Thoughts on the 12-Step Program
“I think those 12 steps are the way we should be living anyway ” D.J. Diebold, a Behavioral Health Therapist, says in regards to the 12-step programs used commonly by mutual support groups. These programs are centered around acknowledging a higher power of your choice, and giving over your disease to that higher power, whether that be a deity or the group itself.
Diebold thinks that these steps are a great way to approach life itself, calling them “just a fantastic way to live life.” These steps have helped thousands of addicts overcome their disease, develop skills and techniques for resisting future temptations, and best of all it gives them a sense of community.
Whether you are struggling to overcome your disease or are currently clean and looking to stay that way, these programs give a community of other recovering addicts with experiences you can draw strength from. There’s safety in numbers, and the accountability 12-step groups offer give the members a sense of safety and comfort as they go about fighting this affliction.
If you are curious about these programs or the mutual support groups that host them, visit Detox to Rehab to find a meeting near you.
12-Step Applications in Life
“We harm somebody …” Addiction is a disease, and sometimes that disease forces us, whether knowingly or unknowingly, to harm those we love. Whether by word or deed, our addiction can make life miserable for those around us as a result of our dependency on drugs or alcohol. While you may be riding high, family and friends around you may be put-off by something you said. While you may be drunk, somebody near you might get hurt.
“We apologize. We take a good moral inventory of what we’ve done in the past …” This is an important step because it forces you to come to terms with your own actions. Admitting we have a problem is the first step to fixing it, as the saying goes, and this is, in a way, how the 12-step program operates. While admitting the problem is not the first step, this same ideology is easy to see in the step of taking a moral inventory of our past actions.
Long-Term Help
We mentioned before that the members of these programs are sometimes already clean and free of their substance abuse, but looking to stay on that path. Mutual-Support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous only require the desire to quit drinking and stay sober in order to become a member, so even if you’re in recovery you can continue going to the meetings as a way to stay accountable with the group.
You can find more information on substance abuse treatment at Detox to Rehab
