Alcoholics Anonymous

Alcoholics Anonymous (known commonly as "A.A." or "AA") is a world-wide fellowship of alcoholics whose primary purpose is to stay sober and carry the message of recovery from alcoholism through the Twelve Steps. A.A. is the original twelve-step program and has been the source and model for all subsequent and separate ones, such as Gamblers Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Sexaholics Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous, and Al-Anon/Alateen.

How the A.A. program works

Although some believe that A.A's success lies in the sense of support its members gain from attending regular meetings, many members, as well as A.A's literature, hold that the essence of the program is the Twelve Steps. The Steps incorporate Dr. Silkworth's description of the two-fold problem of physical allergy and mental obsession in Step One, Dr. Jung's description of the spiritual solution in Step Two, the Oxford Groups' method of reaching a spiritual awakening in Steps Three through Eleven, and Wilson's experience in helping others in Step Twelve. The process of working the Steps is sometimes summed up as "Trust God, clean house, and help others." (See twelve-step_program for a list of the steps themselves.)

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A.A. members are encouraged to "work the Steps", usually with the guidance of a voluntary sponsor. (A sponsor is a more experienced member who has worked the Steps before, usually of the same sex as the sponsee, and freely chosen - and just as freely "fired"- by the sponsee.) The Steps are designed to help the alcoholic achieve a spiritual, emotional and mental state conducive to lasting sobriety. There are many long-term A.A. members who claim that working the Steps has freed them entirely from the urge to drink alcohol. Whereas staying sober was once difficult and uncertain, these members report that sobriety is now much easier, provided they keep working the A.A. program.

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Most members regard attendance at A.A. meetings as important to their sobriety (although there are groups in A.A. made up of loners and members living in remote locations who communicate by mail and internet). Even members with decades of continuous sobriety still go to meetings regularly. There is no compulsion or requirement to attend. Members may attend as few or as many meetings as they wish, as frequently or infrequently as they like. However, new members are encouraged to go to 90 meetings in 90 days, and a sponsor may set his or her own expectations for a sponsee's attendance. No official membership or attendance records are kept at any level in A.A. However there are annually published estimates which are available through AAs headquaters in New York City, known as "GSO" (General Service Office).

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With the above in mind, a typical individual program of recovery for a newcomer may include:

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• Above all, avoiding the first drink.
• Attendance at one or more meetings daily for 90 days or longer. Some people coming into A.A. have attended meetings daily for the first year. (Note: nowhere in A.A. literature is there a reference to frequent attendance at A.A. meetings. Many A.A.s believe this notion started in the treatment center industry; graduating patients were advised to attend many A.A. meetings, presumably in an effort to acquire a new peer group of abstinent friends to reinforce the effects of treatment. Regardless of source, this recommendation is consistent with a suggestion commonly heard in A.A. that one in recovery should "change playgrounds and playmates.")
• Contact with one's sponsor daily in order to work the steps and to discuss whatever problems one may be having in one's life, problems which may, if not addressed, lead the alcoholic to take the first drink: "One is too many and one thousand never enough."
• Daily prayer and/or meditation, as suggested by Step 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."
• Daily attention to Step 10: "Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it."
• Service work, which, for the newcomer, can be as uncomplicated as making coffee at meetings, helping to set up and break down tables and chairs, etc.

It will be noted that the program is to be worked daily and done so one day at a time. Frequently heard at meetings: "I'm a winner today, no matter what happens, as long as I don't pick up that first drink."

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A common feature of A.A. meetings is that members are asked to speak to the group about their experience with alcoholism and recovery. However, there is no requirement to speak. Some members speak every time they are asked; others simply sit and listen in meetings for years before they say anything; some may choose to never speak.

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A.A. does not charge membership fees to attend meetings, but instead relies on whatever donations members choose to give to cover basic costs like room rental, coffee, etc. Contributions from members are limited to a maximum annual amount. A.A. is self-supporting and is not a charity. It accepts no subsidies from any non-A.A. source and donations of money or other items of value from such sources are not accepted.

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A.A. receives proceeds from sale of its book Alcoholics Anonymous along with other A.A.-approved books and literature, which are periodically reviewed from a cost standpoint so that printed materials can be priced to be self-sustaining while not actually being a source of profit for the organization.

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Many A.A. groups use the famous Serenity Prayer.

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