IN THE CURRENT MAGAZINE

First, I’ve got to take responsibility for myself. Of the dozen or so loners in foreign countries I know of who have not been able to stay sober and where groups have not formed, there is one fact in common: They never found their Dr. Bob. That is, they never found one other sexaholic who wanted sobriety. They tried to do it on their own or have it done for them in a ready-made group. They did not come to the desperate willingness to reach out to another and try to help them. That’s where the grace of God comes in to expel the obsession.

I arrived 45 minutes late to my first SA meeting. Actually, I was a lifetime late, but that is another story.... It was also the 20th anniversary of the death of my mother and the beginning of my connection to a fellowship of people around the globe that has supported me into my seventh year of sobriety, which has seen fruits in my personal and professional life I would never have even dreamed possible, even before my life fell apart. Other than that, it wasn’t a remarkable evening.

My roommate has a cat named Elway, and used to have a dog named Ginger. There is a pet door for the cat and dog that allows them out into the backyard. Ginger was old and had liver cancer, so my roommate put her down last October. Now that there is no dog around, my roommate is concerned that a coyote might attack the cat. We live near enough to wild space that this is a possibility. So we now close the pet door at night.

Our program offers us the Promises; but, when we are swept up in the throes of our addiction, those Promises seem far off, transitory, unreal. Though I can only speak from my own experience, strength, and hope, I can attest to those Promises being fulfilled.

Good morning recovery family. My name is Esty L. from Miami and I am a recovering sexaholic. My sobriety date is February 26, 2012 for which I am never sufficiently grateful. I am the fourth of 15 children. I grew up in a loving home with two devoted parents who did the best they could to provide me with a stable home.

The life I had been living was definitely insane, and my Step One inventory made that very clear. My way had failed, and I had to find a new solution outside my own thinking and willpower. Stories of recovery, and hearing recovery speakers share the depths of their addiction and how their lives were restored, gave me some small hope.

SA has terrific new videos to use to help spread the word about our program of recovery. One video is a 30-second public service announcement. The second is a 3-minute introduction to SA that gives an overview of our fellowship and the Steps. This could be played in front of a public audience such as a Rotary club, church/synagogue/mosque, prison, hospital, institution, college psychology class, etc.

While in Egypt in January for an SA workshop, the members took me to see some special sights. One day, three young men wanted me to see a couple of special mosques.

Dear Essay: The SA Literature Committee has been asked to assemble an Old-Timers compilation of articles and speeches. Please contribute your favorite text, either print or on a tape or CD, and send it to SAICO by postal mail or internet at saico@sa.org.