The Estate News & Blog

Times are Changing for Self Help Programs

Written by Soberman's Contributor | March 25, 2020 at 3:06 PM

At Soberman’s Estate, we provide outreach and information to our Alumni on a regular basis and feel it is pertinent to everyone in our recovery community to be privy to the information below. Although our program is not based on Self-help programs, we support our Alumni in finding any resources which are helpful to recovery.

In-person meetings are the lifeline of Self Help programs across the country and across the world. The ability to meet with other addicts and alcoholics has a grounding effect on everyone’s who attends. With the onset of COVID-19 many meetings are being temporarily cancelled and access to the many locations have ceased because of the instruction to increase social distancing.

Local Intergroup offices are trying to keep up with the changes which are occurring with meeting schedules and they are more than willing to assist you in finding in-person meetings which are currently active. In addition, “The Grapevine” which is usually a paid subscription for members can now be accessed online for free to support self-help members with reading personal recovery stories and listening to personal stories through the Grapevine YouTube channel online.

A major shift with meetings is occurring online. Many online meetings are being created from local groups establishing their own Zoom meetings by invite only and many Facebook Recovery groups are listing online meetings on a national basis. It is amazing how quickly the recovering community is pulling together to support each other. Some of the Facebook groups require you to become a member of that group and it is important to realize that the rules with personal anonymity are changing rapidly. There are meetings online which are designated as closed meetings for alcoholics and addicts only, and there are open meetings for anyone who is interested in learning more about alcoholism and addiction.

If you want to stay connected with your local recovery networks online meetings, call your personal recovering friends and ask about what in-person meetings have been replaced with online meetings and ask about how to get access to those online meetings. Members are more than willing to include you in the online meetings.

Online meetings are not much different than in person meeting with some minor differences. When you log in to an online meeting you have the choice to use your real name or a fictitious name. You also have the option to have your audio feed on or off. Many of the meeting organizers will ask you to mute your audio unless you are asked to share. If you want to be anonymous simply give a fictitious name, turn your audio/video feed off and just listen to the speaker or the discussion.

Most online meetings follow the same formats as the in-person meetings. Either they are Speaker meetings, Topic Discussion meetings, Step meetings, or Big Book meetings. Some of the meetings are specific to gender, or sexual orientation, or spiritual beliefs so make sure to be clear when you join an online meeting that you know the makeup of the meeting.

About Soberman’s Estate: With only 5 Beds on 5 acres Soberman's Estate has become a popular place to sequester and Recover! The Estate will expand to 10 beds the summer of 2020. The recovery program of choice for men to recover from addictions and underlying behavioral health issues is Soberman’s Estate. Soberman’s Estate is a confidential, discreet, licensed residential treatment center located 30 miles north of PHX international airport. Soberman’s Estate has developed an integrative addiction recovery program that effectively treats all addictions and underlying mental health issues. We understand the specific needs of the adult men and if you or someone you know, is considering treatment for addiction, please call 480-595-2222 for a complimentary consultation and please visit www.SobermansEstate.com