Twelve Step
Most treatment programs for addiction or other dysfunctional behaviors use what is called the Twelve-Step treatment method. This 12-Step Program began in the 1930’s with the group called Alcoholics Anonymous. From that point, the 12-Step method grew in popularity and became used not only for alcohol addiction, but also for drug addiction and other dysfunction and addiction related behavior.
Often called fellowships, there are now more than 200 self- help organizations whose worldwide membership can be counted in the millions, all of which use the 12-step methods of recovery from addiction. In addition, there are also sub groups, which offer help and encouragement for family members of drug and alcohol addicts, such as Nar-Anon and Al-Anon. Support from both friends and family is essential for a complete recovery from alcohol or drug addiction.
The original code of steps is as follows:
1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—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 Him.
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 Him 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 Him, praying only for knowledge of His 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 alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.
In cases of religious purposes, some alcohol treatment programs, which use the 12-Steps, will modify the words of the code.
Generally, the 12-Step program uses sponsors, which are people who have experience using and following the 12-Step program themselves. The ultimate goal is to help those who are new to the 12-Step program understand the steps and to make it through. These sponsors are not generally professionals, counsellors, or qualified people, but an addict who is offering to share his experience with another.
Success Rate of the 12-Steps Programs
Of the studies that we researched, we were unable to find the effectiveness of the 12-Steps program for any type of addiction. Because those following the 12-Step program are anonymous, it is extremely difficult to follow up with each person to inquire if they managed to stay sober, or if they eventually relapsed. There are generally also two types of people who want to stop drinking, those who genuinely make the decision to stop, and those who have been forced into a treatment program by the court or justice system.
An independent study made by AA reported that after the first month, 31% of those attending would no longer attend, and after a 90-day period more than 50% of those originally attending will have stopped the program. One thing the study doesn’t report is whether the remaining 45% of the group actually remained sober during that time frame. This concludes that there is no possible way to know the exact effectiveness of the 12-Step program, but it can be assumed that it is possibly around 10-25%.
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