The literature of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) considers pride to be a singularly bad thing. The main texts (Big Book and 12 & 12) repeatedly describe it as a negative character trait and suggest that it represents an over inflated ego and self-absorbed personality. This picture of pride is no doubt influenced by the Christian tradition […]
The following essay is a powerful and articulate personal story of addiction and recovery by Frank B, an atheist who found sobriety and salvation in AA through human love and compassion. Although ‘spirituality is central to the Twelve Step programme…. [Frank] discovered that even the godless can be saved.’ (1) His story was originally published in […]
By Steve K. I have recently encountered a common criticism from the feminist perspective against Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and its 12 Step program of recovery from addiction. The criticism suggests that AA’s emphasis upon ego-deflation and the practice of humility as a cure for a spiritual malady is damaging to those groups within society that […]
By Steve K. In society today the traditional values of duty and self-sacrifice are in danger of being lost to the post-modern humanistic value of being true to oneself and own wellbeing, in an increasingly individualistic and materialistic culture. There is an interesting debate to be had between these opposing traditional and modern values within […]
By Steve K. I recently read a fascinating book about the renowned American psychologist and philosopher William James, by the author and philosophy professor John Kaag. (1) The book, the title of which I’ve used for this article, explains James’s philosophy of pragmatism and his life changing choice to believe in free will – a […]
By William L White The devastating effects of addiction on physical/emotional health and social functioning have been meticulously catalogued, but far less attention has been given to its toll on character and the role character reconstruction plays in the recovery process. A recent rereading of David Brook’s The Road to Character has spurred this reflection on character […]
By Steve K. Step 12 of the program of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) suggests that “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.” A vital aspect of our own recovery from addiction is the inspiration to […]
By Steve K I recently took part in a live AA Beyond Belief (AABB) podcast recovery based discussion with co-hosts John S and Angela B. It was their first European live stream episode and I was invited to take part as their very first guest. I’ve known John since he started his website AABB in […]
By Steve K. In relation to Twelve-Step philosophy, humility is considered a prized virtue and essential to the practice of both the 12 Steps and 12 Traditions. Humility is difficult for most human beings and I doubt it can be practiced absolutely by many, if any of us. It requires a secure and integrated sense […]
The following essay written by Hugh Taft-Morales of the Ethical Humanist Society of Philadelphia, outlines a humanist approach towards a naturalistic spirituality for those who don’t hold a traditional belief in God, or subscribe to religious orthodoxy. A genuinely ‘spiritual, not religious’ perspective that suggests a ‘spirituality of the actual’, a ‘spirituality of the possible’, […]
By Steve K. Today I’m 15 years alcohol free. I don’t want or need to drink to escape life anymore, whatever life brings my way, good or bad. Addiction recovery, for me, both in a physical and emotional sense, has been a long, slow process of change and growth. It started a long time before […]
By Steve K. Adversity quite often brings out the best and worst in people and during these past few weeks I’ve observed both light and dark within myself. I’ve experienced my ego’s sense of threat react selfishly, mainly in the form of resentment in response to the government’s restrictions upon my freedom, but I’ve also […]
By Austin Frakt and Aaron E. Carroll. An updated systematic review shows AA performs better than some other common treatments and is less expensive. For a long time, medical researchers were unsure whether Alcoholics Anonymous worked better than other approaches to treating people with alcohol use disorder. In 2006, a review of the evidence concluded we didn’t have enough […]
By Steve K. Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) suggests that “selfishness – self-centeredness” (p.62) is the root cause of the alcoholic’s problems. That they are “driven by a hundred forms of fear, self-delusion, self-seeking and self-pity.” (1) There is no doubt that addiction, of any description, quite often leads to self-centered and selfish behavior. Addiction tends to […]
By William White, M.A. and Ernest Kurtz, Ph.D. One of the central messages of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement is the declaration that there are many pathways and styles of long-term recovery from severe alcohol and other drug problems. This message is of historical note, but it is not surprising. The recovery advocates who have […]
By Steve K. As a member of a 12-Step fellowship I’m aware of the ongoing debate in relation to using the terms “recovered” vs “recovering” alcoholic or addict. Ultimately, how someone describes themselves is a personal matter of preference and relates to their self-perception. I also think that how they interpret the above terms dictates […]
By Katie MacBride. In 1979, Bruce Alexander, a researcher at Simon Fraser University, separated rats into two cages, a stimulating one and an isolated one, and gave them morphine in order to measure the effect of environment on addiction rates. The so-called “Rat Park” experiment was intended to debunk some of the flawed understanding around […]
