Yes it's true that there are many offline organizations available to help in recovery, but not everyone who’s addicted can get to those organizations. For some people with special needs like the deaf, the visually impaired and blind, the disabled, the home bound and for geographically isolated alcoholics/addicts, “cyberspace” offers all of these the chance of forming a Recovery Community.
Now all of these don’t sound like much when you just read it off in a list like that, but if you add up the potential numbers of them altogether, we’re talking about between 1 and 2 million alcoholics alone. That’s about as many people as are currently in the membership of the entire North American AA, somewhere in that range. So there are a lot of people that could be served by an Online Recovery Community, even more than there are now.
In cyberspace we see a good number of alcoholics/addicts looking for help for the first time. I believe we’ll see them in ever-increasing numbers. Online recovery groups can help those who are trying to recover from alcoholism, drug abuse, and other addictions. These web-based groups make it easier for members to apply recovery skills, locate more support resources, and learn to live without their debilitating substance.
One online recovery group is Recovery REALM.
Recovery REALM is a free online recovery community, which respects the anonymity of its membership. Participants at Recovery REALM not only partake in a healthy fellowship but also receive recovery support similar to the 12 step meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (AA) found offline. The meetings are free and are facilitated by volunteers with a 12-step background.
Understand no two online recovery groups are alike. There is an enormous diversity among groups reflecting unique features of the particular group and the individuals who constitute it. There is a tremendous variation of emphasis, emotional tone, meeting philosophy, readings and ritual, and informal group norms from one group to another.
What Recovery REALM offers is an online website where fellow recovering addicts can interact. They accomplish this by providing a variety of interactive recovery tools such as Chat Rooms, Message Forums, and Blogs. Participants can even attend chaired online meetings.
Recovery REALM provides a new realm in addiction recovery and it’s found online. This new face of addiction recovery does not take place in a church basement or a hotel lounge on Sunday or in a clubhouse. But it does take place every day 24/7 where ever the hand of a suffering alcoholic can reach out and Log in. Not you’re Traditional AA or 12 step meeting but nonetheless REAL.
