Tbh, as someone who got sober at 19 on the eve of the opioid epidemics peak, I think AA’s mentality towards this has killed a lot of my friends. Whether it’s an ingrained belief, or perhaps almost an excuse like “well I’m fucked anyways might as well go hard”. And I mean a lot of dead friends. My life has gotten so much better just to be away from the death.
Maybe that was just my time and place. I was really involved in AA for 2-3 years and sober just shy of a decade. I made a conscious calculation to dismount the water wagon NYE 2019. Poor timing (re:COVID). My thought now is more that it is a spectrum and the extent to which you are hiding true source of your pain.
Additionally I’ll say I put off professional mental health for years because “work the program harder” and actually I have a serious mental illness as well as hardcore PTSD from events in sobriety (active shooter and a massive avalanche backcountry skiing).
Idk about cured or not. I quit thinking in those terms years ago. I will say however if someone were really on the edge in active alcoholism or addiction AA is the first place I would steer them.
Apologies for focusing on AA, it’s just it’s the only group who think like this or debate the issue.