Please note: Step 1 is the only step that mentions the problem, whatever problem. The remaining steps are about the solution and that is where I am Living the Steps.
- We admitted that we were powerless over our addiction*, that our lives had become unmanageable.
- We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
- We made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
- We made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
- We admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
- We were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
- We humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
- We made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
- We made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
- We continue to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
- We 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 a result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to addicts, and practice these principles in all our affairs.
*The word "addiction" can be substituted for any person (addict, alcoholic), place , or thing (behaviour, disease) you are powerless over and/or want to find recovery from.
There are thousands of 12 step programs across the world. There are so many because the 12 steps work for anyone, anywhere, anytime. The steps work regardless of race, ethnicity, sexual identity, religion, absence of religion, cultural group, age or economic status.
The key to working the 12 steps:
1.Find a sponsor; someone who you can relate to & who has already worked the steps. Your sponsor is also someone who attends the same 12 step meetings you do and has a sponsor.
2. Make a commitment to abstain from the behaviour of which you are attending 12 step recovery. If it is for substance abuse then abstention from all mind and mood altering substances is needed to find recovery. Actually, all types of recovery would need the abstention of mind and mood altering drugs.
3. Put pen to paper and do the work, ask questions and follow direction. There are many step guides out there including NA's Step Working Guide, there is a pdf link on the main screen.
4. Talk to others who are working the steps, attend treatment for addiction, alcoholism, smoking, co-dependency, and other issues, read blogs about the 12 steps, what do other people struggle with? How can I relate to people? Attend after-care, seminars and attend open meetings in any 12 step fellowship.
5. I am not an expert, there really are no experts on 12 step recovery. It started with Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob. They started AA and the first 100 members wrote the book Alcoholics Anonymous aka The Big Book.
While the 12 steps have remained the same, the reason behind step 1 has been changed depending on the program. Then to begin new fellowships, the way the steps are worked have been changed, improved upon & interpreted by many. These other fellowships include everything from eating to cocaine. The original AA steps still have "We" at the beginning of step 1 (as above). Some fellowships (such as NA) have changed the beginning of steps 2-11 to also include"We" at the beginning of the step. I believe some of the thought behind this is the tradition of NA being a "we" program (as above).
As my sponsor tells me "Recovery is a process, not an event." Every person has their journey and will experience and learn different things at different times. This is the beauty of recovery; I can learn from every single person because we are all having experiences, hardships and learning life's lessons. It is all about relating to other people. I know, comparing is easier, I can feel superior, not-as-bad, etc when I compare. But when I relate is where I can see my lesson in another person. I become a teachable person.
The more life I live in recovery the more tools I have in my toolbox. If I was not examining my life through my 12 step glasses then I would not be gaining tools. I would be coasting back into my old patterns. Time in recovery doesn't necessarily mean I have a lot of tools and wisdom. I get out what I put into the program.
My idea of recovery has changed over the years. What I was looking for in life, my purpose, and how I wanted to live.
In early recovery I learned to ask my self: Is what I say and what I do aligned? There cannot be any space between these two points; that is where my disease lies. When act out in a way that is not aligned with my goals in recovery (the spiritual principles) then my disease will strike that area. I've worked hard to get where I am in recovery, we all have, we do the foot work and God takes care of the rest.
While nobody's perfect (especially me) these are my goals in recovery:
1. to live a balanced & spiritually connected life
2. know and apply the spiritual principles in my daily life
3. behave appropriately
4. have an attitude of gratitude
5. be transparent and accountable in all areas of my life
What about you? That's just my goal right now...what are your goals in recovery?
"The unexamined life is not worth living" Socrates at his heresy trial.
There are thousands of 12 step programs across the world. There are so many because the 12 steps work for anyone, anywhere, anytime. The steps work regardless of race, ethnicity, sexual identity, religion, absence of religion, cultural group, age or economic status.
The key to working the 12 steps:
1.Find a sponsor; someone who you can relate to & who has already worked the steps. Your sponsor is also someone who attends the same 12 step meetings you do and has a sponsor.
2. Make a commitment to abstain from the behaviour of which you are attending 12 step recovery. If it is for substance abuse then abstention from all mind and mood altering substances is needed to find recovery. Actually, all types of recovery would need the abstention of mind and mood altering drugs.
3. Put pen to paper and do the work, ask questions and follow direction. There are many step guides out there including NA's Step Working Guide, there is a pdf link on the main screen.
4. Talk to others who are working the steps, attend treatment for addiction, alcoholism, smoking, co-dependency, and other issues, read blogs about the 12 steps, what do other people struggle with? How can I relate to people? Attend after-care, seminars and attend open meetings in any 12 step fellowship.
5. I am not an expert, there really are no experts on 12 step recovery. It started with Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob. They started AA and the first 100 members wrote the book Alcoholics Anonymous aka The Big Book.
While the 12 steps have remained the same, the reason behind step 1 has been changed depending on the program. Then to begin new fellowships, the way the steps are worked have been changed, improved upon & interpreted by many. These other fellowships include everything from eating to cocaine. The original AA steps still have "We" at the beginning of step 1 (as above). Some fellowships (such as NA) have changed the beginning of steps 2-11 to also include"We" at the beginning of the step. I believe some of the thought behind this is the tradition of NA being a "we" program (as above).
As my sponsor tells me "Recovery is a process, not an event." Every person has their journey and will experience and learn different things at different times. This is the beauty of recovery; I can learn from every single person because we are all having experiences, hardships and learning life's lessons. It is all about relating to other people. I know, comparing is easier, I can feel superior, not-as-bad, etc when I compare. But when I relate is where I can see my lesson in another person. I become a teachable person.
The more life I live in recovery the more tools I have in my toolbox. If I was not examining my life through my 12 step glasses then I would not be gaining tools. I would be coasting back into my old patterns. Time in recovery doesn't necessarily mean I have a lot of tools and wisdom. I get out what I put into the program.
My idea of recovery has changed over the years. What I was looking for in life, my purpose, and how I wanted to live.
In early recovery I learned to ask my self: Is what I say and what I do aligned? There cannot be any space between these two points; that is where my disease lies. When act out in a way that is not aligned with my goals in recovery (the spiritual principles) then my disease will strike that area. I've worked hard to get where I am in recovery, we all have, we do the foot work and God takes care of the rest.
While nobody's perfect (especially me) these are my goals in recovery:
1. to live a balanced & spiritually connected life
2. know and apply the spiritual principles in my daily life
3. behave appropriately
4. have an attitude of gratitude
5. be transparent and accountable in all areas of my life
What about you? That's just my goal right now...what are your goals in recovery?
"The unexamined life is not worth living" Socrates at his heresy trial.
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Thank you for your comments. I welcome comments as it is a way for me to learn and grow. Thanks for keeping the comments 'PG' as this is a public site. Blessings and Love <3 Bonnie