Submitted by recoveryrob on April 26, 2013 – 3:48pm
A twelve-step program is a set of guiding principles that outline a course of action for people who have the desire to recover from alcohol and/or drug addiction. Although, it is not considered that anyone actually ‘recover’ from addiction it is more that the person is ‘living in recovery.’ The Twelve Steps were first published in the book Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men Have Recovered from Alcoholism in 1939, and was originally proposed by Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) as a method of recovery from alcoholism.
This was then adapted and became the foundation of other twelve-step programs. As summarized by the American Psychological Association, the process involves the following:
- admitting that one cannot control one’s addiction or compulsion;
- recognizing a higher power that can give strength;
- examining past errors with the help of a sponsor (experienced member);
- making amends for these errors;
- learning to live a new life with a new code of behavior;
- helping others who suffer from the same addictions or compulsions.