Some of us sought out sordid places, hoping to find understanding com- panionship and approval. Momentarily we did—then would come oblivion and the awful awakening to face the hideous Four Horsemen—Terror, Bewilderment, Frustration, Despair.
Understanding AA's 4 Horsemen and 8 Bedevilments can provide insight into what it's like to experience the intense darkness that alcoholism brings to someone's life. Examining these aspects of alcoholism is an important part of the recovery process.
At the end of most AA meetings, we join hands and recite the Lord's Prayer. Some people find this appalling, feeling as if it forces us to accept a specific definition of a Higher Power.
That's where the ABCs of Recovery come into play. They are Acceptance, Believe, and Change. It all starts with acceptance. Many addicts say “I am an addict.” They admit it, but it's only lip service.
The 4th and 5th steps of Alcoholics Anonymous can be the hardest. After a higher power has been found, it's time to do some soul searching. Step 4 of the A.A. model is as follows: Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves. Admitting to oneself that they have a weakness can be the hardest thing.
The Golden Rule of Habit Change
By requiring members to take stock of their lives and past mistakes, AA helps its members to create a list of triggers (the cue), and also to discover what reward they get from drinking.
They are called the Four Paradoxes of AA: (1) we surrender to win, (2) we give away to keep, (3) we suffer to get well and (4) we die to live.
We have three little mottoes which are apropos. Here they are: “FIRST THINGS FIRST” “LIVE AND LET LIVE” and “ EASY DOES IT.”
I'll look like the hole in the doughnut.” Hence, the fear of being the hole in the doughnut is the fear of giving over control to our higher power — and the underlying fear that we will disappear, losing our identity and our sense of self.
68 FEAR – “We ask Him to remove our fear and direct our attention to what He would have us be.” Pg. 69 SEX – “We asked God to mold our ideals and help us live up to them.” Pg.
Bill Dotson, the "Man on the Bed," was AA number 3. At his death, he had not had a drink in more than nineteen years. His date of sobriety was the date he entered Akron's City Hospital for his last detox, June 26, 1935.
The camel is a symbol for sobriety because a camel can go 24 hours without a drink. Perhaps you remember the small stick pins with the number 24 on them which were quite popular in A.A. for a number of years.
This means those things that are not solid- such as our thoughts, our beliefs, our emotions- are what is spiritual. When we say that alcoholism or drug addiction is 'a spiritual malady', it means that our disease in centered in these things (thoughts, beliefs, emotions).
"It is a spiritual axiom that every time we are disturbed, no matter what the cause, there is something wrong with us," notes the author of Twelve Steps for Twelve Traditions another core text for people in recovery. "If somebody hurts us and we are sore, we are in the wrong also."
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, The courage to change the things I can, And the wisdom to know the difference.
Although no one will ever pressure you to speak, it is good to introduce yourself to the group. You may simply say, “Hi, I am ___ and I am an alcoholic.” If you are uncomfortable admitting to your alcoholism you may simply give your name. Note that only your first name is required due to the anonymity of AA.
Promise 9: Our whole attitude and outlook upon life will change. Promise 10: Fear of people and economic insecurity will leave us. Promise 11: We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us. Promise 12: We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves.
Addiction specialists cite success rates slightly higher, between 8% and 12%. A New York Times article stated that AA claims that up to 75% of its members stay abstinent. Alcoholics Anonymous' Big Book touts about a 50% success rate, stating that another 25% remain sober after some relapses.
In AA, the equilateral triangle represents the three part answer – Unity, Recovery, and Service – to a three part disease – Physical, Mental, and Spiritual, while the circle represents AA as a whole.
Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous don't require you to believe in a certain way. “Most people in AA are very welcoming and open to agnostics and atheists.
Step 1: We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable. Step 2: Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. Step 3: Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
An optional statement to be read at meetings, this card asks members to refrain from any behavior that may compromise another's safety and encourages all members to take any necessary precautions to ensure their own personal safety.