Coming to a meeting for the first time is a scary experience. Many of us come to our first meeting because we have to, not because we want to. We are scared, shy, and would rather be anywhere else on earth. These unknown people can’t possibly understand our problem.
By sharing how we felt during our first days and weeks in the program we begin to build a bridge for the newcomers. We invite them to join us because we, too, were standing there once ourselves. We do know how they feel.
Alateens Share on
NEWCOMERS
I used to feel very, very angry about my mother’s drinking. I also thought that I was the only one who had a family that had alcohol problems.
When I first came to Alateen I couldn’t believe how many kids had the same problems in their families that I had in mine.
I’m just glad I’m not alone.
I used to feel left out, like I had no friends. Even my family members weren’t able to be friends with me, yet.
My mother had been going to AA for a little while. I think I saw some changes in her, but she was gone a lot of the time. She loved her meetings, and she went to a lot of them, but if she missed a week or two of meetings, then she’d yell and act crazy.
Then one day, when I couldn’t stay home alone, my mom took me to her meet
