Recovery programs in top rehabilitation centers are not just known for turning people sober. They also take full responsibility for instilling hope to recover from the clutches of alcohol and keep them on the path of sobriety.
This requires sobriety programs that are tested to be psychologically effective. They empower the patients and excite them toward their new journey. Therapists often prescribe these types of sobriety programs as part of their sobriety journey.
These are often conducted among a group of patients leading toward the same journey, mostly in an AA group or within the circle of group therapy.
One such program in many rehabilitation centers is the 12-Step Program. If this is your first time hearing about this program, and you are trying to judge its effectiveness, then you have reached the right place.
In this excerpt below, we will be discussing the following –
- What is a 12-Step Program?
- Its history and origination. How it came up as an effective sobriety program.
- Is It really effective? Testimonials from former patients.
- Questions answered by patients who are currently joining this program.
What Is A 12-Step Program For Sobriety?
Addiction has compulsions that many fail to escape. Even after days of sobriety, there are still possibilities of relapses. Maintaining abstinence gets even more difficult after the 30-day mark since withdrawal symptoms are at their peak.
This is where programs like 12-Step can play a major role. Starting with acknowledgment of the problem, then frequent reminders of the negative consequences of these substances. Call it a coping skill for behavioral withdrawal symptoms where the patient is unable to see the positive side of sobriety amidst the painful craving.
According to experts at Heartwood Recovery, although a 12-step program is not for everyone because it has a religious hot take, it is said to have worked for non-religious recipients as well.
Here are the 12 steps which are followed in an AA group after the initial detoxification action.
The 12 Step
- Admitting to be powerless in front of alcohol.
- Start believing in a higher power that can help them quit (it could be good for religious people).
- Withdrawing the control to that higher power. This gives patients ease in action when they feel overwhelmed with the task ahead.
- Taking a step towards creating a personal inventory, i.e., finding the elements surrounding the patient. Then eradicating the ones toxic enough to contribute towards substance abuse.
- Acknowledging your problem with yourself, the higher power one believes in, and another companion who has faced the wrongs of their substance abuse.
- Believing that the higher power will be able to correct the shortcomings built in one’s character due to alcohol abuse.
- Asking this higher power to help remove these character shortcomings and become someone better.
- Enlisting all the wrongs one has done to themselves and the people close to them (the one who loves them). Then exercise to make things right with them.
- The next step is contacting the people they hurt under the heavy influence. However, one can skip this step if doing so will cause self-harm.
- Add one’s toxic behavior to the personal inventory, and be willing to make amends whenever needed.
- Start exercising mindfulness and enlightenment with the higher power that one believes in. This can be done through meditation, yoga, or other holistic practices.
- Become an advocate of the 12-step program, preaching its importance to others who are in need.
Upon giving a read, one can clearly understand that there is a religious and spiritual undertone to this program. We will discuss how this spiritual connotation came about in alcohol recovery.
History Of The 12-Step Program
The founder of AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) was the first person to bring this program to life. Being a former patient of alcohol addiction himself, he was able to analyze his own experience and create this vision.
He wrote the Big Book, which is a stellar source of recovery for many AA groups all over the world. This is where the 12-step program found its place first. Teachings throughout his own recovery program have heavily influenced him. One such teaching is known as the 6-Step teaching, formed by the Oxford Group.
His original draft had been a gospel of Christian influence. However, since not everyone adhered to the religion, and some were even agnostic to the idea of god, many AA programs have made their own customization.
The bottom line is to help the patient continue on the path of sobriety, not turning religious. Thus, many didn’t have a problem with the edits.
The 12-step program was initially created to help fellow patients close to the founder, but it soon found its place in Heroin Anonymous (HA) and Gamblers Anonymous (GA) gatherings.
Does It Work?
Coming to the most important part of the excerpt. As a new patient about to begin their 12-step program, there is no harm in saying that you are a bit skeptical about the idea. Here are some of the testimonials from health professionals and previous patients.
- When it comes to the 12-step program, many will use the term, ‘it will work if you work it.’ Loosely translated to, you have to be devoted towards the program if you want results. For example, there is a higher power, but you have to put an effort into believing in it.
- A health professional has stated that addiction has to be non-comorbid, meaning the patient doesn’t suffer from any serious mental health disorder other than substance abuse. This is when the program will provide stellar results.
- Overall, the 12-step program will provide relative results. Health professionals do not swear by it, but they believe it is important if the patient is having a difficult time finding hope in recovery.
- Some data even states that some patients drop out of the 12-step program on their first try. However, they do return after their first relapse. Probably being unable to hold their willpower, they turn towards greater power.
Therefore, if you want the program to work effectively towards your cause, you must contribute your time and effort.