Addiction is a complex and chronic disease that has multi-layered effects. It can cause substance abuse and damage relationships, quality of life, and health. Total recovery from addiction requires a comprehensive approach that addresses every aspect of your condition. That’s where the 12-step program comes in.
What Is the 12-Step Program?
A 12-step program is a type of proven treatment based on the idea that addiction is a mental, spiritual, and physical disease that requires a holistic approach to recovery. The 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) were originally developed in the 1930s in connection with the Oxford Group, which practices acknowledging wrongdoings, making amends, sharing testimony, and more.
The 12 steps have since been adopted by several other organizations and groups to address different forms of addiction. These include sex, gambling, binge eating, and narcotics. The 12-step program is designed to assist individuals in attaining sobriety by progressing through a method that promotes personal growth. The program also encourages community building for ongoing support and accountability.
What Are the 12 Steps of Recovery?
Based on the Twelve Steps of AA, each one in this addiction recovery program builds on the ones before it, creating a sustainable outline to follow:
- Acknowledge Reality: Accept that addiction has made life unmanageable and you need help.
- Believe in a Higher Power: Have confidence that a power greater than yourself can help you heal.
- Commit to Recovery: Accept that you can’t go through this journey alone and learn to depend on peer support and the strength of a higher power.
- Take a Moral Inventory: Identify your issues and understand how your behaviors have impacted you and those around you.
- Share Your Truth: Admit your wrongs to yourself and another person. This gives you space for a clean slate and personal growth.
- Prepare for Change: Address character flaws and the negative traits that impact your addiction.
- Show Humility and Seek Help: Ask for support in overcoming shortcomings.
- List Amends: Identify those you’ve hurt through addiction.
- Make Things Right: Take action to repair damaged relationships where possible.
- Continue Growth: Keep checking your progress, admit when you’re wrong, and keep up with amends.
- Discover Purpose: Strengthen your spiritual foundation through prayer or meditation.
- Give Back: Help others in recovery while practicing these principles daily.
The 12-step program is an ongoing spiritual development and personal growth journey, not a one-off meeting. It complements professional treatment rather than serving as a substitute. The 12-step addiction treatment helps individuals guard against relapse by encouraging an open-minded and honest lifestyle.
What Can I Expect During a 12-Step Program?
While going through the 12 steps of recovery, you can expect to:
- Work through steps at your own pace with guidance from a mentor
- Attend regular 12-step meetings for support and accountability
- Share experiences, practice activities, and do readings in a confidential setting
- Learn from others’ recovery stories and advice from your sponsor
- Build new, healthy relationships
- Practice honesty and personal growth
How Long Is a 12-Step Program?
The 12-step program is a lifelong journey without a set timeline, as each person’s recovery path is unique. While many sponsors recommend attending 90 meetings in your first three months, the focus isn’t on speed but on thorough engagement with each step and its impact on your daily life.
Types of 12-Step Programs
All 12-step programs have unique resources, meetings, and support groups but follow the same core practices and principles. Each program connects you with people who can relate to your situation and offer hope. Some types include:
- Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACA): Helps those recovering from the effects of growing up in alcoholic or dysfunctional homes using the 12 steps of AA
- Al-Anon and Alateen: Supports families affected by alcoholism
- Cocaine Anonymous (CA): Offers help with drug addiction issues, not limited to cocaine
- Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous (SLAA): Helps those with love or sex addiction, promoting abstinence from identified behaviors
- Gamblers Anonymous (GA): Helps overcome gambling addiction
- Gam-Anon and Gamateen: Assist individuals facing compulsive gambling problems
- Narcotics Anonymous (NA): Focuses on drug addiction recovery
- Nar-Anon: Helps those affected by a loved one’s addiction
- Overeaters Anonymous (OA): Addresses food-related addictions, like bulimia, binge eating, and anorexia
The Amends Process of the 12-Step Program
Making amends is both challenging and rewarding. You’ll list people you’ve hurt through addiction and, when safe and appropriate, apologize and make things right. It’s all about responsibility and being ready for a positive, negative, or indifferent response, not forgiveness. This process helps you:
- Release guilt and shame
- Rebuild broken relationships
- Boost self-esteem
- Strengthen your commitment to change
- Move forward with a clean slate
Some methods can be inappropriate or even dangerous, so always work with your sponsor or counselor.
Granite Recovery Centers’ Unique Approach to the 12 Steps
Our Recovery Education and Skills Training (R.E.S.T.) program offers a unique approach to the traditional 12-step principles by blending them with clinical expertise. At our treatment centers, we guide clients through structured levels while addressing crucial aspects of recovery, including addiction’s effects on body and mind, coping skills, and personal transformation through discussions.
Combining individual and group therapies, we focus on personal experiences, recovery milestones, and emotional healing. Our version of the 12-step program helps you build lasting skills and prepares you for continued participation in these programs. To learn more about our integrated 12-step programs in New Hampshire and Massachusetts, reach out today.
