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Meetings

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What to expect

  • Who: ACA Meetings are made up of people who wish to recover from the effects of growing up in an alcoholic or otherwise dysfunctional homes. Many of us identify with these common survival traits.
  • Duration: ACA meetings are 60 minutes to 90 minutes in duration. There are some two-hour meetings with a break at one hour.
    • Live Meeting Format: The ACA meeting might focus on reading and discussion of ACA literature or a recovery-related topic. Members are asked to avoid intellectualizing the topics. We talk about our feelings and our life experiences and how the literature, Step work or other ACA recovery works in our lives. We share about personal change, working the steps and connecting with our inner child and higher power. We talk openly about our lives and our hope.
    • Telephone and Virtual Meeting Format: Telephone and Virtual meetings are accessible by either Telephone, Smart phone or computer as described in the meeting information. Follow the meeting instructions to gain access. Participants are asked to mute themselves if they are not sharing. There are many formats (described below), but most telephone/virtual meetings have a meeting chairperson who reads guidelines and describes how the format works. Participants take turns reading from the ACA Text. Next, the chairperson asks for volunteers to share, one at a time, about their experience relating to the topic or reading. As with the live meetings, we talk about our feelings and our life experiences and how the literature, step work, or other ACA recovery works in our lives. We share about personal change, working the steps, and connecting with our inner child and higher power.
  • Respect: There is no “cross talk” which means no one interrupts or criticizes what another has to say, members speak only from their own point of view and experience. If there is ever perpetrating behavior, the meeting moderator will drop the perpetrator from the conference calls.

Meeting Search

To find the details on any meetings in this area please go to https://adultchildren.org/meeting-search. There you can choose from a number of meeting locations and times and find information on the whens, wheres and the whos of meetings in our area as well as around the world.

Meeting Locations in West Great Lakes ACA Intergroup

Currently the West Great Lakes ACA Intergroup has meetings originating in the following localities. Nearly all our meetings are currently being held virtually. For information on days, times and locations (virtual or in person) please go to the Adult Children Meeting Search Page.

  • Antioch, IL
  • Arlington Heights, IL
  • Batavia, IL
  • Blue Island, IL
  • Chicago, IL
  • Crestwood, IL
  • Deerfield, IL
  • Des Plaines, IL
  • Downers Grove, IL
  • Elk Grove Village, IL
  • Evanston, IL

  • Forest Park, IL
  • Hyde Park – Chicago, IL
  • Joliet, IL
  • La Grange, IL
  • Lake Barrington, IL
  • Libertyville, IL
  • Loves Park, IL
  • Naperville, IL
  • Palatine, IL
  • Skokie, IL
  • Tinley Park, IL
  • Wilmette, IL
  • Winfield, IL
  • Griffith, IN
  • Fitchburg, WI
  • La Crosse, WI
  • Madison, WI
  • Mequon, WI
  • Sheboygan, WI
  • South Kenosha, WI
  • Wauwatosa, WI
  • West Allis, WI
  • Wisconsin Dells, WI

Special Events

New Meetings and Changes