The Launch Pad

I first came to AA not because I thought I had a problem with drinking but because I had a big problem with hangovers. I had a vague notion that I could get some literature, preferably written by an authority such as a doctor or a federal agency, that would tell me how to deal with hangovers. I had barely heard of AA and had no idea that as a member of AA I would be expected to not drink. That was the furthest thing from my mind. I only sought relief from my physical torment. I called AA and was directed to a women's meeting here in my community. I had to summon up a lot of courage to get myself to go; I arrived in the parking lot early and went into the meeting late. I was totally disgusted with what I saw and heard there. It seemed like a huge crowd of women talking about nothing but God. In the first place, I didn't trust women (or men either for that matter). In the second place, I was a belligerent atheist. To top it off, I had closed my mind to all new ideas by the time I was in my early twenties. I believed what my parents had taught me was right and everything else was wrong. I left the meeting in total despair, in tears for the first time in a long time. I felt hopeless because I knew this wasn't for me and I didn't know where else to go.