Carry the Message and not the Alcoholic

Lea and Michelle now both get DSHS money on the first.  They said they were going Christmas shopping when they left this morning to walk to the stores.  10 hours later and they are not home.  An obvious explanation that fits the facts is they relapsed again after having less than $200 put on their EBT card.

That is said on a variety of levels.   They were closing in on two months without a relapse although Lea’s abuse of take-home methadone is suspect at best.   What is worse than a relapse is that they can’t trust themselves to handle their own money. 

I was blessed to have a sister handle my money when I was new to the program.  They don’t have a sibling they can trust to manage their money.  Michelle is going to Sound Mental Health.  I know that they have staff doing payee services there since they do Dan’s payee services.  Margie suggested talking with them about getting a payee.    That is a good idea.

In the past, I would rescue Lea by answering the phone and giving her a ride to the methadone clinic after a relapses.  I am not going to do that tomorrow.  The appropriate AA slogan is to carry the message and not the alcoholic.  I have carried Lea a lot in this year and protected her from many consequences of her behavior.  It might not be time to stop completely, but I am certainly going to carry her a lot less in the future.

I am grateful that I am sober, that I have friends in the program to talk with, and that I was able to be of great service to others.  This has been a wonderfu year of personal growth for me due in large part to getting out of myself by helping others.