Alcoholics Anonymous Meetings in Virginia

What Is Alcoholics Anonymous?

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is an international fellowship of men and women who have had a drinking problem. It is nonprofessional, self-supporting, nondenominational, and available almost everywhere. AA groups meet regularly to help members achieve sobriety through following the 12-step program.

Richmond Central Group

Meetings:

• Monday – Friday: 12 pm (open)
• Tuesday: 8 pm (closed)
• Saturday: 12 pm (open), 8 pm (open)

Atlantic Group

Meetings:

• Sunday: 6 pm (closed)
• Monday: Noon (open), 8 pm (open)
• Friday: 8 pm (open)

Old Dominion Group

Meetings:

• Monday: 7 pm (open)
• Wednesday: 7 pm (closed)
• Saturday: 10 am (open)

The 12 Steps of AA

Alcoholics Anonymous outlines a 12-step program to help those struggling with alcohol addiction. The steps aim to motivate members to make positive changes in their lives.

1. Admitting one is powerless over alcohol and that one’s life has become unmanageable.
2. Coming to believe that a Power greater than oneself can restore one to sanity.
3. Making a decision to turn one’s will and one’s life over to the care of God as we understand Him.
4. Making a searching and fearless moral inventory of oneself.
5. Admitting to God, to oneself, and to another human being the exact nature of one’s wrongs.
6. Being entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
7. Humbly asking Him to remove our shortcomings.
8. Making a list of all persons we had harmed and becoming willing to make amends to them all.
9. Making direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
10. Continuing to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.
11. Seeking through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understand Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we try to carry this message to alcoholics and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

Getting Started with AA in Virginia

Use the meeting search on udetc.org to find local meetings in your area. Virginia has both in-person and online/virtual Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings available in most places.

Attending Your First Local AA Meeting

Virginia has both open and closed AA meetings:

• Open meetings – Anyone can attend, including non-alcoholics. These focus on AA principles and personal stories.
• Closed meetings – Only those with a desire to stop drinking may attend. These involve more sharing and support between alcoholics.

When attending your first local Virginia AA meeting:

1. Arrive early and introduce yourself as a new member of the local AA community. This will help you meet members and get comfortable.
2. Share your experiences if you feel comfortable. There is no obligation to share, but it can help in your recovery process.

You may receive welcome keychain tags marking sobriety milestones at your first meeting or when reaching sobriety milestones, such as:

• 30 days
• 60 days
• 90 days
• 6 months
• 9 months
• 1 year
• 18 months
• Years (2, 3, 4, etc.)

The most important things are attending regularly, participating if willing, finding support and fellowship, and staying focused on your recovery goals.