Twelve-step program

Twelve-step program is a set of guiding principles, originally proposed by Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), outlining a course of action for recovery from addiction, compulsion, or other behavioral problems. The process involves the following:

1. Admitting that one cannot control one's addiction or compulsion;
2. Recognizing a higher power that can give strength;
3. Examining past errors with the help of a sponsor (experienced member);
4. Making amends for these errors;
5. Learning to live a new life with a new code of behavior;
6. Helping others who suffer from the same addictions or compulsions.

History

The twelve-step method was developed by Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob Smith, the founders of AA. It was first published in the 1939 book Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men Have Recovered from Alcoholism.

Steps

The following are the original twelve steps as published by Alcoholics Anonymous:

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 willing to make amends to them all.
9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

Effectiveness

The effectiveness of the twelve-step program is a subject of much debate. Some studies suggest that AA and similar programs can be beneficial, while others find no difference in outcomes between those who attend such programs and those who do not.

Criticism

Critics of the twelve-step program argue that it promotes a kind of dependency, replacing the addiction to a substance or behavior with an addiction to the program itself. Others argue that the program's emphasis on powerlessness and the need for a higher power can be harmful to those who do not hold religious beliefs.

See also

• Addiction recovery groups
• Self-help groups for mental health
• Substance dependence

Twelve-step program Resources
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