What is Alcoholics Anonymous?
There are two practical ways of describing A.A. The first is the common description of its aims and objectives:
Alcoholics Anonymous 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 A.A. membership; we are self-supporting through our own contributions. A.A. 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.
The "common problem" is alcoholism. People who consider themselves members of A.A. are and always will be alcoholics, even though they may have other addictions. They have finally recognized that they are no longer able to control any kind of drinking. Today they stay completely away from alcohol. Most importantly, they don't try to face the problem alone. They discuss it openly with other alcoholics. This sharing of "experience, strength and hope" seems to be the key element that makes it possible for them to live without alcohol and even, in most cases, without the desire to drink.
The second way to define Alcoholics Anonymous is to describe the structure of the fellowship. In terms of numbers, A.A. currently consists of more than 2,000,000 men and women in 180 countries 1. These men and women meet in groups that vary in size from half a dozen ex-drinkers in some localities, to several hundred in larger communities.
In populous metropolitan areas there can be numerous groups, each with its own regular meetings. Many A.A. meetings are open to the public. Most groups have "closed meetings", where members feel encouraged to discuss problems that might not be fully understood by non-alcoholics.
The group is considered the core of the A.A. Fellowship. Its open meetings welcome alcoholics and their families in an atmosphere of friendship and mutual help. Today there are more than 114,000 groups around the world, including several hundred in hospitals, prisons and other institutions (1).
Alcoholics Anonymous was born in Akron in 1935, when a businessman from New York, sober for the first time in years, visited another alcoholic. During his few months of sobriety, this New York man had noticed that his desire to drink decreased when he tried to help other "drunks" achieve sobriety. In Akron he was led to a local doctor who had a drinking problem. Working together, the businessman and the doctor discovered that their ability to stay sober seemed to be very much related to the degree of help and encouragement they were able to give to other alcoholics.
For four years the new movement, without a name, organization or publications, grew slowly. Groups were formed in Akron, New York, Cleveland and a few other places.
In 1939, with the publication of the book Alcoholics Anonymous, from which the Fellowship took its name, and as a result of the help of several non-alcoholic friends, the Fellowship began to attract national and international attention. A service office was then opened in New York City to answer the thousands of questions and requests for literature that are received every year.
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Is A.A. a religious fellowship?
No, A.A. is not a religious fellowship, in that you don't need to have any defined religious beliefs to be a member. Although it has been supported and approved by many religious leaders, it is not linked to any organization or sect. Its members include Catholics, Protestants, Jews, members of other large religious communities, agnostics and atheists.
A.A.'s recovery program is undeniably based on the acceptance of certain spiritual principles. Each member is free to interpret them as he or she sees fit, or simply not to worry about them at all.
Most members, before turning to A.A., had already admitted that they couldn't control their drinking. Alcohol had become a power greater than themselves and was accepted as such. A.A. suggests that in order to achieve and maintain sobriety, alcoholics need to accept and depend on another power that they recognize as being superior to themselves. Some alcoholics prefer to consider their group as this higher power. For many others, this power is God - as they see Him. Still others believe in completely different concepts of a Higher Power.
When they turn to A.A., some alcoholics initially show many reservations about accepting any concept of a Power higher than themselves. Experience shows that if they remain open-minded about this and continue to attend A.A. meetings, it probably won't be too difficult for them to find an acceptable solution to this problem, which is purely personal.
Are there many alcoholic women in A.A.?
The number of women seeking help in A.A. for their drinking problem is increasing all the time. About a third of its current members are women and, among newcomers, the proportion is definitely increasing. Like the men in this fellowship, they represent all social classes and ways of drinking.
The general feeling seems to be that alcoholic women face special problems. Some women may eventually feel more stigmatized for their uncontrolled drinking, due to society's tendency to view women's behaviour differently.
No such distinctions are made in A.A. Whatever her age, social status, financial condition or education, the alcoholic woman, just like her male partner, can find understanding and help in A.A.. Within their local group, A.A. women play the same roles as men.
Are there many young people in A.A.?
One of the most encouraging trends in the growth of A.A. is the fact that young men and women are increasingly becoming attracted to the program before their drinking problems turn into a real disaster. Now that the progressive nature of the disease of alcoholism is better understood, these young people are recognizing that when you're an alcoholic, the best time to stop the disease is in its early stages.
In the early days of A.A., it was generally thought that the only logical candidates for A.A. were men and women who had already lost their jobs, fallen into the ditch and either completely destroyed their family lives or had been marginalized from life in society for a long time.
Today, many of the young people who go to A.A. are in their twenties. Some haven't even got there yet. Most of them still have jobs and families. Many have never been to prison or hospital. But they have realized the threatening symptoms, they have recognized that they are alcoholics and it doesn't make sense to them that alcohol should lead them down their inevitable path of destruction.
Their need for recovery is just as pressing as that of older men and women who didn't have the opportunity to go to A.A. in their youth. Once in A.A., young and old are rarely aware of the age difference. In A.A., everyone starts a new life from the same point: the last drink.
How does one become an A.A. member?
No one becomes an A.A. member in the ordinary sense of the word. You don't fill in any admission form. In fact, many groups don't even keep a register of their members. No admission fees, dues or monthly fees of any kind are paid.
Many people become A.A. members simply by attending the meetings of a particular group. They may have found out about A.A. in any number of ways: they may have contacted A.A. when they reached that point in their alcoholic journey where they wanted to stop drinking; they may have called the number listed in the phone book; they may have written to the head of the General Service Office.
Still others may have been led to an A.A. group by a friend, a family member, a doctor or a spiritual advisor.
A newcomer to A.A. has usually already had the opportunity to talk to one or more members before attending their first meeting, which allowed them to learn something about how A.A. had helped them. The newcomer hears about alcoholism and A.A., which helps them decide whether or not they are honestly prepared to give up alcohol. The only requirement for A.A. membership is the desire to stop drinking.
A.A. does not run campaigns to attract members. If, after attending a few meetings, the newcomer decides that A.A. is not for him, no one will pressure him to stay in the fellowship. Suggestions may be made so that he or she can keep an open mind in this respect, but no one in A.A. will try to force him or her to make a decision. Only the alcoholic himself can answer the question: do I need Alcoholics Anonymous?
WHAT IS AN OPEN MEETING?
An open A.A. meeting is a group meeting which can be attended by any member of the local fellowship, whether they are an alcoholic or not. The only duty is not to divulge the names of A.A. members after the meeting.
Most open meetings usually have a chairperson and other speakers. The chairperson opens and closes the meeting and introduces each member. With a few exceptions, the speakers at an open meeting are A.A. members. One at a time, they go over some of the individual experiences that led them to join A.A. The chairperson can also give his or her personal view of the recovery program and what sobriety has meant to him or her. All the views expressed are purely personal, as each A.A. member speaks only on his or her own behalf.
Before closing a meeting of this type, there is usually a social break where coffee, soft drinks and cakes or cookies are served.
What is a closed meeting?
A closed meeting is limited to members of one group or visitors from another. The purpose of a closed meeting is to give A.A. members an opportunity to discuss certain phases of their alcoholic journey that can only be fully understood by other alcoholics.
These meetings are usually conducted with as little formality as possible and all members are encouraged to take part in the discussion. Closed meetings have a very special significance for the newcomer, as they give them the opportunity to ask questions that would upset a beginner and help them benefit from the recovery experience of older members.
Can I bring family or friends to an A.A. meeting?
In most places, anyone interested in A.A., whether or not they are one of its members, is welcome at an open A.A. group meeting. It is especially suggested that newcomers bring their wives, husbands or friends to these meetings, as their understanding of the recovery program can be an important help to the alcoholic in achieving and maintaining sobriety.
It should again be emphasized that closed meetings are reserved for alcoholics only.
Can newcomers belong to A.A. groups outside their area of residence?
This question is often asked by people who seem to have a perfectly valid reason for not wanting to risk being identified as alcoholics by some neighbor. They may have, for example, an employer who is totally unaware of the A.A. recovery program and who is potentially hostile towards anyone who admits to having a problem with alcohol. They may, however, desperately want to join A.A. as a way of achieving sobriety, but may hesitate to choose a group near their area of residence.
The answer to this question is that a person is free to choose an A.A. group wherever they like. Of course, it's much more convenient to choose the closest group, which also implies a more direct approach to each person's problem. The person who goes to A.A. is usually, though not always, considered a drunk.
The good news about their sobriety will also inevitably spread. Few employers or neighbors will feel any resentment towards the cause of their worker's or friend's continued sobriety, whether it's based in a local A.A. group or 100 kilometres away.
Today, very few people are fired from their jobs or socially marginalized for being sober. If we consider that the experience of many thousands of A.A. members can be a safe guide, the best suggestion is for the newcomer to seek help from the nearest group, rather than worrying about the reactions of others.
If I join A.A., won't I miss out on many friends and many opportunities to have fun?
The best answer to this is the experience of hundreds of thousands of men and women who are already in A.A.. Their attitude is usually that they didn't have any real friendships or great fun before they went into A.A.. Their point of view on both subjects has changed.
Many alcoholics find that their best friends are delighted to see them face up to the fact that they can't control their drinking. No one wants to see a friend continue to suffer.
It's obviously important to distinguish between real friends and people you meet casually in bars. The alcoholic tends to have many "friends" whose conviviality he may miss at first. But they will be replaced by the hundreds of A.A.’s the newcomer will meet, men and women who accept him with understanding and help him maintain his sobriety at all times.
Few A.A. members will exchange the joy that comes from sobriety for what seemed like joy while they were drinking.
What are the Twelve Steps?
The "Twelve Steps" are the core of A.A.'s individual recovery program. They are not abstract theories: they are based on the experience of the first A.A. members who got there through attempts, some successful and some unsuccessful. They describe the attitude and activities that these early members found important in achieving sobriety. Accepting the "Twelve Steps" is by no means compulsory.
However, experience suggests that members who make an honest effort to follow these Steps and apply them in their daily lives go much further in A.A. than those who just take them lightly. It has been said that it is impossible to follow all the Steps to the letter on a daily basis. While this may be true, as the Twelve Steps reflect a totally new way of life for most alcoholics, many A.A. members feel that the Steps are a practical necessity for maintaining their sobriety.
The following is the text of The Twelve Steps, which first appeared in Alcoholics Anonymous, the book of the A.A. experience:
- We admitted we were powerless over alcohol - that our lives had become unmanageable.
- Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
- Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
- Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
- Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
- Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
- Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
- Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
- Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
- Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
- 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.
- 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.
What are the Twelve Traditions?
A.A.'s "Twelve Traditions" are principles suggested as a way of ensuring the survival and growth of the thousands of groups that make up the Fellowship. They are based on the experience of the groups themselves during the critical early years of the movement.
The Traditions are important for both older members and newcomers because they recall the true foundations of A.A. as a fellowship of men and women whose primary purpose is to maintain their sobriety and to help others achieve sobriety:
- Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon A.A. unity.
- For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority — a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.
- The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking.
- Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or A.A. as a whole.
- Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers.
- An A.A. group ought never endorse, finance or lend the A.A. name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property and prestige divert us from our primary purpose.
- Every A.A. group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions.
- Alcoholics Anonymous should remain forever nonprofessional, but our service centers may employ special workers.
- A.A., as such, ought never be organized; but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve.
- Alcoholics Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues; hence the A.A. name ought never be drawn into public controversy.
- Our public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion; we need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio and films.
- Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our traditions, ever reminding us to place principles before personalities.
WHAT IS THE 24 HOUR PROGRAM?
The 24-hour program is a phrase used to describe A.A.'s basic approach to the question of how to maintain sobriety. A.A. members do not swear that they will never drink again for the rest of their lives, nor do they commit themselves to not drinking tomorrow. When they turned to A.A. for help, they had already discovered that no matter how sincere they had been in promising themselves that they would give up alcohol in the future, they invariably forgot those promises and got drunk. The compulsion to drink proved to be more powerful than their best intentions not to drink.
The A.A. member recognizes that his biggest problem is staying sober now! The twenty-four hours of the day are the only time he can do anything about drinking. Yesterday is over, tomorrow may never come.
But today – says the A.A. member - today, I'm not going to have that first drink. Maybe I'll be tempted to drink tomorrow - and maybe I will. But tomorrow is something I'll worry about when it comes. My big problem is not to drink in these 24 hours
In addition to the 24-hour program, A.A. stresses the importance of three slogans that the newcomer will probably have heard many times before becoming an A.A. member. These slogans say: "Easy Does It", "Live and let live" and "First things first". By making these slogans an integral part of his attitude to everyday problems, the A.A. member receives a great deal of help in his attempt to live fully, without alcohol.
What doesn't A.A. do?
Solicit members.
Keep attendance records or case histories.
Engage in or sponsor research.
Join “councils” of social agencies (although A.A. members, groups and service offices frequently cooperate with them).
Follow up or try to control its members.
Make medical or psychological diagnoses or prognoses.
Provide detox or nursing services, hospitalization, drugs, or any medical or psychiatric treatment.
Offer religious services or host/sponsor retreats.
Engage in education about alcohol.
Provide housing, food, clothing, jobs, money, or any other welfare or social services.
Provide domestic or vocational counselling.
Accept any money for its services, or any contributions from non-A.A. sources.
Provide letters of reference to parole boards, lawyers, court officials, social agencies, employers, etc.
Alcoholics Anonymous acts in accordance with the designation "Anonymous". It does not want the names of its members to appear on television, be mentioned on the radio or in newspapers. Members do not reveal the names of other members, but they themselves are not ashamed of belonging to A.A. They just want to encourage more alcoholics to discover A.A. in order to be helped. They don't want to make themselves out to be heroes and heroines just for looking after their health.