...Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) refers to a fellowship of individuals who share their experience, strength, and hope with one another that they may solve their common problem and help one another in recovering from alcoholism. Alcoholism is an addiction to the consumption of alcoholic liquor or the mental illness and compulsive behavior resulting from alcohol dependency. The origins of AA trace back to the early 20th century. During that time, a religious movement in both Europe and the US, the Oxford Group, brought group of people together who practiced a formula of self-improvement by preforming self-inventory, admitting wrongs, making amends, using prayers and meditation, and carrying the message to others. During...
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...Step 12 – Help Others - Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to addicts, and to practice these principles in all our affairs. The 12 Traditions Tradition 1 - Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon AA unity. Tradition 2 - For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority—a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern. Tradition 3 -The only requirement for AA membership is a desire to stop drinking. Tradition 4 - Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or AA as a whole. Tradition 5 - Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers. Tradition 6 - An AA group ought never endorse, finance, or lend the AA name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property, and prestige divert us from our primary purpose. Tradition 7 - Every AA group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside...
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...Monday 8:00 PM AA Young People North Hollywood Hall 6/8/2015 Tuesday 7:30 PM AA New Start Beginners Meeting 20440 Lassen St (Church) 6/15/2015 Monday Noon Old Timers Mtg at Valley Club * Narcotics Anonymous 5/31/2015 Sunday 3:00 PM NA meeting Radford Hall * Codependents Anonymous 6/16/2015 Tues 7:30 pm CODA Women’s Meeting Granada Hills 6/18/2015 Thurs. 7:30 pm CODA Tarzana Group Thursday Alcoholics Anonymous came into being in June 1935.The fundamentals of the 12 step programs has remained the same since 1935, however today the twelve steps are helping people with more than alcohol. Today many 12 step program have form and also alternative 12 step programs with more God or God being removed but at the basis level it is the twelve steps. I also believe the twelve steps are just basic tools that all people need or most people have received the basis tools when growing up in a healthy family system. The 12 steps teach humility, respect, honest, caring, and to be of service, these are the essential for all people. I always share with people who want to DO the twelve steps but don’t know which program they qualify for, I just say pick one. Find a group that works for you find your tribe like the big book says. I remember meeting someone that gave a message from Mother Theresa and she said the message was to remember “we do much bigger work that she ever did, we touch the lives of the hopeless and give them hope” Mother Theresa. That is powerful, Twelve Step programs transform...
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... 14 November 2011 What Can AA Do for Problem Drinkers? Does Alcoholics Anonymous work? Many people have family members and/or loved ones that have a drinking problem. So what should they do to get help? There are many different abstinence programs; Alcoholics Anonymous, also known as AA, is one of the programs. An analysis of the AA program reveals that the program can be very effective, but only if the alcoholic wants help and gets the help they need. AA celebrated their 76th anniversary this year. They counted two million members participating in 115,000 groups worldwide, half of them in the U.S. AA started its first meeting in Akron, Ohio, in 1935. Bill Wilson, a businessman, and Bob Smith, a physician, started the association. They were both alcoholics. Bill Wilson achieved sobriety mainly through his association with a Christian movement. Smith was inspired by Wilson, and also stopped drinking (Does Alcoholics Anonymous Work 1). They were determined to help other alcoholics, so the men published “The Big Book”. “The Big Book” explained their philosophy, methods, and principles. One method that became very famous, and still is famous, is the 12-step method. The 12 steps are what a recovering person must go through initially and repeat in order for the process to work. For newcomers, the steps are often grouped into three major categories: trust God, clean house, and help others (Does Alcoholics Anonymous Work 1). The 12-steps is about one getting honest with...
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...Focused Therapy), and for my problem-solution I will cover AA (Alcoholics Anonymous). SFCEFT and AA all have the same end goal in mind, that is to help their clients cure some sort of issue that they have. However, these two groups have different ways of tackling issues. SFCEFT specializes in emotionally focused couple therapy. AA focuses more on alcohol abuse and self-help through problem and solution. Both of these groups are usually led by a psychologist, however in SFCEFT most...
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...I attended an open AA meeting that was named Traditional Group. I would put off this assignment because I was nervous going alone. I did not know what to expect because I had never attended an AA meeting before. I was afraid I was going to be picked on to speak or that I would have to announce that I was a non-AA member. I did not know whether to expect a big group of people or a small group. I was afraid that others would notice that I was new. I finally got the courage to attend the closest group to my home on a Saturday morning. I was amazed at how large the group I attended was. I walked in and there were already a lot of people sitting down, but I was able to find a seat. They began the meeting with people reminding the group of the 12 steps and the 12 traditions. I noticed a familiar face in the group and I realized that one of my coworkers from my internship was sitting across from me at a distance. At first I thought that...
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...Here is my problem with AA: The word "GOD" is written into four of AA's twelve steps and is strongly implied in another two steps i.e. “Power” and “spiritual awakening”. That is eight direct references and two implied references. So, half of their basic formula for success has the word "GOD" plainly spelled out. But, that's not what I have a problem with. My problem with AA is how the hierarchy of every group I've ever attended insists that it’s not about God or religion. I beg to differ. What AA is clearly about is spelled out in six foot tall 12 Steps signs hanging on the wall of every meeting I've ever attended. Hypocrisy isn't conducive to sobriety. Delusion is worse. AA is a religion. Just because AA doesn’t call itself a religion doesn't mean it isn’t one, despite the hue and cry from AA members that it is not. "Methinks thou dost protest too much." 1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable. 2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. 3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of GOD as we understood HIM. 4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves. 5. Admitted to GOD, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. 6. Were entirely ready to have GOD remove all these defects of character. 7. Humbly asked HIM to remove our shortcomings. 8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became...
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...Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) group and its members. The paper will discuss the AA group’s philosophical orientation to human development. While using the writer’s knowledge of therapeutic factors, the paper will analyze the group process and its stage of development. The paper will also discuss the approach of the leader, often called ‘trusted servants” or “secretary”. Finally, the paper will discuss the use of the reconstructive inventory steps of 4-10 and how the writer would work with a client who was seeing her in individual or family counseling. Alcoholics Anonymous has a well-defined recovery program that AA members have been following since the founding of the group (Alcoholics Anonymous, 2014). In 1939, the group published its basic textbook, Alcoholics Anonymous, also known as the Big Book (Alcoholics Anonymous, 2014). The Big Book explained AA’s philosophy and methods, the core of which is the now well-known Twelve Steps of recovery (Alcoholics Anonymous, 2014). The Twelve Steps are the core of the recovery program, which are based on the trial-and-error experience of early members of AA (Alcoholics Anonymous, 2014). The Twelve Steps are not simply a set of tasks to be carried out (personal communication, September 30, 2014). They are a guide for living and being in the world, and, for many individuals, they become a way of life as well (personal communication, September 30, 2014). According to AA, members who make an earnest effort to follow these Steps and to apply them...
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...I attended both, the Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meeting named "Rock Solid Recovery" and the Alcoholic Anonymous (AA) meetings at "Visions", held during night time in Thousand Oaks. Each meeting was conducted in a large hall and had about 50 participants and the large turnover, even on a weekend, was surprising and impressive. The reason for choosing these meetings was firstly, the distance and timing and secondly, I wanted to attend the meetings which were running for several years because I was interested in having participants in various stages of recovery. As a result, at the NA meeting there were a few participants who were over 20 years sober and were fondly revered by other members. There was a considerably lesser number of women (30%...
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...ALCOHOLIC ANONYMOUS MEETING EXPERIENCE Locating an AA meeting was very easy. I had researched online various times, locations, and types of meetings in Essex County. I was surprised by how many meeting locations were in my neighborhood. Through this source I was able to find an AA meeting that was within a reasonable distance as I did not want to attend one the was close to my house because I did not want to meet someone I know at the meeting. Online resource for finding a location was easy and the name and address including directions to the location was at some web site assessed. The meeting I attended was at a local church 10 miles away in West Orange New Jersey. There were 19 people excluding myself, 10 women and 9 men. The one hour meeting started at 8pm and was very interesting and informative. I attended the meeting alone on a Sunday night. I was quite apprehensive about going to a meeting, more so than I expected to be and I was nervous about being invasive to the privacy of AA members. I was expecting to see more men than women because I was thinking that men drink alcoholic beverages more than women. My imagination, with the help of television and movies, painted a picture in my mind of what an AA meeting would be like. It portrayed a room filled with people that obviously looked like addicts; unkempt appearances, borderline offensive hygiene, and at least one person emitting a radiance of booze while swaying back and forth in his chair. I also expected that being...
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...whatever," states Bill Wilson the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. AA, also known as Alcoholics Anonymous, is a recovery program to help addicts cure their addiction. The addict is given a sponsor within the first 30 days of your recovery and he or she guides through the twelve steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. These twelve steps help the addict accept they have a problem, identify what exactly needs to be improved and changed, analyze the situation, learn from their progress and past mistakes, and help yourself and others. This racially mixed, self-supporting, and nonprofessional recovery program is the only way to cure addiction and reach the full potential of sobriety. In the 1930’s, it was common to consider alcoholism as a moral failure. Doctors at the time treated the situation like it was terminal. People without financial capability were able to find help through the Salvation Army or religious groups, while those who could afford it were put into a long term treatment in hospitals. In 1931 a Christian society named The Oxford Group practiced the five C’s: confidence, confession, conviction, conversion, and continuance. Bill Wilson, a struggling addict, needed support for his addiction and learned the beliefs of the Christian group. In 1935 he established what is now known today as Alcoholics Anonymous and The Oxford Group’s guidance formed the foundation of the twelve step program. Wilson wrote, “The early AA got its ideas of self-examination, acknowledgment of...
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...Alcoholics Anonymous is and organized group of people who commonly share the same problem in regard to excessive drinking. AA’s only requirement to enter into the program is that you must want to stop drinking. Of course there are AA membership fees that you will have to pay in order to remain a member. The main goal and purpose of this program is to maintain sobriety without any relapse. This program has proven that it is effective however if the person entering the program is not committed to getting better nine times out of ten he or she will not gain sobriety. (Ragels, 2011) A five percent success rate is nothing more than a spontaneous remission in alcohol addiction. Out of any given group of alcoholics, approximately five percent per year will quit. They get tired of being tired and cannot handle the stress that follows from watching their friends die from the same thing. If one should enter into this program you will learn the twelve steps of Alcohol Anonymous. These steps are the bread and butter for obtaining sobriety in the Alcohol Anonymous 12 Step Program. (Orange, 2011) 1. You must admit that you where powerless and that your life was unmanageable. 2. You believe that that a much higher power greater than your self could restore your sanity. 3. Your will and your life are to be turned over to the care of God. 4. Searching and fearless moral recollection of ourselves. 5. Admit the exact nature of your wrongs. 6. Ready to have all defects...
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...Alcoholics Anonymous by Gabrielle Glaser and her opinion on the effectiveness of the AA program. The author states that the AA program is not as effective as people believe and is not the only option when it comes beating alcohol addiction. As the author states " Hospitals, outpatient clinics, and rehab centers use the 12 steps as the basis for treatment. But although few people seem to realize it, there are alternatives, including prescription drugs and therapies that aim to help patients learn to drink in moderation. Unlike Alcoholics Anonymous, these methods are based on modern science and have been proved, in randomized, controlled studies, to work." The author researches through the article to find other options to combat alcoholism and compare AA to other therapy companies. The AA program says it has a 75 percent success rate but interviews with actual members, puts the percent range around 8 percent. The Irrationality of Alcoholics Anonymous has stories of former members that had Alcoholic problems that tried AA but could not fix the problem and AA blame them for it and not themselves showing their true colors. The AA program is not flexible and uses the same treatment for all members instead of adjusting to the level of drinking of the person. With interviews and travels, it shows that AA is not the only options alcoholics have to help them. I agree with the author about the AA program not being effective enough in stopping alcoholism in this country and...
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...three (3) different types of family treatment. 7. Discuss the Johnson-Style Intervention a. Who introduced it? b. What is “hitting bottom” referring to? c. What does “not equal attack” referring to? d. What does John-Style Intervention require from the family? 8. What is CRAFFT? 9. What are common issues for the family with someone in substance abuse treatment? 10. How should children be involved in treatment? 11. Discuss Self-help for the families. e. What is Al-Anon f. What is Alateen? 12. Discuss Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). g. When was it founded? h. Who were the founders? i. What is AA based on? j. When was Alcoholics Anonymous written? k. What does AA activity involve? 13. What are the names of other self-help 12 Step groups? 14. What are some of the names of non-12-step programs? 15. What does “activities therapy” include? 16. What does “behavioral techniques” include? 17. What are the common elements of “relapse prevention’? 18. What are the two major drugs used in alcohol treatment? 19. Discuss “Project Match” l. What is it? m. What did it examine? n. What was the outcome of the...
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...Yes, they prayed when the meeting first got started and the speaker did talk about God throughout the meeting, however, I would have liked to hear more discussions about trusting in God when it comes to their sobriety. Werner, (2015) says it better when he stated that “AA members embark on a guided spiritual journey involving accountability and responsibility for their own voluntary and involuntary actions” (Harvard). Through prayer, self-discipline gained through meditation, and the active assistance and intervention of fellow AA members, they ultimately achieve a state of peace in the absence of alcohol consumption....
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