alcoholics anonymous essay

The Importance of Alcoholics Anonymous Meetings Essay

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Introduction

Expectations on what to learn from an alcoholic anonymous meeting, impacting the understanding of alcohol and alcoholism by attending aa meetings, how aa meetings promote strategizes for responsible drinking or harm reduction, treatment, prevention, and interdiction data concerning aa meetings, use of aa meetings in law enforcement.

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings are an important part of bringing together people who are trying to recover from addiction to alcohol. They provide a safe place for addicts to share their stories, get encouragement, and develop coping methods. In general, AA is a mutual aid society created in 1935 that assists those suffering from alcoholism (Motyka & Al-Imam, 2020). The different methods in which AA gatherings can benefit individuals in recovery are through establishing a sense of community and personal accountability.

AA gatherings are intended to provide individuals battling with alcohol addiction with support, counseling, and a sense of community. Firstly, those joining AA meetings are intended to realize that they are not on their own in their fight against addiction. According to Brown and Stewart (2021), the interpersonal support given by AA gatherings can be an important aspect in encouraging alcohol addiction recovery. A feeling of belonging can be extremely empowering, making people feel more inspired to stick to their sobriety objectives.

Furthermore, AA meetings are intended to offer individuals practical resources and techniques for staying sober. According to Kaskutas et al. (2019), AA meetings frequently focus on assisting members in identifying and avoiding triggers, coping with cravings, and developing healthier coping mechanisms. Members may also discuss suggestions for remaining sober in stressful situations, like social gatherings. Additionally, AA meetings assist people in reflecting on their individual experiences, identifying behavioral trends, and developing a stronger awareness of themselves (Tracy et al., 2021). Individuals can obtain fresh insights and views on their addiction by paying attention to others’ experiences and expressing their own, which can be extremely beneficial in their journey to recovery.

One of the most central concepts of AA is that alcohol addiction is an illness, not a character flaw or a lack of resolve. According to a study by Kelly et al. (2020), this narrative can help overcome feelings of guilt and self-blame that commonly accompany addiction. Individuals might start looking at their conduct in a more sympathetic and non-judgmental manner by knowing that their alcoholism is an illness, which can be a crucial step toward recovery. Attending AA meetings can influence someone’s comprehension of alcohol and alcoholism by affirming that addiction is an illness that may require progressive effort.

The most fundamental concept of AA is that recovery is achievable, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Attending AA meetings, according to Parker et al. (2021), can offer people an atmosphere of optimism and hope, as they see individuals who have accomplished and sustained sobriety. This awareness can be a great motivator for those who believe their addiction is unbeatable, and it can help them recognize that change is within reach.

Addressing the notion of “controlled drinking,” which entails setting boundaries on the amount of alcohol drank and preventing drinking in circumstances that may provoke problematic behavior, is one way that AA meetings can promote practices for safe drinking and harm reduction. According to a study by Kelly et al. (2020), this narrative can help overcome feelings of guilt and self-blame that commonly accompany addiction. Individuals might start looking at their conduct in a more sympathetic and non-judgmental manner by knowing that their alcoholism is an illness, which can be a crucial step toward recovery. As Kaskutas et al. (2019) point out, joining AA meetings can serve as an essential first step in gaining access to support and assistance. It can assist individuals in managing their addiction and reducing their risk of harm.

Another way that AA meetings can encourage harm reduction measures is by educating people about the effects of drinking and the dangers of binge drinking. Some AA meetings may incorporate educational components that discuss the physical, psychological, and social implications of alcohol use (Can Gür & Okanli, 2019). This information can assist individuals in making educated drinking decisions and recognizing the possible risks connected with excessive alcohol use.

AA meetings can be used as a form of alcoholism treatment as shown by several studies, which have been conducted to investigate their effectiveness. A meta-analysis of 27 research indicates that attending AA meetings was linked to a greater likelihood of alcohol-free behavior (Witkiewitz et al., 2020). Another study compared the efficacy of AA to cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and discovered that while both interventions were equally useful for fostering abstinence, AA was more beneficial for encouraging personal and spiritual growth (Kelly et al., 2020). This implies that the advantages of AA meetings can be fully realized with other integrated therapies.

Although AA meetings are largely used to treat alcoholism, some research has looked into their prospects as a preventive measure. According to one study, adolescents who joined AA meetings had reduced incidences of alcohol use and binge drinking compared to those who did not (Bogenschutz et al., 2019). Another study discovered that joining AA meetings in the initial year after treatment was connected to lower relapse rates and higher rates of cessation (Kaskutas et al., 2019). This indicates that attending can lead to relatively lower rates of drinking, and enhance overall functioning in people with an alcohol use disorder.

Concerning interdiction, a randomized controlled trial discovered that an AA intervention aimed at developing compassion and empathy in law enforcement officers resulted in significant advancements in their attitudes toward addicts and work satisfaction (Rizzolo et al., 2019). Another study discovered that collaborations between law enforcement and community-based organizations, such as AA, were useful for combating substance abuse and lowering drug-related offenses (Haughwout et al., 2018). Overall, AA meetings can be an important part of alcohol treatment and may have a wider scope in the disciplines of prevention and decision-making.

AA meetings can be effective in the realm of law enforcement as a substitute for incarceration for people who have committed alcohol-related felonies. Those who join AA meetings as a component of a court-mandated curriculum may be less likely to commit future offenses than those who are jailed, based on research by Gibson et al. (2018). Additionally, AA gatherings can help to reduce rates of recidivism and promote more efficient and empathetic approaches to policing.

Another advantage of AA meetings for law enforcement is the ability to help officers understand addiction and the difficulties that people who battle with substance use issues encounter. Attending AA meetings, according to Rizzolo et al. (2019), can assist law enforcement officers in showing kindness toward people suffering from addiction. This can strengthen their interrelations with these people and lead to more desirable impacts.

AA sessions can also assist law enforcement to strengthen their connections with the people they serve by encouraging empathy and understanding. According to Haughwout et al. (2018), law enforcement departments that collaborate with community-based organizations like AA can increase confidence and credibility among community members. This can aid in the reduction of crime and the promotion of public safety.

Those battling with alcohol addiction can benefit greatly from attending AA meetings, which provide a helpful and nonjudgmental atmosphere in which they can talk about their struggles and develop methods to manage their addiction. These sessions are based on the premise that by embracing one another and accepting ownership of their behavior, individuals can achieve long-term recovery. Ultimately, AA meetings highlight the importance of community as well as individual responsibility in dealing with addiction, and they remain a significant resource for people in recovery all around the world.

Bogenschutz, M. P., Worthy, S. L., Tonigan, J. S., Lee, C. M., & Otto, M. W. (2019). Pilot randomized trial of group motivational interviewing and cognitive behavioral therapy in adolescents with alcohol use disorder . Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 97, 21-29. Web.

Brown, C., & Stewart, S. H. (2021). Harm reduction for women in treatment for alcohol use problems: Exploring the impact of dominant addiction discourse . Qualitative health research , 31 (1), 54-69. Web.

Can Gür, G., & Okanli, A. (2019). The effects of cognitive-behavioral model-based intervention on depression, anxiety, and self-efficacy in alcohol use disorder . Clinical Nursing Research , 28 (1), 52-78. Web.

Gibson, S., Woodford, M., & Czeizinger Jr, T. J. (2018). Avoiding the last ride: Can DUI programming address multiple risk factors to reduce recidivism? Journal of Addictions & Offender Counseling , 39 (2), 66-77. Web.

Haughwout, S. P., Nguyen, H. T., Brooks-Russell, A., & Kuth, M. R. (2018). Beyond enforcement: Law enforcement partnerships with community-based organizations in addressing substance use . Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment , 92, 43-50. Web.

Kaskutas, L. A., Witbrodt, J., French, M. T., Gallagher, C., King, K., & Hamilton, N. (2019). Day hospital and residential addiction treatment: Randomized and nonrandomized managed care clients compared . Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 100, 30-39. Web.

Kelly, J. F., Greene, M. C., Bergman, B. G., & Hoeppner, B. B. (2021). A randomized controlled trial of intensive outpatient treatment plus acceptance and commitment therapy versus intensive outpatient treatment plus Alcoholics Anonymous for individuals with alcohol use disorder . Addiction, 116(7), 1698-1707. Web.

Kelly, J. F., Humphreys, K., & Ferri, M. (2020). Alcoholics anonymous and other 12‐step programs for alcohol use disorder. Cochrane database of systematic reviews , (3). Web.

Motyka, M. A., & Al-Imam, A. (2020). Pragmatism of the alcoholics anonymous fellowship . Global Journal of Health Science , 12 (6), 119-127. Web.

Parker, K. A., Roberson, L. B., Ivanov, B., Carter, R. E., & Riney, N. (2021). The road to recovery from addiction: A qualitative exploration of motivators and challenges to achieving sobriety in recovery housing . International Journal of Health, Wellness & Society , 11 (2). Web.

Rizzolo, M. C., Huggins, J. E., & Weisburd, D. (2019). Building empathy and compassion in law enforcement officers: A randomized controlled trial of an Alcoholics Anonymous intervention. Journal of Experimental Criminology , 15(4), 591-613. Web.

Tracy, K., McCauley, K., Wray, T., Greenfield, T. K., & Kaskutas, L. A. (2021). Reflections on addiction and recovery among men and women in alcoholics anonymous: A qualitative study . Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 120, 108183. Web.

Witkiewitz, K., Pearson, M. R., Hallgren, K. A., Maisto, S. A., Kirouac, M., & Wilson, A. D. (2020). Who achieves low risk drinking during alcohol treatment? An analysis of patients in three alcohol clinical trials . Addiction, 115(1), 64-73. Web.

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Essay on Alcoholics Anonymous

Name and brief history of organization.

Sharing and Caring Los Angeles is one of the leading Alcoholics Anonymous meeting groups in the United States and especially in Los Angeles California. The address is 807 South Pacific Avenue, Los Angeles, CA, 90001 and meetings are conducted weekly. At the Alcoholics Resource Center, we are here to support you as you work through the process of sobriety following alcoholism. The Alcoholics Resource Center provides a wide range of alcohol detoxification programs to choose from, making it one of the most comprehensive treatment facilities in the country (Galanter, 2017). A wide variety of treatment facilities and programs for detoxification are currently available. It is essential to choose the alternative that caters to your requirements in the most satisfactory manner, and we are here to lend a hand.

Alcohol Detox Centers provide patients with step-by-step detoxification treatment, which is the initial and most challenging challenge on the path to recovery from alcohol addiction. Alcohol Detox Centers provide patients with a variety of treatment options, ranging from the administration of medication to alleviate physical cravings to the implementation of behavior modification strategies to prevent future alcohol use. These treatment options are designed to help patients recover from alcoholism. Those who are participating in the recovery process are provided with support throughout the entirety of the process and are working toward achieving the sustainable emotional and physical balance that is required to live a life free of alcohol use (Galanter, 2017). We are here to assist you in locating the best possible detox facility that is tailored to meet the requirements that are unique to you as an individual. Our compassionate listeners are available to assist you in locating treatment programs and other resources that are a good fit for the assistance that you require.

How the Meetings Are Run/ Organized?

It may be helpful to gain a general understanding of what an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting is as before determining how to locate the best Alcoholics Anonymous discussion for oneself particularly. This will give you an idea of what to anticipate when attending an AA meeting. The gatherings take place, for the most part, in locations that are connected to local churches or community centers. It is likely that you will arrive just as a small crowd is beginning to form, with members either conversing with one another, making coffee, or sitting quietly (Rosner, 2015). You can also attend many AA meetings online, which offers the added benefit of allowing you to do so from the coziness of your own home.

At some point, everybody winds up with settling on one of the chairs that have been organized in a half circle. The AA Preamble and the Serenity Prayer are two of the readings that are done at the beginning of each meeting by the leader of the group, who is referred to as the chairperson. Following that, other group members will read different sections from the AA Big Book, such as the specific 12 Traditions and the mentioned 12 Promises. The meeting is then officially opened by the chairperson. It could be a Step Study meeting where the subject of conversation is one of the 12 Steps and the meeting’s focus is on that Step (Rosner, 2015). Most likely, it will be an open meeting, during which participants will be free to discuss anything related to recovery that is currently on their minds.

After anyone who wishes to speak has had the opportunity to do so, another prayer on behalf of the group will conclude the meeting. The average length of time for an AA meeting is approximately one hour.

Personal Comments on the Meetings

There are a few different formats that an AA meeting can take, but regardless of the format, you can expect to find alcoholics discussing the effects that drinking had on their lives and personalities, the steps they took to cope with these effects, and how they are currently living their lives. Although resources such as the online database simplifies it to locate Alcoholics Anonymous meetings in general, there is currently no resource that can assist you in locating an AA meeting that is tailored specifically to your needs (Rosner, 2015). A person who is interested in experiencing an AA meeting should attend multiple in order to find the one that caters to them and their requirements the most. Fortuitously, the single way to discover the traditional approach is the one that seems to work the best, which is to try out various meetings for yourself until you find the one that is the best fit (Rosner, 2015). Keeping these things in mind will help make your search as successful as possible.

Theoretical Application

Group demeanor is a big deal. They are a synthesis of the individuals with whom we spend the majority of our time during recovery. To have the best program experience, it is advisable to find a positive group that can support and advise you. Imagine being surrounded by depressed or unmotivated people. Their apathy could be contagious (Rosner, 2015). Pre-meeting gatherings can help you decide if you’ll get along with the group. You can tell people’s personalities.

Biblical Worldview Application 

Alcoholics Anonymous is a program that has some ties to Christianity, but it does not rely on the transformative power of the Christian faith in order to be effective. However, the only thing that is needed to join Alcoholics Anonymous is a desire to give up drinking. This is the only prerequisite for membership. There is a place in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) for people whose levels of belief and lack of belief are on the spectrum. Although Alcoholics Anonymous’s (AA) original main text (Alcoholics Anonymous, 1939; 2001; “the Big Book”) claims that recovery can be accomplished through quasi-religious and spiritual means (“spiritual awakening”), this may only be true for a minority of participants who have a particularly severe addiction (Rosner, 2015). It would appear that social, cognitive, and affective mechanisms are primarily responsible for the beneficial effects of AA.

AA meetings are held all over the country, and each has its own pace and topics. There are some things you should learn at every AA meeting. Some people prefer larger or smaller meetings. This will vary depending on whether one is in an urban location, or a suburban region, or even a more rural environment, and also the duration that day and the day of the week that you are in these locations. Estimating the number of people who show up to certain meetings can be difficult, and attendance at the same event can fluctuate from a week to the next. If one is not learning anything at your Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, try another.

Galanter, M. (2017). Alcoholics anonymous and twelve-step recovery: A model based on social and cognitive neuroscience.  The American Journal on Addictions ,  23 (3), 300–307. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1521-0391.2014.12106.x

Rosner, R. (2015). Commentary: Anonymous Encounters: Alcoholics Anonymous, Al-Anon, and Overeaters Anonymous.  Adolescent Psychiatry ,  1 (2), 138–139. https://doi.org/10.2174/2210677411101020138

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Reflection Paper on Alcoholics Anonymous

Alcoholics Anonymous is a self-help group that assists alcohol addicts to break from their drinking habits and stay sober for the rest of their lives. Alcohol Anonymous (AA) gives the successful candidate an opportunity to mentor other people struggling with alcohol problems. According to Kneisl & Trogoboff (2013), the program is among the most successful programs that help reduce alcohol addiction and alcohol-related illnesses in America. The group with which I interacted holds its meetings in a church. The meetings happen every Wednesday between five to seven o’clock in the evenings. I attended the meeting on 4 January. The members were both male and female, and they shared share their experiences openly to help new members feel welcome. The group held an open and a closed meeting to separate new members and the existing ones. The group operates in a casual manner where all members introduced themselves using the phrase “my name is…and I am an alcoholic.” After the pleasantries, the new members went into a closed meeting to learn the twelve principles of AA. The rest of the members went to an open meeting to share their experiences and their journey to sobriety. Most of the members in the meeting had managed to stay clean for more than a month, which is a great achievement for an addict.

People around the world have a certain perception of alcoholics. Finding a group of alcoholics who were so calm was one of the biggest surprises in this event. Unlike the egocentric nature of alcoholics, people in the AA group were willing to help and accept assistance in their efforts to stay clean. The entire session was so therapeutic because people in AA groups have accepted their situation. During the session, each group member shared some of the things that caused their addiction. Most of the members attributed their addiction to egoism and peer pressure. Additionally, people could freely share how hard it was to go without drinking and to uphold the AA principles. The ability to share is a necessary step in the process of healing thus making the session quite essential. Unlike other alcoholic therapy sessions I have attended in different setups, the group was quite receptive and open to suggestions. The organization of the group gives every person the ability to take responsibility for their lives and those closest to them (Kneisl & Trogoboff, 2013). The group development and management played a significant role in the transformation of its members. The atmosphere was calm, allowing people to relax and open up, unlike other therapy sessions. In general, the entire session was worthwhile, and it explains why AA groups have had such success in handling alcoholic problems.

Group dynamics such as Yalom’s curative factors can help in understanding the AA groups. The alcohol anonymous program employs the use of six Yalom’s curative factors in handling its daily operations. First, the group instills hope in new members. Older members narrate their journey to success by stating the various challenges they had to face. This approach helps new members understand that it is indeed possible to stay without drinking. Secondly, AA groups provide an avenue for an addict to meet with people who are going through the same problem. Meeting other people helps one understand that they are not alone, hence improving chances of recovery. Thirdly, people give and receive suggestions on ways to handle the addiction problem freely in AA groups. The freedom of expression also plays a key role in the healing process, and it is ideal for mental health. Fourthly, the AA group gives its members an opportunity to mentor other people around the world struggling with alcoholism (Kneisl & Trigoboff, 2013). The process helps give people a sense of purpose thus improving their chances of staying sober.

The AA groups do a great job in supporting individuals and families suffering from alcohol related illnesses. The forum deals with the cause of addiction rather than the addiction itself. Dealing with the cause reduces the chances of relapse and improves the ability for people to overcome day-to-day challenges. The group helps its members to restore lost relationships through counseling and spiritual advice. For instance, families that had broken up because of alcoholism can reunite through the help of AA. On the other hand, AA groups help its members to come up with ideal ways of handling stress and depression, which are the major causes of mental health illnesses.

The experience I got from this meeting will help me handle my patients better, especially those people experiencing mental health issues. First, I will handle my patients in a casual manner to help them open up and share their challenges. A casual relationship in nursing helps build friendship between the patient and the nurse, which is essential for effective recovery. Secondly, I will handle mental health issues in a group set up. This strategy will help my patients get a sense of belonging and understand that other people are experiencing the same problem. The basic thing that I learned from this meeting is that most people experiencing mental health issues respond well to treatment if they have societal acceptance (Kneisl & Trogoboff, 2013). For this reason, I will show my patients appreciation and acceptance to enhance their healing process..

Kneisl, C. & Trigoboff, E. (2013). Contemporary psychiatric-mental health nursing . Boston: Pearson.

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Alcoholics Anonymous, Essay Example

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John Doe is a 57 year old male who is a current user of cocaine. Furthermore, he has abused alcohol for approximately 15 years. His financial situation makes it difficult to fund his addictions and he has resorted to committing petty crimes in order to ensure that he will be able to receive his next fix. Doe has been to jail several times for being caught committing these crimes and he is currently out on bail. Understanding an addict’s readiness to change allows a successful treatment program to begin (Battaglia, 2009). Doe is in the precontemplation stage of change. He does not realize that his actions are problematic and contributing to more severe problems in his life. His family members know that he needs to change, but Doe does not recognize that his behavioral patterns are considered abnormal; he has always used cocaine and consumed alcohol throughout his life, but it has only begun to interfere with his personal relationships and lead him to crime recently. It would be beneficial for Does to rethink his behaviors. He has aged significantly compared to his siblings, seemingly due to drug use. It is therefore having a negative impact on his physical health and he may benefit from mental health counseling. It is essential for either trained counselors or close friends to help him come to the realization that he has a problem and he should begin to make changes to resolve it.

The Precursors Assessment Form for Predicting and Enhancing Psychotherapeutic Change indicates that change is unlikely in this individual. Counseling efforts should focus on educating the client on change and focus should be on the precursors with the lowest ratings. In this particular situation, several precursors received ratings of none, and effort should be taken to increase them to at least one. Table 1 shows that John Doe’s sense of necessity for change, awareness in identifying the problem, ability to confront the problem, and effort towards change are marked as not existing in this individual. If each of these points are successfully changed to at least one, Doe will be considered more likely to change his habits and behaviors.

According to the DSM-IV, John Doe is a substance abuser rather than substance dependent because his drug and alcohol use interferes with his ability to live a relatively normal life outside of his addiction. The criteria for substance abuse that pertain to Doe’s situation include, “failure to fulfill major role obligations at work, school, home such as repeated absences or poor work performance related to substance use; substance-related absences, suspensions”; “frequent use of substances in situation in which it is physically hazardous”, “frequent legal problems for substance abuse”, and “continued use despite having persistent or recurrent social or interpersonal problems”. As a consequence of his substance abuse, John Doe fails to attend work when expected, and since being let go from his job is prevented from searching for another. Furthermore, while he avoids alcohol consumption when driving, he is often high on cocaine. As stated above, Doe has been to jail several times to serve crimes related to raising funds to support his addition. Lastly, this addiction has interfered with his social life, causing many fights with his wife that has led to discussions about divorce.

While John Doe is primarily a substance abuser due to the fact that he meets all four DSM-IV substance abuse criteria, he also demonstrates substance dependence. He reports that he exhibits “tolerance or markedly increased amounts of the substance to achieve intoxication or desired effect or markedly diminished effect with continued use of the same amount of substance”, “withdrawal symptoms or the use of certain substances to avoid withdrawal symptoms”, and “reduction or abandonment of social, occupational or recreational activities because of substance use”. It is possible that Doe fall into the other criteria for substance dependence, but it is difficult for him to compare his behaviors before and during his period of abuse. Furthermore, there is no persistent desire to cut the substance use because Doe does not recognize these actions as problematic.

The general treatment approach that will be used for this individual is the 12 Step Program because the primary goal of treatment in this stage is to allow him to recognize that he has a problem. Once this is accomplished, additional therapies could be added to supplement treatment. Traditionally, the 12 Step Program enables the addict to seek help from a higher power. This would be effective for John Doe because he was raised as a devout Catholic. Furthermore, he has lost his mother a few years ago, and it would be beneficial for him to think about how she would react to his current state as a judgment of whether he is doing well or if his behaviors are erroneous.

The 12 Step Program is useful in this situation because it can be used to allow John Doe to recognize that he has a problem with both alcohol and cocaine. The first step of this program is to assist the addict in recognizing that their lives are unmanageable and this is due to the harmful effects of the substance(s) they are abusing (Alcoholics Anonymous, 1993). Next, they must come to the realization that a higher power can restore them to sanity. Since John Doe already believes in a higher power, this step will be simplified. This will then allow him to turn his life over to the will of God and allow him to be healed in this manner. Eventually after admitting his problem to God, Doe will himself finally grasp that there is a problem that must be solved. He will focus on his changes through prayer and meditation, make amends to the people that he has harmed, and be more willing to speak to friends and family about his struggle. Once John Doe recognizes this problem and begins to ask his family support, he will have successfully reached the preparation stage of change which will allow him to make the necessary alterations in his life.

It is essential to consider that each step of the 12 Step Program is difficult to achieve in isolation. Therefore, the five specific treatment techniques I would use with this person include group therapy, family therapy, future-oriented therapy, art therapy, and behavior modification therapy. As table 1 shows, the Precursors Assessment Form demonstrates that John Doe’s sense of necessity for change, awareness in identifying the problem, ability to confront the problem, and effort towards change do not exist. Therefore, these therapies will cater to the solution of these issues. Group therapy will be used to show Doe that there are individuals similar to him who recognize that they have a problem. Furthermore, it will provide him with information concerning how they are personally dealing with their addictions, which will allow Doe to determine whether he believes these methods would be able to help him as well. Group therapy can be extended to visiting a local church of his choice, where he speaks to other addicts in a specifically religious context. Next, family therapy will be conducted. The Precursors Assessment Form recognized that Doe has social support for change, including a wide network of family and friends that he can confide in. Therefore, these individuals will be called in to help Doe by allowing them to talk to him in a guided manner. This will emphasize that he will continue to have support from his friends and family throughout the process and that they want him to succeed. Furthermore, this group will continue to act as support for him even after he makes necessary changes. They may be able to act as a barrier that prevents him from reverting to his old behaviors and habits after he is cured. Future directed therapy has been shown to reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety. A likely reason that John Doe began his substance abuse was due to problems he experienced in his life that resulted in these symptoms. Therefore, it is essential to remove the root cause of substance abuse. This is consistent with the 12 Step Program because it will allow him to learn an advanced set of skills that will allow him to take charge of his future and create more of the life he wants to live. This will also help him cope with the social difficulties that resulted due to his behavior related to the substance abuse. Art therapy will be utilized primarily to determine what Doe is thinking throughout his recovery while allowing him a unique manner of communication if conversation with therapists and other addicts is not adequate. Since his awareness of the problem was marked low on the Precursors Assessment Form, it is essential to find ways that will allow Doe to comfortable communicate with the therapy staff. To ease him into the process of constant communication with others for healing, art therapy will provide a good transition into this activity. Furthermore, art therapy often feels like it is not therapy at all, which will add additional comfort to the situation. Lastly, behavior modification therapy will be used to address some of Doe’s behaviors related to substance abuse and withdrawal. He will be taught how to fight his urges and be told useful ways to help repair his damaged relationships. He will be awarded when he demonstrates that he is able to behave appropriately (Martin et al., 2007).This therapy recommendation will not cure John Doe of his addiction, but will allow him to recognize that he has a problem. Doing so will provide a context that allows him to make continued improvement in the future. The precontemplation stage of change is difficult to treat in addicts due to their inability to seek help, but it is crucial to determine who these individuals are so they can begin to be helped to recover.

Alcoholics Anonymous. (1993). Alcoholics Anonymous: the story of how many thousands of   men and women have recovered from alcoholism. New York City : Alcoholics Anonymous World Services.

Battaglia E. (2009). Stages of Change and Substance Abuse Treatment. Drug & Alcohol Addition Recovery Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.drugalcoholaddictionrecovery.com/stages-of-change-and-substance-abuse-treatment/

Perkinson, R. R. (2007). Chemical dependency counseling: A practical guide. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Martin, G.; Pear, J. (2007). Behavior modification: What it is and how to do it (Eighth Edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall,

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Richard Devine, Social Work Enthusiast and Blogger

Children and Families Social Work

What I learnt attending Alcoholic’s Anonymous

By Richard Devine, Social Worker for Bath and North East Somerset Council

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The following is an essay I completed when undertaking a Masters in Attachment Studies at Roehampton University (2016-2018) as part of a Naturalistic Observations Module. One aspect of the module was to observe a group setting and for reasons outlined in the essay my choice for Alcoholic Anonymous will become apparent. It is a couple of years old and I have left it unedited, apart from a few typos that I couldn’t resist correcting. I wanted to share this because Alcoholic Anonymous, in my opinion, is an under-considered and under-utilized resource for parents suffering from addiction. I suspect this is partly because Social Workers or other related practitioners aren’t aware of Alcoholic Anonymous (or related support such as Cocaine Anonymous) or if they are aware of its existence, they are unclear about what it entails and how profoundly beneficial it can be. I hope this blog will shed light on the existence and function of AA so that it can be considered more frequently as an option for parents experiencing addiction alongside the more well-known and utilized drug and alcohol services. 

I also think there is a lot we can learn from AA about how to support parents with issues other than addiction. It is a self sufficient system of support, with no governmental or charitable funding that depends primarily on those who have benefited from the programme contributing back by helping those still suffering with alcoholism.

‘Every addiction arises from an unconscious refusal to face and move through pain. Every addiction begins with pain and ends with pain’  (Tolle, 2005; 127)

Introduction;  

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a fellowship of men and women who come together to share their stories, courage and hope with the primary purpose of achieving sobriety and helping others achieve sobriety (Alcoholic Anonymous, 2001). AA and my experience of attending three separate meetings will be the focus of this commentary. 

I have previously attended such meetings as a result of addiction and alcoholism being a key feature of my own childhood experiences, and to some extent my adulthood. My dad was a chronic alcoholic and a prolific drug user throughout his adult life, albeit with intermittent and short periods of abstinence. He attended multiple rehabilitation centres during my adolescence, all of which were guided by AA and the twelve steps. Furthermore, my elder brother is in recovery after spending nearly a decade misusing drugs and alcohol, also during my adolescence before he achieved sobriety 15 years ago. He continues to attend AA on twice-weekly basis and it is with his assistance that I had the opportunity to attend these meetings. Therefore it is not coincidental that I have chosen to attend these meetings. I suspect that much like my professional occupation, I have chosen to attend AA for two intertwining and inseparable reasons. Firstly, out of interest and intellectual curiosity. Secondly, as a sub-conscious and vicarious endeavour to further understand my own developmental experiences and subsequent psychological functioning.

Irrespective of the possible motivating factors, I endeavored to approach this experience open minded, allowing myself to be immersed into the group setting yet alert and attentive to my internal and external environment. Two key themes arose from my observation. Firstly the underlying reasons for addiction. Secondly the importance of connection, both on a physical and spiritual level. Therefore, these two themes will be the focus of this commentary. 

Commentary and Analysis; 

The meetings I attended took place in a large church hall. The Church was situated in a row of Victorian houses, almost crammed in the middle, on a road that ran parallel to a main city centre road. Therefore, whilst in the heart of a city, the church was obscurely positioned and unlikely to be noticed unless being specifically searched for. During my three observations, several features remained the same and these included; some people stood outside the church smoking cigarettes chatting pleasantly and drinking tea/coffee out of paper cups as I arrived and walked into the church; the layout of the room; a friendly albeit different recovering addict serving tea and coffee, and the general structure of the meeting. Surprisingly quickly, these different forms of external stimuli became positively associated and imprinted in my mind. Individually and collectively they came together to signify that I was to experience some predictability, stability, and peace for the forthcoming hour or two.  I noticed early on into the first observation how relaxed I felt; 

Despite the room being full of people whom I did not know, apart from my brother, the environment was warm and welcoming. Somehow, I felt it to be inclusive and non-judgmental and this allowed me to feel at ease; a sense of ‘homeliness’. I felt the wonderful, inexplicable benefit of human connection whilst simultaneously experiencing an absence of socially motivated anxieties that I am usually accustomed to in social situations.

As indicated above, each meeting followed the same structure and involved a host beginning the meeting by providing a brief overview of the aims of AA, followed by a member reading a passage of AA literature. Then, three speakers proceeded to spend fifteen minutes each sharing their journey into addiction, recovery and abstinence. Each of the speakers was different in terms of their age, gender, socio-economic circumstances, provision of education, current professional roles, family make-up, journey into addiction,  and age in which sobriety was achieved. However a consistent feature that permeated each of the speaker’s stories was loss and a sense of being disconnected and not ‘fitting in’. These deep-rooted feelings always manifested in their childhood.  As detailed by a woman during my second observation;  

She wasn’t sure when she became an alcoholic but retrospectively she realized that she was always an alcoholic. She explained that she experienced severe social anxiety and doesn’t like big crowds. She said her parents divorced when she was 5, and there was a lot of rowing and drinking. Every time she felt scared, or fearful but also when she felt happy she drank and would get really drunk resulting in blackouts. She said, ‘inside I was dying’ and ‘ I was lonely and was just fixing those emotions’ adding that she was trying to ‘fill that hole in the soul’ . 

Although the stories differed, they all shared the experience of being necessitated to deal with overwhelming feelings, such as fear, anxiety, fear of rejection, incompleteness, and loneliness. To this effect, alcohol and accompanying substances were often used as a solution to their immediate problem, and in every case, it was successful in the short term. Many of them described the pleasure deriving from experiencing momentary reprieve from their internal state of anxiety, loneliness and inner despair. Felitti (2004; 8) proposes that addiction could be best understood as ‘ unconscious although understandable decisions being made to seek chemical relief from the ongoing effects of old trauma’ . Paradoxically however, excessive alcohol use exaggerated many of their pre-existing difficulties, and often led to a lifestyle that further reinforced their feelings of not being good enough and ‘not fitting in’. For example, their alcoholism resulted in conflictual relationships, selfish patterns of behavior and difficulty meeting their basic care needs with sustained employment rarely existing in their lives. As pointed out by one speaker realised after she was addicted, ‘drinking didn’t solve any of my problems, it made problems worse and created problems that wouldn’t otherwise have existed’ . These individuals persevered with a self-protective coping mechanism that deceived them into believing it could remedy their difficulties. Sadly, however, they often did not realize the extent of their alcoholism until long after it had become an embedded, highly addictive, and destructive force in their lives. 

It became apparent that an understanding of alcoholism cannot be understood in the absence of an exploration of aetiological factors that contribute to the development of addiction, namely loss and a deep sense of psychological loneliness often consequential of an emotionally disturbed childhood. As pointed out by Mate (2008: 34):

‘The question is never “Why the addiction?” but “Why the pain?”’

Mate suggests that addiction is an individual’s attempt to soothe emotional pain in the absence of healthier coping mechanisms, such as relationships and thus ‘addiction is always a poor substitute for love’ (Mate, 2008: 249). Given the reported similarities in the biology and neurology involved in addiction and love (Panksepp, et al 1978; Insel, 2003 cited Cozolino, 2014: 116) it seems reasonable to postulate that an emotionally deprived and/or relationally challenging childhood substantially increases the likelihood of the developing child seeking to address this through alternative, albeit unhealthier and less fulfilling means. 

It follows therefore that any attempt at addressing addiction, an adaptive response to dealing with difficult emotions without relational support would invariably need a process that involves addressing difficult emotions with significant social support. During the first meeting, a man described attending a private school before his parents separated resulting in him moving to a mainstream primary school. He described how the separation of his parents and change in school was the catalyst for his emotional difficulties which he carried through into his adolescence and adulthood. He began drinking in adolescence and immediately felt reassured as it lessened his anxiety and loneliness. As the years went on his drinking become progressively worse resulting in a series of failed relationships, as well as the loss of his house and several jobs. His drinking developed to the extent that he could no longer leave the house to buy alcohol without first drinking alcohol. He would consume alcohol until he passed out and would hope that he would never wake again. He depicts how he made the change; 

Eventually, after many years, when he was nearly 40 he sought help through AA which he knew about from a family member. He attended a group and this marked the beginning of his journey to sobriety. He described attending his first meeting and felt the acceptance and hope: when he heard people speak it resonated with him. He said he got involved and this provided him a place where he didn’t feel an outsider. He ended by saying that he didn’t think he would be here without the love, support and encouragement from AA.

His reported experience of attending his first AA meeting and experiencing a sense of acceptance was a feeling he shared with all the speakers whom I observed and a feeling that I also experienced despite not having an alcohol addiction. It would seem that this feeling of belonging, acceptance, and connection is the foundation on which the addicted individual can begin to work a program (12 steps). The twelve-step program involves admitting powerlessness over alcohol, believing in a power greater than themselves, undertaking a fearless moral inventory and making amends and helping other individuals to achieve sobriety (Alcoholic Anonymous, 2001). As far as I can tell, AA offers individuals who have experienced shame, guilt, fear and anxiety resulting from their developmental experiences compounded by their alcoholism an environment in which they experience belonging, connectedness, and emotional safety. As identified by Crittenden (2016: 316) ‘ other people can fulfil the attachment functions of offering safety’ …and ‘comfort’ when this has not been provided by the family. 

After realizing that AA offered an environment that provided a sense of belonging, the next common theme that was discussed by many of the speakers was their relationship with ‘higher power’. It was clear that this was a fundamental aspect of their recovery, but their interpretation of the meaning of ‘higher power’ varied from person to person aside from the fact they all believed in a power greater than themselves. The final speaker, during my final observation, explained his interpretation of higher power; 

‘Higher power expresses itself through people, through the love in the fellowship, through the love of people, through people being together and helping each other, and it is also something that is present in my mind that is not part of my ego, a part of my mind that is related to other people’

I thought this to be a simple, yet beautiful and eloquent description of ‘higher power’, and it resonated with my deeply felt experiences of attending the meetings.  The expectation that the recovering addict will develop a relationship with a higher power or God was an integral aspect of their journey into sobriety.  If ‘healing occurs in relationships’ (Crittenden, 2008; 316) can a relationship with a deity, with no tangible form fulfil the same function as a relationship with another person(s)? Granqvist and Kirkpatrick (2004; 227) have argued that god functions psychologically in the same way a healthy attachment figure does, and go so far as saying that a ‘ relationship with God would function as a surrogate attachment relationship, assisting the individual in regulating states of distress, and thereby promoting felt security’ . 

The combination of a strong, stable, and un-wavering collective group of people willing to unconditionally accept the individual alongside the development of a relationship with a ‘higher power’ seems to offer a powerful antidote to the pervasive feelings of loneliness, anxiety and despair that led them into and sustained their addiction to alcohol. It is in this context that individuals can subsequently work through the other steps in the program which involve addressing their psychological vulnerabilities. Once they have achieved sobriety and recovery then finally they seek to support others who wish to achieve sobriety. Having benefitted from relationships providing love, care and system for change they can now seek to provide love, care and support to others; no doubt an incredibly emotionally and spiritually nourishing position experience. 

Conclusion; 

In undertaking this observation I have learned about the value of social support, community, and relational cohesion in achieving and maintaining emotional and mental wellbeing, particularly in the context of challenging life experiences. Although I don’t agree with the statement in its entirety, I have come to appreciate what Johann Hari (2017) means when he says ‘the opposite of addiction is not sobriety. It is human connection’ .  As identified by Panksepp et al (2002) individuals can use social relationships to support the brain systems that have been treated with addiction. 

As well as my learning from this assignment as described above I cannot deny the benefit to my psychological wellbeing attending these meetings. The experience of witnessing another individual share their deepest worries, anxieties and fear in the context of a supportive environment was grounding and humbling. As a result of my own developmental experiences I too have developed self-protective strategies, namely the inhibition of affect. This has been accompanied by a pervasive sense of inadequacy and worthlessness that results from having your emotions unintentionally yet persistently ignored or devalued by your carers. Furthermore, I also found reprieve, and escape from the inner deep rooted unhappiness of myself through drugs and alcohol during my adolescence and early adulthood. I was fortunate enough to have enough support from my family and friends, and a fulfilling job to see the limitations of this self-protective coping strategy, and thus have my emotional and spiritual needs met through alternative healthier pursuits. Nevertheless, I have since worked excessively throughout my adulthood in a more socially acceptable and at times rewarding means of managing my insecurities, feelings of inadequacy and desire to avoid being too emotionally engaged with important people in my life. Undoubtedly this has had an addictive component given my apparent unwillingness to address this for many years (until recently), despite the obvious negative implications for my physical, psychological and relational health.  

Attending the meetings provided psychological space to reflect on this, and hearing the stories of other individuals gave me two things. The first being perspective. I was able to appreciate that negative emotions are experienced universally, albeit on a spectrum of severity often tied to developmental experiences. Negative emotions do not discriminate based on age, gender, socio-economic background nor professional success and in this respect they are impersonal. It is abundantly clear that alleviating difficult and uncomfortable emotions will not occur through external stimuli (alcohol, drugs, work) but through connection with a higher power, however you wish to define that, as well as meaningful and reciprocal connection with others and acceptance and honesty. Secondly, I experienced a profound hope that positively infused my mood for hours, if not days after attending the meetings. The honest accounts of individuals’ journey from utter despair and anguish to connection with others at AA and ultimately their recovery offers great hope regarding a human’s ability to change, grow and adapt to a healthier way of coping despite the most adverse beginnings in life. To this effect, I agree unequivocally that,

‘Hope is contagious’   (Crittenden, 2016; 316).

By Richard Devine (16.04.21)

If you have found this interesting/useful, you may wish to consider scrolling down further, and join a growing community of 210+ others in signing up for free blogs to be sent directly to your inbox (no advertisements/requests/selling). I intend to write every fortnight about matters related to child protection, children and families, attachment, and trauma.    Or you can read previous blogs  here

Bibliography; 

Alcoholics Anonymous. (2001). Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition. New York: A.A. World Services. 

Cozolino, L (2014). The Neuroscience of Human Relationships (2nd ed). W.W.Norton & Company. London. 

Crittenden, P.M. (2016) Raising Parents: Attachment, Representation and Treatment ,(2 nd ed.) Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge

Granqvist, P. and Kirkpatrick, L. A. 2004. Religious conversion and perceived childhood attachment: A meta-analysis. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion , 14: 223–250. 

Granqvist, P. and Kirkpatrick, L. A. 2008. “Attachment and religious representations and behavior.”. In Handbook of attachment: Theory, research, and clinical applications, , 2nd ed. Edited by: Cassidy, J. and Shaver, P. R. 906–933. New York, NY: Guilford.

Hari, J (April, 2017). Johann Hari: ‘The opposite of addiction isn’t sobriety – it’s connection. The Guardian. Accessed from https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/apr/12/johann-hari-chasing-the-scream-war-on-drugs (accessed on 15.06.2016)

Maté, G. (2008). In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close encounters with addiction . Toronto: Knopf Canada.

Mate, G (2012) Addiction: Childhood Trauma, Stress and the Biology of Addiction. Journal of Restorative Medicine , Volume 1, Number 1, 1 September 2012, pp. 56-63(8)

Panksepp, J., Knutson, B., & Burgdorf, J. (2002) The role of brain emotional systems in addictions: a neuro-evolutionary perspective and new ‘self-report’ animal model. Society for the Study of Addiction to Alcohol and Other Drugs, Addiction, 97, 459–469

Tolle, E (2005). The Power of Now. Hodder and Stoughton. London. 

Vincent J. Felitti, MD. (2004). Origins of Addiction: Evidence from the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study 

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Published by richard devine's social work practice blog.

My name is Richard Devine. I am a Social Worker in Bath and North East Somerset Council. After I qualified in 2010 I worked in long term Child Protection Teams. Since 2017 I have been undertaking community based parenting assessments. I obtained a Masters in Attachment Studies 2018. View more posts

3 thoughts on “ What I learnt attending Alcoholic’s Anonymous ”

Hi Richard, This blog on attending AA just confirmed how important connection is to humans- it is basically our life ‘essence or the essence of life’ I can certainly see how the group environment can nurture its members in a very powerful way. And have experienced it myself as a member of a parenting group and then becoming involved in facilitating those groups. And I suppose groups that provide this are in a way pseudo family set ups, as you say. Thanks for that. Ruby

Great post! I hope you got an “A” on this paper 🙂

Great blog, I’ve worked in and around the field of substance misuse for over three decades and I think this is the best interpretation of a higher power I’ve come across….

Higher power expresses itself through people, through the love in the fellowship, through the love of people, through people being together and helping each other, and it is also something that is present in my mind that is not part of my ego, a part of my mind that is related to other people’

Thanks for sharing your observations, I found them them deeply insightful!

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District 22 of AA

Serving the Pullman, WA and Moscow, ID communities and surrounding areas

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Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of people who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. There are no dues or fees for AA membership; we are self-supporting through our own contributions. AA is not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization or institution; does not wish to engage in any controversy, neither endorses nor opposes any causes. Our primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics to achieve sobriety.

Traveling outside the Pullman/Moscow area? Information on AA meetings and activities in Eastern Washington, Southeast British Columbia, Northern Idaho and Western Montana can be found at area92aa.org .

Mailing Address

DISTRICT 22 PO BOX 1055 PULLMAN WA 99163

**NEW IN-PERSON LOCATION FOR MONTHLY BUSINESS MEETING STARTING MAY 19** BUSINESS MEETING WILL CONTINUE TO MEET VIA HYBRID FORMAT AS BEFORE.

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Inside the unusual brief for Alcoholics Anonymous’ first nation-wide campaign

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July 1, 2024 | 7 min read

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How do you run an ad campaign when you can’t promote an organization? Here’s how one agency answered an ‘unusual’ brief from the world’s biggest sobriety charity.

Some billboards have no mention of alcohol / The Raised Eyebrow Society

Alcoholics Anonymous is to run its first UK-wide advertising campaign, but by virtue of being an anonymous organization, the ads have no logo, no phone number, no links and some even have no mention of alcohol.

Since its inception in the 1930s, Alcoholics Anonymous has ensured its public relations follow the rule of ‘ attraction rather than promotion .’ This puts a lot of constraints on what the organization can and can’t say about itself, where it can advertise and how it interacts with the media.

The organization has one purpose : “Alcoholics Anonymous is solely concerned with the recovery and continued sobriety of individual alcoholics who seek our help.” The campaign’s objective is purely to attract more people who are struggling with alcohol so they can get support from the AA community.

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The digital out-of-home campaign came about when media owner JCDecaux approached Alcoholics Anonymous as part of its charity initiative, which gives charities free ad space. JCDecaux then approached the agency The Raised Eyebrow Society to create the ads.

Pete Cain is co-founder and creative director at The Raised Eyebrow Society. He tells The Drum that removing of the logo was a “huge undertaking,” but says: “We believe the target audience will understand the two As represent Alcoholics Anonymous given the context of the messages. AA is the brand, so adding the logo, which is essentially just another two As, seemed superfluous. It makes the posters stand out as well, which is a prerequisite for any poster to be effective.”

“Posters aren’t the best way to reach people in truth,” Cain says, but it’s one of the few media methods open to Alcoholics Anonymous. The organization can’t use social media, for example, because people can inadvertently out themselves or out someone else if they’re sharing stuff and tagging. “There is a tone of challenges that come with aligning with the purpose of the organization and how modern communication works,” says Cain. “It has held those rules and worked around it ever since.”

Read between the lines

Each poster has a blurred-out message, with the only letters visible being two As to help viewers identify the ads as the AA. Messages include: ‘Alcohol isn’t the Answer’, ‘LeArn to live without Alcohol’ and ‘ReAdy when you Are.’

“The analogy being that this is the perspective of life through alcoholic blurred eyes and the AA is the clarity that can help you maintain or arrive at sobriety,” Cain explains. “People won’t necessarily think that deeply about it, but of course, we have a rationale for everything we do.”

Some ads explicitly mention alcohol, but others say encouraging messages like ‘You Are not Alone’ and ‘There is A better wAy of living’. Cain recounts some debate over whether every poster should mention alcohol, but in the end, decided it wasn’t necessary to get the message across. “Great ads leave you with a bit of work to do,” says Cain, but also adds: “It’s a little bit subjective and it is yet to be proved.”

Since Alcoholics Anonymous is a peer-led organization, decisions are made by committee at a once-a-year conference. The initial 30 posters were approved at that conference, but since it’s an annual event, no changes can be made to what was agreed upon.

The campaign is nation-wide but has a higher concentration of placements in London. Again, due to the sensitive nature and because people who need Alcoholics Anonymous’ help could be anywhere, no targeting is involved.

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The posters will run in “bursts,” with the first nine rolling out this week (July 1–July 7) during Alcoholics Awareness Week. Then, there will be two subsequent bursts in Oct and Dec, culminating with a five-week run between Boxing Day and January 31, 2025.

Cain acknowledges it will be a tricky campaign to measure the impact. Without a number or a website link or code, it will be hard to understand if someone reached out for help after seeing the billboard. Cain adds that it would be inappropriate to survey people coming into Alcoholics Anonymous about whether they saw the ads. “The AA is going to do its best with tracking it and all I can hope is it is significant to show that it worked.”

Unlike other projects he’s worked on with clear KPIs and a lot of testing, Cain is yet to know how the campaign will land but that is OK with him. “It’s an unusual campaign with an unusual set of conditions for an unusual organization that does incredible work.”

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Moscow Journal; Alcoholics Anonymous Begins to Lift the Curtain

By Richard W. Stevenson

• Oct. 15, 1994

As they settled into chairs in a dingy room on the city's eastern outskirts, the leader pounded on the table and brought the group to order with words that remain extraordinary in this country.

"My name is Vera," she said, "and I am an alcoholic."

More than half a century after being founded in the United States, and seven years after its tentative introduction here, Alcoholics Anonymous is slowly taking root in Russia, a country whose alcohol problem is seen by health experts as among the worst in the world.

"The state doesn't support us, and there are still very few doctors who work with us," said Vera, who spoke about her involvement in the groupon the condition that only her first name be used. "There's still relatively little information available even among specialists about alcoholism. But we can provide what official treatments never have, which is to help alcoholics learn to live as healthy people."

When the first group was formed here in 1987, a newspaper article suggested it was a C.I.A. front. The paranoia has faded, and there are now 70 A.A. groups meeting regularly across Russia and Ukraine, the movement's organizers said. But it is still very much a novelty in Russia.

Mikhail S. Gorbachev, the nation's best-known teetotaler, ran a temperance campaign while he was leader of the Soviet Union. It failed. Recent tax increases on vodka have had little effect but to drive drinkers to moonshine, chemicals and any other substances containing alcohol, causing the rate of death from alcohol poisoning to double in the last two years.

Traditional treatment for alcoholism has been the police drunk tank or medical "cures" of dubious value. Public debate about the drinking habits of President Boris N. Yeltsin has given the issue increased visibility -- "Your fondness for liquor is a secret only to yourself," one newspaper columnist wrote this week in an open letter to Mr. Yeltsin -- but counselors said that even private acknowledgment of alcoholism, much less a public pronouncement, remains anathema to most Russians.

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The Twelve Concepts

The Twelve Concepts for World Service were written by A.A.’s co-founder Bill W., and were adopted by the General Service Conference of Alcoholics Anonymous in 1962. The Concepts are an interpretation of A.A.’s world service structure as it emerged through A.A.’s early history and experience.

PDF version (Short Form) >      PDF version (Long Form) >

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The Twelve Concepts for World Service Illustrated >

The Twelve Steps >

The Twelve Traditions >

LONG FORM (this page)

I. Final responsibility and ultimate authority for A.A. world services should always reside in the collective conscience of our whole Fellowship. 

II. The General Service Conference of A.A. has become, for nearly every practical purpose, the active voice and the effective conscience of our whole society in its world affairs.

III. To insure effective leadership, we should endow each element of A.A.—the Conference, the General Service Board and its service corporations, staffs, committees, and executives—with a traditional “Right of Decision.” 

IV. At all responsible levels, we ought to maintain a traditional “Right of Participation,” allowing a voting representation in reasonable proportion to the responsibility that each must discharge. 

V. Throughout our structure, a traditional “Right of Appeal” ought to prevail, so that minority opinion will be heard and personal grievances receive careful consideration. 

VI. The Conference recognizes that the chief initiative and active responsibility in most world service matters should be exercised by the trustee members of the Conference acting as the General Service Board.

VII. The Charter and Bylaws of the General Service Board are legal instruments, empowering the trustees to manage and conduct world service affairs. The Conference Charter is not a legal document; it relies upon tradition and the A.A. purse for final effectiveness.

VIII. The trustees are the principal planners and administrators of over-all policy and finance. They have custodial oversight of the separately incorporated and constantly active services, exercising this through their ability to elect all the directors of these entities. 

IX. Good service leadership at all levels is indispensable for our future functioning and safety. Primary world service leadership, once exercised by the founders, must necessarily be assumed by the trustees. 

X. Every service responsibility should be matched by an equal service authority, with the scope of such authority well defined. 

XI. The trustees should always have the best possible committees, corporate service directors, executives, staffs, and consultants. Composition, qualifications, induction procedures, and rights and duties will always be matters of serious concern. 

XII. The Conference shall observe the spirit of A.A. tradition, taking care that it never becomes the seat of perilous wealth or power; that sufficient operating funds and reserve be its prudent financial principle; that it place none of its members in a position of unqualified authority over others; that it reach all important decisions by discussion, vote, and whenever possible, substantial unanimity; that its actions never be personally punitive nor an incitement to public controversy; that it never perform acts of government; that, like the Society it serves, it will always remain democratic in thought and action. 

SHORT FORM (this page)

I. The final responsibility and ultimate authority for A.A. world services should always reside in the collective conscience of our whole Fellowship. 

II. When, in 1955, the A.A. groups confirmed the permanent charter for their General Service Conference, they thereby delegated to the Conference complete authority for the active maintenance of our world services and thereby made the Conference—excepting for any change in the Twelve Traditions or in Article 12 of the Conference Charter—the actual voice and the effective conscience for our whole Society.

III. As a traditional means of creating and maintaining a clearly defined working relation between the groups, the Conference, the A.A. General Service Board and its several service corporations, staffs, committees and executives, and of thus insuring their effective leadership, it is here suggested that we endow each of these elements of world service with a traditional “Right of Decision.”

IV. Throughout our Conference structure, we ought to maintain at all responsible levels a traditional “Right of Participation,” taking care that each classification or group of our world servants shall be allowed a voting representation in reasonable proportion to the responsibility that each must discharge. 

V. Throughout our world service structure, a traditional “Right of Appeal” ought to prevail, thus assuring us that minority opinion will be heard and that petitions for the redress of personal grievances will be carefully considered. 

VI. On behalf of A.A. as a whole, our General Service Conference has the principal responsibility for the maintenance of our world services, and it traditionally has the final decision respecting large matters of general policy and finance. But the Conference also recognizes that the chief initiative and the active responsibility in most of these matters should be exercised primarily by the Trustee members of the Conference when they act among themselves as the General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous. 

VII. The Conference recognizes that the Charter and the Bylaws of the General Service Board are legal instruments: that the Trustees are thereby fully empowered to manage and conduct all of the world service affairs of Alcoholics Anonymous. It is further understood that the Conference Charter itself is not a legal document: that it relies instead upon the force of tradition and the power of the A.A. purse for its final effectiveness. 

VIII. The Trustees of the General Service Board act in two primary capacities: (a) With respect to the larger matters of over-all policy and finance, they are the principal planners and administrators. They and their primary committees directly manage these affairs. (b) But with respect to our separately incorporated and constantly active services, the relation of the Trustees is mainly that of full stock ownership and of custodial oversight which they exercise through their ability to elect all directors of these entities.

IX. Good service leaders, together with sound and appropriate methods of choosing them, are at all levels indispensable for our future functioning and safety. The primary world service leadership once exercised by the founders of A.A. must necessarily be assumed by the Trustees of the General Service Board of Alcoholics Anonymous. 

X. Every service responsibility should be matched by an equal service authority— the scope of such authority to be always well defined whether by tradition, by resolution, by specific job description or by appropriate charters and bylaws. 

XI. While the Trustees hold final responsibility for A.A.’s world service administration, they should always have the assistance of the best possible standing committees, corporate service directors, executives, staffs, and consultants. Therefore the composition of these underlying committees and service boards, the personal qualifications of their members, the manner of their induction into service, the systems of their rotation, the way in which they are related to each other, the special rights and duties of our executives, staffs, and consultants, together with a proper basis for the financial compensation of these special workers, will always be matters for serious care and concern. 

XII. General Warranties of the Conference: in all its proceedings, the General Service Conference shall observe the spirit of the A.A. Tradition, taking great care that the Conference never becomes the seat of perilous wealth or power; that sufficient operating funds, plus an ample reserve, be its prudent financial principle; that none of the Conference Members shall ever be placed in a position of unqualified authority over any of the others; that all important decisions be reached by discussion, vote, and, whenever possible, by substantial unanimity; that no Conference action ever be personally punitive or an incitement to public controversy; that, though the Conference may act for the service of Alcoholics Anonymous, it shall never perform any acts of government; and that, like the Society of Alcoholics Anonymous which it serves, the Conference itself will always remain democratic in thought and action.

A.A. Service Manual/Twelve Concepts for World Services

Two titles in a single booklet. The  A.A. Service Manual  opens with history of A.A. services, then explains the General Service Conference structure and its year-round importance.   The Twelve Concepts for World Service , written by A.A. co-founder Bill W., are an interpretation of A.A.’s world service structure as it emerged through A.A.’s early history and experience.

Concepts Checklist

A service piece for home groups, districts, areas