Elvis has Left the Building

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My name is Jim and I'm a recovering alcoholic through the Twelve Step Programme, good sponsorship and the Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous. Despite having an extensive knowledge regarding alcoholism through my training as a psychiatric nurse, and having worked in the alcohol dependency unit of a psychiatric hospital in the 1970s, I didn't know anything about my own alcoholism until AA gave me the ability to combat my ingrained denial through the Twelve Step Programme and a wonderful sponsor, who I dearly miss since his passing in February 2014.

It wasn't until then that I thought there might just be a possibility that an alcohol problem was the cause of the visual and auditory hallucinations I had previously put down to something I'd eaten; I mean, it couldn't possibly be alcohol. After all, I worked with people with alcohol problems, I nursed them in the alcohol dependency unit, therefore, quite logically, I couldn't be an alcoholic!! Could I? If my 'DT's' had been horrific, I might have come to AA earlier. I don't know. I didn't know I, didn't know!! You see, all I heard was Bill Hayley and the Comets playing "Rock around the clock" at all hours of the morning, coming from the empty flat down below me or Elvis Presley walking through my living room wall, and standing there in his white suit with the collar with the gold trimmings turned up saying, "Uh uh." That's all, no singing or music, just, "Uh uh."

Shortly after that I had my last drink in February 1993. I came back to Alcoholics Anonymous in May 1994 and have stayed ever since. I can't say that I have never wanted a drink since 1993, but I can say that I have never needed a drink since then. I can think of loads of excuses for having that first drink, but I can't think of one reason.

Thank you,   JIM, Lanark