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The Troubled Teen Industry / Re: the dangers of equating AA and programs
« on: January 17, 2009, 10:58:28 AM »
Okay people, Bill and I got together last night at an undisclosed location and decided you all have too much time on your hands! We both agree that we were egomaniacs in our day. However, we DID find a way for US to stay sober. The Big Book of AA was never meant to be a bible, just a text of our collaboration and a collection of stories of people who found sobriety through "our program of recovery." To this day, it amazes us that this book EVER got published!
Most hardliners sponsors instruct their charges to read the first 164 pages of the famous Big Book. My story doesn’t even start until page 171; I found that insulting in the beginning, but eventually I got over it! I believe my personal story has more relevance in today’s day and age because MY addiction included drugs – as they are so prevalent in today’s society. Keep in mind that this book was written and compiled OVER 70 years ago! Times change people and life must change with the passage of time. It was never our intention to cause such controversy – we merely wanted to put something out there that helped US and we wanted others to find HOPE from our experiences. Hence, the creation of the AA Big Book – this was our way of spreading the word of something that helped us overcome OUR addictions.
Is AA the ONLY way??? NO, many have found sobriety through other ways and other programs. At the time of the creation of AA back in 1935, the life of an alcoholic invariably ended up with them being dead, insane, or in jail. We were not fond of THAT outcome and sought to find other ways to keep an alcoholic off the booze, and/or drugs in my case.
Can AA be compared to a religion or a program – YES! You can also compare apples to oranges. Does a comparison change anything? I think not. Do we say a person can find contentment through working the steps as outlined in the book? Again yes, but times have changed and we must change with the times. We had hope that our book would help others in the same way it helped us and freed us from our addiction.
However, you can also find the same peace of mind, or contentment, in other books such as “the Four Agreements” by Don Miguel Ruiz. This book also outlines a design for “living happy, joyous and free.” We both found this book to be much less controversial and a much more simple approach to life. Ruiz outlines just 4 simple steps or ideals – (1) Be impeccable with your WORD, (2) Do not take anything personally – good or bad, (3) Always do your best (understanding that your BEST might/will change from day to day, and lastly, (4) Don’t make assumptions. It appears to be easier to remember just 4 simple steps rather than 12 convoluted steps
One thing both Bob and I agree on is the fact that statistics can be used to support ANY point of view. Back in our day, the fate of the alcoholic was not good and those afflicted were considered people of little will power and alcoholism was not a disease – you were just considered mentally ill and destined to end up dead, insane, or in jail. It was our hope that an alcoholic could recover the same way we did. It really was not our intention to create a “one size fits all” program of recovery that would continue unchanged for 70+ years.
If people find comfort & solace in going to AA meetings, so be it. We are not happy that the courts try to interfere with a program that was created on the basis anonymity and a principle of attraction rather than promotion. Having the judicial system interfere with that anonymity is an atrocity in our opinion; forcing the program upon individuals was not something we foresaw at the point of creation.
Bottom line….
If going to AA meeting helps you stay sober, by all means, GO, if not, don’t go. We pass no judgments, but we cannot speak for the members of Alcoholics Anonymous in the 21st century. We CAN say that AA was not created to be a cult in any way shape or form, nor are we responsible for what happens in the meeting rooms of AA TODAY…or all the other A’s that have sprung from the original program.
Most hardliners sponsors instruct their charges to read the first 164 pages of the famous Big Book. My story doesn’t even start until page 171; I found that insulting in the beginning, but eventually I got over it! I believe my personal story has more relevance in today’s day and age because MY addiction included drugs – as they are so prevalent in today’s society. Keep in mind that this book was written and compiled OVER 70 years ago! Times change people and life must change with the passage of time. It was never our intention to cause such controversy – we merely wanted to put something out there that helped US and we wanted others to find HOPE from our experiences. Hence, the creation of the AA Big Book – this was our way of spreading the word of something that helped us overcome OUR addictions.
Is AA the ONLY way??? NO, many have found sobriety through other ways and other programs. At the time of the creation of AA back in 1935, the life of an alcoholic invariably ended up with them being dead, insane, or in jail. We were not fond of THAT outcome and sought to find other ways to keep an alcoholic off the booze, and/or drugs in my case.
Can AA be compared to a religion or a program – YES! You can also compare apples to oranges. Does a comparison change anything? I think not. Do we say a person can find contentment through working the steps as outlined in the book? Again yes, but times have changed and we must change with the times. We had hope that our book would help others in the same way it helped us and freed us from our addiction.
However, you can also find the same peace of mind, or contentment, in other books such as “the Four Agreements” by Don Miguel Ruiz. This book also outlines a design for “living happy, joyous and free.” We both found this book to be much less controversial and a much more simple approach to life. Ruiz outlines just 4 simple steps or ideals – (1) Be impeccable with your WORD, (2) Do not take anything personally – good or bad, (3) Always do your best (understanding that your BEST might/will change from day to day, and lastly, (4) Don’t make assumptions. It appears to be easier to remember just 4 simple steps rather than 12 convoluted steps
One thing both Bob and I agree on is the fact that statistics can be used to support ANY point of view. Back in our day, the fate of the alcoholic was not good and those afflicted were considered people of little will power and alcoholism was not a disease – you were just considered mentally ill and destined to end up dead, insane, or in jail. It was our hope that an alcoholic could recover the same way we did. It really was not our intention to create a “one size fits all” program of recovery that would continue unchanged for 70+ years.
If people find comfort & solace in going to AA meetings, so be it. We are not happy that the courts try to interfere with a program that was created on the basis anonymity and a principle of attraction rather than promotion. Having the judicial system interfere with that anonymity is an atrocity in our opinion; forcing the program upon individuals was not something we foresaw at the point of creation.
Bottom line….
If going to AA meeting helps you stay sober, by all means, GO, if not, don’t go. We pass no judgments, but we cannot speak for the members of Alcoholics Anonymous in the 21st century. We CAN say that AA was not created to be a cult in any way shape or form, nor are we responsible for what happens in the meeting rooms of AA TODAY…or all the other A’s that have sprung from the original program.