quit drinking.
Through A.A., we have learned many things about alcoholism and ourselves. We try to keep these facts fresh in our thinking at all times because they seem to be the key to our sobriety. For us, sobriety must always come first.
No, A.A. is not “anti-alcohol”, and we have no wish to reform the world. We are not allied with any group, cause, or religion. We welcome new members, but we do not recruit them.
Among many other things, AA does not:
- Engage in or sponsor research
- Keep attendance records or case histories
- Join “councils” of social agencies
- Follow up with or try to control our members
- Make medical or psychological diagnoses or prognoses
- Provide drying-out or nursing services, hospitalization, drugs, or any medical or psychiatric treatment
- Engage in education about alcohol
- Provide housing, food, clothing, jobs, money, or any other welfare or social services
- Provide domestic or vocational counseling
- Accept any money for our services or any contributions from non-A.A. sources
- Provide letters of reference to parole boards, lawyers, court officials, social agencies, employers, etc.
How It Works
Literature published by A.A. World Services, Inc., is available through Richmond Intergroup. These books and pamphlets are resources for recovering alcoholics and other individuals. In our materials, you can find out more about Alcoholics Anonymous, its history, and how it works.
