12 Step Program

A 12 step program is based on the system of recovery that was first developed by the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous. Today, dozens of programs have been established that address a wide variety of substance abuse and/or dependency problems. wikipedia.org[1]

In general 12 step programs are called fellowships. Members get together at what are referred to as meetings. Some groups, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, have meeting all around the world. A lot of programs also have online meetings. The meeting format changes from meeting to meeting. Each group is usually anonymous and sets its own format. There are meetings where members listen to a few people speak and meetings where everyone talks. The first is called speakers meetings. The latter is called a discussion meeting.

Each program has it's own particulars. Check out the fast facts section to the right. Under "view more fast facts" you will find titles to some of the most popular 12 Step program's official web sites. Click on the reference number after the name and you will be taken to the link to that program's official web page. From their pages you will be able to get a better idea of the meeting types and whether or not any meetings are available in your area. You will also be able to check out the general purpose and scope of various 12 step programs and see if any address the issue that concerns you.

1. We admitted we were powerless over our addiction - 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 God

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 God 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 God, praying only for knowledge of God's 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 other addicts, and to practice these principles in all our affairs