Jerks and Predators in the Recovery World

The people you meet in recovery aren’t always friendly.

This essay originally appeared in the Exploring Sobriety newsletter.

Photo by Ashley Jurius on Unsplash

I’ve spent a lot of time in the alcoholism-recovery world. I’ve been sober for seven years, but I first started trying to get sober about fourteen years ago.

During that time, I’ve met more recovering alcoholics than I can remember, both in person and online. The vast majority of them have been friendly, helpful, and kind people. Some of the most selfless and caring people I’ve ever met have been recovering alcoholics.

Unfortunately, however, some of the worst people I’ve ever met have been recovering alcoholics too.

Although I normally like to focus on the positive aspects of sobriety, in this week’s newsletter I’m going to talk about one of the negative parts: the jerks and predators in the recovery world.

I’m writing this as a warning because newly sober people are often at their most vulnerable. I believe that it’s important to have a heads-up about the type of people that you may face in recovery spaces.

This isn’t meant as a critique of AA or any other specific program. In my experience, this is a problem that exists across the board.