[OT] Help to stay away from alcohol needed

Discuss music production with Ableton Live.
FaX-01
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Post by FaX-01 » Fri Feb 17, 2006 1:08 am

suburbanbather wrote: Like many others. Bye bye drugs, hello booze!!!!



Booze is a DRUG - just because it's legal don't kid yourself you aren't "drugging" your life away one glass at a time

[/b]
My aren't the wings of butterflies beautiful and do they not make wonderful perturbations.....

muthafunka
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Post by muthafunka » Fri Feb 17, 2006 1:22 am

conny wrote:Thing is there is an AA meeting place just around the corner, but I don't dare to go there. Equals I don't have the guts to admit my problems are of that dignity. Yet.
So this may be a try to get over it a more indirect way...

// C
There you go Conny, just look at how many of us there are, you could basically walk into a room full of people you as good as know if we were all there. I'm sure if you just walk into the place round the corner you'll find a similar bunch of peeps just like you and all of us (ok...maybe not quite as many Live users but..). Just walk in and check it out, it's not Fight Club, you can always walk out again.

FaX-01
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Post by FaX-01 » Fri Feb 17, 2006 1:32 am

Edit - If I might add.

I don't drink.
I used to have a bad dope habit years back and went cold turkey and haven't had a joint in over 7 years.
Long story but was in a real hideous stage of my life , lots of people I knew had died , including my partner and 3 best friends which led to me being in an abusive relationship which led to dope which isn't dealing with anything.
The whole situation nearly killed me.
Until I grew enough balls to walk away,
I have finally quit cigarettes - I am at higher risk of cancer than most so I'm really proud of myself here as my other half still smokes.
I do how ever have too take ALOT of medication to stay healthy.
Have a very strict diet for the above mentioned needs.
Have had times in my life when I was very ill and family and friends thought I was near death (every time I've managed to bounce back).
Have just had major corrective surgery as my quality of life was going to the dogs due to associated pancreatic disease which has led to insulin dependent diabetes etc etc...
I've lived with a big disease with a little name for 16 years.
Suffered lots of nasty illnesses along the way.
Have had to make major lifestyle changes for my own benefit.
Am on medication for the rest of my life.
Have stood by and watched ALOT of people I knew get sick , die or commit suicide after months of illness from same said disease.
LIFE is a precious and beautiful gift.
It truly is.
I have a great partner and fantastic family support.
That said you really need to wake up and smell the coffee dude.
You have no Idea how thankful I am to just be able to stand here today and say I have survived.
I see the pride in the faces of all the loved ones around me (my parents inparticular) , who have seen me grow stronger and become a better human being in the face of adversity.
It's been a tough slog but I am damn proud of the person I am today.
I am so grateful for the life that I have.
I just cannot understand why anyone would want to piss it away through the bottom of a gin glass myself :(.
It is really sad and disheartens me no end.
What you have is a precious gift.
Life is for the Living.
It sholdn't be taken for granted as it may not be there tomorrow.
I hope you find strength to truly start living life.
It's a wild rollercoaster ride but the ups and downs are more than worth it.
I understand that day to day living can seem unatural even at times forced and hard.
Just remember that LIVING may be hard but LIFE on the otherhand is ALWAYS BEAUTIFUL.
The AA group is there for a reason ....life is sending you a big hint.
Suck it up and take the plunge .
What have you got too loose.
My aren't the wings of butterflies beautiful and do they not make wonderful perturbations.....

zfigz
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Post by zfigz » Fri Feb 17, 2006 1:34 am

I think we all should realize that everyone is affected by drugs differently. I smoke pot regularly and for the most pot I'm pretty damn productive, but then again I am a university student, so I just right the odd paper and then the rest of the time is mine.

As for marijuana not being a motivator, well, I think it is one of the best motivators out there, for me. I don't think I could put together the music I put together without pot at times because it can be so paintstakingly tedious. Loads of musicians daddle in drugs to inspire them, but usually the ones that make a difference are the ones that don't solely rely on those drugs, then again Bob Marley rocked the world away being stoned 24/7.

It is really up to the individual, maybe it isn't the drug that's causing the curb in your workflow, but something else.

p.s. I don't understand how people can write music on a computer while drunk, now that's just plain crazy. But stoners, I totally understand. ;o)

forge
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Post by forge » Fri Feb 17, 2006 2:03 am

my main problme with the AA is the whole "you have to admit you are hopeless" athos they have - I would prefer something more empowering - about giving yourself strength and power to realise you dont nee anything

thing with the AA is they kind of make you like a poor pathetic sheep who needs the big strong AA to fix you. My cousin went the AA route and she still reads it and has stupid things like "AA birthdays" and it's constantly something that she had to fight

whereas my partner used to smoke, read this book by ALan Carr "stop smoking the easy way" which is all about cinvincing yourself you are just kidding yourself that you really need a smoke and your addicition doesnt own you at all etc...she quit the moment she put the book down and hasnt ever questioned it once!

evernaut
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Post by evernaut » Fri Feb 17, 2006 2:04 am

zfigz wrote:
As for marijuana not being a motivator, well, I think it is one of the best motivators out there, for me.
From a creating songs/tracks standpoint I agree 100 percent. I often feel fairly uninspired when say, I get back from work, but if I have a toot it can focus my energy right into the music.

I also drink some wine or beer pretty much every day too. I don't get out of it drunk, just pleasantly vibed & thoroughly enjoy it... but I can't understand people who feel the need to get utterly trollied at the weekend and then be abstemious all week.

Just thought I'd throw in another POV.

zfigz
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Post by zfigz » Fri Feb 17, 2006 2:11 am

I find pot really helps when I have everything laid out (I.e. all the sounds I'm going to use and melodies etc) and when I smoke a bit of doja arranging becomes twice as much fun.

Then again some people aren't cut out for the ol' MJ at all. I've had times when I take a hit off a joint and I get totally paranoid, but then again, that was way back in the day.

I find that regular exercise (running, calisthenics, etc.) balances me out with the pot. I also take vitamins and eat relatively healthy.

pulsoc
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Post by pulsoc » Fri Feb 17, 2006 2:27 am

forge wrote:my main problme with the AA is the whole "you have to admit you are hopeless" athos they have - I would prefer something more empowering - about giving yourself strength and power to realise you dont nee anything

thing with the AA is they kind of make you like a poor pathetic sheep who needs the big strong AA to fix you. My cousin went the AA route and she still reads it and has stupid things like "AA birthdays" and it's constantly something that she had to fight

whereas my partner used to smoke, read this book by ALan Carr "stop smoking the easy way" which is all about cinvincing yourself you are just kidding yourself that you really need a smoke and your addicition doesnt own you at all etc...she quit the moment she put the book down and hasnt ever questioned it once!
Forge I have to take issue with this. I agree that everyone needs to figure out their own way to live, including whether substances are a problem and if so, how they will stop. But I tried to do it on my own, and I was not able. If not for AA I don't think I would have stopped. And I (me personally) needed to understand that I was alchoholic, that I could not solve the problem myself precisely because I was the problem. And while there are people that can do it other ways, you should not discount the AA solution, because it IS something that has worked for a lot of folks for whom nothing else worked. I don't push AA on anyone, if someone asks me how I stopped, or indicates that they think they have a problem, I let them know what worked for me. But I certainly am not a poor pathetic sheep - in fact, I am able to really enjoy life for the first time in a long time.

My 2 cents.

zfigz
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Post by zfigz » Fri Feb 17, 2006 2:40 am

conny, maybe you should move to the north of Sweden in the middle of nowhere, though of course this middle of nowhere should have an internet connection. Quit your alcohol and if you need something else to hold ya over, then grow some good pot.

my 2 cents

Mike Goodwin
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Post by Mike Goodwin » Fri Feb 17, 2006 2:58 am

forge wrote:my main problme with the AA is the whole "you have to admit you are hopeless" athos they have - I would prefer something more empowering - about giving yourself strength and power to realise you dont nee anything

thing with the AA is they kind of make you like a poor pathetic sheep who needs the big strong AA to fix you. My cousin went the AA route and she still reads it and has stupid things like "AA birthdays" and it's constantly something that she had to fight

whereas my partner used to smoke, read this book by ALan Carr "stop smoking the easy way" which is all about cinvincing yourself you are just kidding yourself that you really need a smoke and your addicition doesnt own you at all etc...she quit the moment she put the book down and hasnt ever questioned it once!
I see your point but the guy is looking for help and your steering him away from the most effective support group there is. The stuped birthdays that you talk about saved my life. Im not going to debate the in's and outs of the AA/NA progrm with you because I dont agree with all of it either. Personaly I think that your not helping anyone by badmouthing AA.

suburbanbather
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Post by suburbanbather » Fri Feb 17, 2006 3:56 am

FaX-01 wrote:
suburbanbather wrote: Like many others. Bye bye drugs, hello booze!!!!



Booze is a DRUG - just because it's legal don't kid yourself you aren't "drugging" your life away one glass at a time

[/b]
I am fully aware that Booze is as much a drug as much as anything else that alters the way you think and feel physically and mentally.

I was just saying that after years of smoking dope (every chance I get, which was pretty much whenever I wanted to), shrooms, LSD, XTC, AMT, DMT, PCP, cocaine, meth/glass, Robitussin, Motion sickness pills. I fooled myself with the "If booze is legal then who cares" train of thought. A lot of people that quit ilegal drugs fall into the booze trap. Thats all I was saying.

Aspirin is a drug. Coffee is a drug. Nicotene is a drug. Were all on drugs!

And welcome back by the way! :D

smutek
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Post by smutek » Fri Feb 17, 2006 4:47 am

forge wrote:my main problme with the AA is the whole "you have to admit you are hopeless" athos they have - I would prefer something more empowering - about giving yourself strength and power to realise you dont nee anything
yes, but see it doesn't say "we admitted we were hopeless", I think that would be rather grim and AA/NA and other similar 12 step programs would not see the success rate they are seeing if this was the deal.

What it says is "we admitted we were powerless over alcohol (aa) or our addiction (na). This is a totally different concept. The first step to dealing with a problem is admitting that there is a problem, and despite what you may think this is actually a diffucult step for many people to take, but once done is truly empowering.

Just remember this, the whole aa thing started with 2 drunks, Dr. Bob and Bill Wilson, trying to help each other stay sober. NA was born the same way, out of these exact same ideas, and both have grown to become worldwide fellowships. They work, they are free, open to all, non-political and non-denominational, and completely self supporting by member contributions. And they have helped, and continue to help literally millions of people all over the world.

Not stupid at all, quite amazing if you ask me. infact, NA is the single best thing that has ever happened to me, it saved my life. I rarely go anymore, not because I don't want to but just because I have been so busy. But I am planning on getting involved again, just because I want to be there as an example and to help others.

DeadlyKungFu
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Post by DeadlyKungFu » Fri Feb 17, 2006 4:48 am

isn't AA a faith based program?

smutek
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Post by smutek » Fri Feb 17, 2006 5:08 am

DeadlyKungFu wrote:isn't AA a faith based program?
Yes and no. All meetings open and close with a prayer, and it is definitely a fath based program but it is not a religious program if that is what you mean. AA meetings, atleast here in Baltimore, open and close with the lords prayer but I think that is mainly out of tradition and what stuck when the founders put it together.

I have been to my share of AA meetings, but my experience is mainly with NA. I'm a recovering (heroin) addict and thats where I got clean.

No one is required to say the prayers. So while it is definitely a faith based fellowship, it is geared towards spiritual development and does not engage in religious dogma, infact this is strictly prohibited in the traditions because it would definitely alienate new people. I found that a lot of people, including myself, come in to NA and have a serious distrust of organized religion. NA does not use the lords prayer for specificaly this reason. I used to hear a lot of people jokingly refer to themselves as "recovering catholics" instead of recovering addicts.

It is suggested that people find a "higher power". In NA's prayers this higher power is refered to as "god" but the word god is simply a placeholder for the idea. memebers are free to define their higher power however they want. Whether it be jesus, buddah, allah, brother wolf sister moon, the great spirit, zeus or the magical lobster; I know one lady who refered to her higher power as "vinnie". And I know atheists in NA with substantial clean time.

The only suggestions for this higher power are that it be "loving, caring, and greater than yourself". So yes, NA is a faith based program, but it is spiritual in nature, not religious. Same with AA, though I think it is less apparent because AA is an older program maybe? But the concepts are the same.

mathew
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Post by mathew » Fri Feb 17, 2006 6:02 am

Go for it Conny. Dont half-ass anything, from your music to your job to your family.

If you want to give recovery a shot, give it everything you jave before you walk away from it.

"you dont ever have to drink again, even if you want to."


5 months today.
accepting the problem will only make it go away.
Not Boyfriend Material

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