Addiction-Self-Help Groups
Step 10.
"Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it." (Inaba, et al., 1997) This step helps to promote the support of sobriety as well as to continue the process of change. This step supports the individual in recognizing that he/she does not have to slip back into old behaviors by focusing on one's own behaviors and not making excuses.
Step 12.
"Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these Steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics and to practice these principles in all our affairs." (Inaba, et al., 1997) This step, along with step 10 and step 11, helps to promote the support of sobriety as well as to continue the process of change. This step is vital to assist the individual to maintain sobriety; the sharing of the 12-step process with others (Kinney, 2003).
Step 7.
"Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings." (Inaba, et al., 1997) In this step the individual admits to the fear of repeated unhealthy behaviors, while instilling hope that positive change is possible. At this stage, the recently sober individual is likely to have little self-esteem.
Step 3.
"Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him." (Inaba, et al., 1997) This step enables the individual to let go of the sinking life preserver, the bottle, and accept that there is an outside influence to provide direction. This is the beginning of the search outside of one's self for direction in life.
Step 8.
"Made a list of all persons we had harmed and became willing to make amends to them all." (Inaba, et al., 1997) This step helps the individual to review past behaviors and identify those who may have been harmed along the way to whom amends for those harms are to be made.
Step 4.
"Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves." (Inaba, et al., 1997) This step provokes individuals to look closer at the basic errors in the perception of the world and at the behaviors that were part of their drinking experience. This begins the process of teaching individuals about their responsibility during their drinking periods. Being an inventory, a space for positive attributes to enhance the non-drinking behaviors is available.
Step 9.
"Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others." (Inaba, et al., 1997) This step along with Step 8 are used as a guide to sort out the actual injury the individual had done to others and to decide how to best deal with making amends for the injuries. Making amends is not seeking positive feedback but is simply making a concerted effort to clean up one's side of the situation. These steps help the individual to see the importance of recognizing and owning the behaviors and events that have occurred.
Step 1.
"We admitted we were powerless over alcohol [cocaine, cigarettes, food, gambling, etc.] and that our lives had become unmanageable." (Inaba, Cohen, & Holstein, 1997) In this step, the individual acknowledges that alcohol is the problem for which she/he is powerless and the problem affects the whole life.
Al-Anon
"groups are a fellowship of relatives and friends of alcoholics who share their experiences, strength, and hope in order to solve their common problems. We believe alcoholism is a family illness and that changed attitudes can aid recovery ... Al-Anon has but one purpose: to help families of alcoholics. We do this by practicing the twelve Steps. By welcoming and giving comfort to families of alcoholics, and by giving understanding and encouragement to the alcoholic." (http://www.al-anon-alteen.org)
Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)
"is a fellowship of men and women 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." (Alcoholics-anonymous, http://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org)
Cocaine Anonymous (CA)
"is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from their addiction ... Our primary purpose 67 is to stay free from cocaine and all other mind-altering substances, and to help others achieve the same freedom." (Cocaine anonymous, http://www.ca.org)
Alateen
"is a fellowship of young Al-Anon members, usually teenagers, whose lives have been affected by someone else's drinking." "Alateen is part of Al- Anon, which helps families and friends of alcoholics recover from the effects of living with the problem drinking of a relative or friend. Alateen is our recovery program for young people. Alateen groups are sponsored by Al-Anon members. Our program of recovery is adapted from Alcoholics Anonymous and is based upon the Twelve Steps, Twelve Traditions, and Twelve Concepts of Service. The only requirement for membership is that there be a problem of alcoholism in a relative or friend. Al-Anon/Alateen is not affiliated with any other organization or outside entity." (http://www.al-anon-alteen.org) Through Alateen younger people come together to share their experiences, strengths, and hopes with each other; discuss their difficulties; learn effective ways to cope with their problems; encourage one another; help each other understand the principles of the Al-Anon program; and learn how to use the Twelve Steps and Alateen's Twelve Traditions. (http://www.al-anon-alteen.org)
Narcotics Anonymous (NA)
"is a nonprofit fellowship or society of men and women for whom drugs had become a major problem. We...meet regularly to help each other stay clean. ...We are not interested in what or how much you used ...but only in what you want to do about your problem and how we can help." (Narcotics anonymous, http://www.na.org)
SMART Recovery
Self Management and Recovery Training (online and face to face); a treatment program addicts that emphasize a nonspiritual philosophy and a greater sense of personal control; view addiction as maladaptive behavior; preference over demand; looks at irrational thinking. combination of cognitive behavioral approach with Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy. Focus on changing self destructive behavior : controlling thoughts and emotions can result in empowerment to abstain. Not a disease, but a abstinence based program. Ran by trained volunteers; with a volunteer mental health professional for crisis.
The Secular Organization for Sobriety (SOS),
also known as Save Our Selves, group accepts individuals regardless of the chemical to which they are addicted and promote a one-day-at-a-time philosophy toward sobriety (Inaba, et al., 1997). It is a non-religious, non-spiritual means of obtaining sobriety, sobriety being the priority of the addicts' life (www.secularhumanism.org).
Women for Sobriety (WFS)
is another group with a spiritual base. Believing that the 12-steps of AA work better for men, they emphasize the power of positive emotions. This concept has spread to the formulation of Men for Sobriety (MFS) (Inaba, et al., 1997).
Moderate Management (MM)
is not intended for the alcoholic/alcoholdependent person. It is intended for individuals considered problem drinkers who have experienced minor alcohol-related problems. Abstinence is not seen as the primary goal, but MM suggests guidelines and limits for moderate drinking. It "is a behavioral change program and national support group network for people concerned about their drinking and who desire to make positive lifestyle changes. MM empowers individual to accept personal responsibility for choosing and maintaining their own path, whether moderation or abstinence. MM promotes early self-recognition of risky drinking behavior when moderate drinking is a more easily achievable goal." (http://www.moderation.org)
Rational Recovery
emphasizes that individuals can take charge of their lives and they are capable of making the choice not to drink. It uses the addictive voice recognition technique (AVRT) to assist the individual to become aware of thoughts that support drinking behaviors. "Rational Recovery (RR) is a non-profit organization of self-help groups that use the principles of Rational Emotive Therapy (RET) as developed by Albert Ellis. RR is a national organization and an outgrowth of the Humanist movement. The basic philosophy of RR is based on the self-reliance of the individual and his or her ability to use rational thinking as the mainstay in a program of sustained abstinence from alcohol and chemical addiction." (Ward, 2004, http://www.humanistsofutah.org)
All 12-step support groups utilize the following 12 steps
first adopted by AA:
Two-steppers is a phrase
used to describe a few people who enter a 12-step program like AA, acknowledge they are addicts/alcoholics, get clean/dry out, and then begin their quest to help rescue others. This refers to the individual not working through the steps and applying them to one's life (Kinney, 2003).
Self-help programs
voluntary group where each members it both the helper and the helpee. Each type have 1) Individuals to examine the need for a behavior change; 2)education of self about the addictive process as interpreted by the specific program. 3) some contract with others in similar situations. 4) a personalization of the recovery process.
Step 5.
"Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." (Inaba, et al., 1997) This step provides the individual with a method of letting all the negative behaviors and wrong doings out into the open and not keeping them stuffed inside, helping to get rid of the guilt.
Step 2.
"Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity." (Inaba, et al., 1997) In this step, the individual recognizes the insanity of the drinking behaviors and moves toward the gradual reliance on a higher/greater power to aid in restoring sanity
Step 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." (Inaba, et al., 1997) This step, along with step 69 10, helps to promote the support of sobriety as well as to continue the process of change. It also encourages continued spiritual development.
Step 6.
"Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character." (Inaba, et al., 1997) In this step, the individual begins to "let go, let God," making the individual aware of the hanging on of old unhealthy behaviors.
16 steps
1.for women and minorities that might have been neglected in addiction recovery approaches; 2.to support those who want to use new healing models in addiction recovery. (desirable for clients who are not Christians)
The 12-step programs are
a fellowship of individuals working to overcome their addiction to chemicals or behaviors that have made their lives unmanageable