Your first
recovery meeting.

Choose a meeting for your situation

You do not have to decide on every part of your recovery today. Start by distinguishing support for your own drinking or addictive behavior from support for the effects of someone else’s.

• Your drinking: AA is a fellowship focused on recovery from alcoholism. Its membership requirement is a desire to stop drinking; there are no membership dues. Read Northeast Florida Intergroup’s introduction to AA.
• Your addictive behavior: SMART Recovery offers facilitated peer meetings addressing alcohol, drugs, gambling, and other problematic behaviors. Its meeting introduction explains its format and free online and in-person options.
• Someone else’s drinking: Al-Anon is for affected family members and friends. Its newcomer introduction can help you decide whether to try it.
• Christian recovery: Explore Christian support options, then ask the organizer about the group’s focus, format, and entry process.

These are starting points, not a ranking. Our resource directory also includes NA, Nar-Anon, treatment information, and other support.

Make the practical part smaller

Choose a meeting you can realistically reach. Open the organizer’s current listing rather than relying on an old screenshot. Before leaving, check the day, time, exact room, parking or transit, and accessibility. For an online meeting, check the time zone and joining instructions.

If the listing uses terms such as “open,” “closed,” “beginners,” or “step study,” ask what they mean for that group and whether the meeting is intended for you. If you want to bring someone for support, check whether they may attend.

Here is a simple question you can adapt: “I’m thinking about coming for the first time. Where should I go, and is there anything I need to know?” You can also ask about cost, registration, childcare, and how long the meeting runs. Do not assume those details are the same everywhere.

For Jacksonville and the Beaches, use our local starting-points guide to reach the organizations that maintain the listings.

What might happen inside?

Formats vary. SMART describes a typical meeting as a check-in, discussion or work with a recovery tool, sharing possible solutions, and a checkout. Many run around 90 minutes; check the individual listing. Read SMART’s meeting guide.

Al-Anon says newcomers may choose to listen rather than speak, and can ask members questions before or after the meeting. It does not require an appointment or referral, and contributions are voluntary. Read Al-Anon’s newcomer FAQ.

If you are unsure what to do, ask the person leading the meeting. You do not need to arrive with a polished account of your life. A practical sentence is enough: “I’m new, and I’d like to understand how this works.”

Respect other people’s privacy. Avoid photographs, recordings, or repeating identifying details about people you meet. For an online meeting, consider headphones and a space where others cannot overhear.

Let one visit be one visit

Afterward, pause before deciding what the experience means about your whole future. Was there someone you could ask a question? Did the format fit what you were looking for? What remains unclear?

You might return, ask about another group, or explore professional support. A meeting is not a medical assessment, and this guide does not advise how to manage withdrawal or change medication. Those questions belong with a qualified healthcare professional.

For a fictional companion to this guide, read The chair at the door, then download its reflection card.