Being down
Overcoming Depression
It would be difficult to find a group of people more subject to mood swings than alcoholics. While we were drinking, most of us were not perceptive enough to realize most of us were not perceptive enough to realize that our moods rose and fell in a rhythmic pattern. We did not mind being “up,” but it distressed us greatly when we were “down.” Alcohol was the “upper” most of us took when we were depressed.
In sobriety, there is usually no chemical “upper” that’s safe to take for any of our down moods. Some of us have been helped by vitamins or by inspirational reading. But most of us simply have to RIDE OUT our down moods, doing the best we can until things are on the upswing again. In spite of being down, we do not have to drink.
Whatever the causes of mood swings, we can live with them, and we do not need any mood-altering drugs to see us through a down period. Our depression will pass, and we might even notice its hold lessening as we continue to grow in sobriety.
Affirmation:
I will accept my feelings today, and I will not be disturbed if my mood seems somewhat low. This, too, will pass away.
R 
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This is topic that seems to need to be discussed with some degree of caution…There is a very distinct difference between “Feeling Down ” (mostly because of “POOR LITTLE OLE ME ” kinds of thinking patterns and Clinical Depression. I have had to deal with both…I personally believe that some folks in AA are wanna be Professional Psychiatrists and Pharmacists…My older brother ( a sober member of AA) who is also bi-polar was told to toss his medication in the garbage and just do the Steps as instructed (this was being said to him by one of our
know it all circuit lecturers at a conference , after his standing ovation talk…)..When my brother returned to Canada a couple of weeks later it took 2 large RCMP ,myself and my other brother to hold him down..He had to be institutionalized for 1 or 2 months to get his chemical balance reinstated…I can recall a time that I was getting so down and withdrawn, that I had a difficult time saying ” Hello “, to people at meetings.. I had to go on Prozac for about 6 months a couple of times over the years…There is a huge difference between taking prescribed medication and using it as prescribed and misusing it to get stoned…The point that I am making is WE ARE NOT DOCTORS…..I would strongly suggest Be Careful and turn to the appropriate help when needed for things concerning issues outside of AA…