By Matt Zoller Seitz Leslie isn’t circling the bottom of the drain yet, but she’s sunk pretty low. We first meet the title character of “To Leslie” (Andrea Riseborough) in an opening credits montage of photos showing what life was like before. Leslie got married, had a son, won $190,000 in a lottery and then burned through it all. The main […]
By Dr Wendy Dossett Beliefs and emotions are commonly accepted features of spirituality, but spirituality also includes ‘disciplines’ and ‘practices’. While ‘professional’ language and the ‘spiritual’ practices of 12-Step recovery may be framed differently, they are not substantively different discourses. In setting the ‘spiritual programme’ of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) alongside the evidence for AA’s mechanisms […]
By Steve K. On Wednesday 7th December 2022, the first ever documentary to gain access to a meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) was aired in the UK. The following three reviews offer a positive portrait of the role AA can play in helping those with alcohol dependency to recover and rebuild their lives. The documentary […]
By Steve K. The medical view of addiction suggests it’s a chronic and progressive ‘brain disease’ which requires treatment. In using the term chronic, I mean long-term and incurable. “Addiction is a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory, and related circuitry.” American Society of Addiction Medicine. (1) This view is supported by Alcoholics Anonymous […]
By Steve K. Human Beings are complex and the nature of our minds and behaviour is in many respects still mysterious despite all the resources of 21st century science. Although much has been learned by modern science about addiction it’s still a controversial topic among many experts in the field, e.g., brain disease vs maladaptive […]
By Steve K. Emotional Sobriety: a combination of emotional balance, emotional autonomy, and emotional maturity. Definition of emotional sobriety by Dr Allen Berger… “Emotional sobriety is a mental state in which we know longer react to our changing emotions as though they were the governing facts of our lives. This mental state is made possible […]
The following excerpt is adapted from the book ‘Higher and Friendly Powers – Transforming Addiction and Suffering’ (1) by Peg O’Connor. ‘Renouncing addiction to alcohol or other substances and behaviour excludes hedging one’s bets. One cannot both become a new person and hold onto old ways of doing and being. Nor can a person genuinely […]
By Steve K. My reply to this question is that the philosophy and culture of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is replete with cognitive-behavioural interventions and effectively operates as a form of CBT and peer support system. AA and other 12 Step fellowships are also influenced by medical, philosophical, and spiritual ideas and principles. The psychologist Clifford […]
By Steve K. Some critics of the 12 Step approach within the field of addiction ask this question and view the practice of taking a moral inventory as part of a recovery program as invalid and unscientific in relation to addiction treatment. In my opinion, this viewpoint seems to be based upon a narrow understanding […]
By Steve K. As someone who makes efforts to support others who suffer from addictive behaviours, I’m generally open to the various modalities and mutual-aid organisations that exist for this purpose. As well as attending 12 Step groups over a long period of time, I’ve also taken part in and helped facilitate other types of […]
By Steve K. I have recently read psychotherapist Dr Allen Berger’s latest book ‘12 Essential Insights for Emotional Sobriety’, which offers a comprehensive interpretation of the various characteristics that comprise the concept of emotional sobriety. According to Dr Berger, the phrase emotional sobriety was first coined by Bill Wilson, one of the cofounders of Alcoholics […]
By Steve K. I recently spent some time listening to someone who suffers from an alcohol use disorder describing their internal struggle, triggered by anxiety and stress, that takes place before they start drinking again after a period of abstinence. As they were describing their experience Freud’s model of personality came to mind, which is […]
By Steve K. The ‘Just for Today’ card published by Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and regularly reflected upon by many of its members is a set of positive daily affirmations that instil healthy behaviour, attitudes, and values within the reader. I’ve intermittently used the card throughout my recovery to ground myself and to set some positive […]
By Steve K. “Those who do not recover are people who cannot or will not completely give themselves to this simple program, usually men and women who are constitutionally incapable of being honest with themselves. There are such unfortunates. They are not at fault; they seem to have been born that way. They are naturally […]
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 […]
12-STEP PHILOSOPHY 