I recently attended an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in a comfortable house in Santa Monica, California. The room was occupied by approximately 70 attendees, and even more sitting on the outside porch. The focus of this particular day’s meeting was step six of the 12-step program. The sixth step is stated as follows: “We’re entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character” (Wilson, 1939, p. 76). Following the definition and interpretation of the sixth step, the main speaker of the day came up to the podium to tell her story. This woman was a recovering alcoholic and ex-heroin user. She had been sober for 14 years before she relapsed, and as of now she has been sober for 16 years. She explained that she has struggled with alcohol…
Cousnelor referred Jeff to an Alcohol Anonymous meeting at Alano Club. Alano club is a non-profit corporation and facility which provides social and recreational activities for the recovering addict/alcoholic and families in a clean and sober environment. Alano Club runs an AA on Sundays around 5 pm at 1350 N 11th St Fresno, CA 93703. The contact information of Alano Club is (559) 264-2730. The only requirement for AA meetings is the desire to stop drinking. There are no dues or fees for AA. This AA group focuses on AA sayings, Twelve Steps, Twelve Traditions and sharing stories of addicts who are recovered.…
Joan is an 89-year-old woman who lives at a nursery home. It has been noted that she has poor thinking skills. Her memory is lacking on recent event and appears disoriented. She often says she does not know where she is. She has a rambling speech that is hard to understand and difficulty writing. The nurses said it progress throughout the day and fluctuates for the past few days. It is clear that Joan has Delirium. Two symptoms that are major criteria for this disorder are the poor thinking skills, and the disturbance developed over a short period of time.…
Alcoholics Anonymous is an organisation dedicated to helping people recover from alcoholism. Open meetings are open to anyone, while closed meetings are only open for recovering alcoholics. Meetings are about one hour long. A major component of AA are the twelve steps as outlined in The Big Book:…
Each and every single day, we walk past many different types of people that come from all walks of life and some who are the typical definition of “normal” that are battling addictions to alcohol. My eyes were opened up a great deal when I attended an open Alcoholics Anonymous meeting that had a guest speaker named James and if I would have walked past him on the street, I would have never known the internal battles that he has faced and does face everyday he gets up out of bed.…
The field of substance abuse counseling is growing exponentially. With the opioid epidemic booming and synthetic drugs flooding the market, there is a dire need for counselors with education, training, and strong work ethics. But that is not why I am choosing to become a Substance Abuse Counselor, there is a little more to it. They say those that have lived it are the ones who can help others during their struggles. I am 45 years old, a mother to 3 beautiful children, one with special needs. I am also a granny to a beautiful little girl, and a wife to an amazing husband. All that has happened in the last 14 years of my life. However, the first half of my life was made up of abuse and addictions.…
I attended an A.A. meeting on April 5, 2010. Before the meeting I seemed very anxious. This was not my first meeting I have been to meetings before but they all seem to make me nervous. When I arrived the nervousness had eased off because everyone had made me feel welcomed. I was made to feel like a part of their family from the beginning to the end of the meeting. I seemed to have realized I missed going to these meetings and I miss the fellowship but it has not interfered with me staying sober.…
Alcoholics Anonymous came to be in Akron Ohio in 1935 It was formed by Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob out of a desperation to stay sober and not quite knowing how to do so. Bill W. had the idea that maybe one drunk trying to help another stay sober might be the key.…
This essay is a reflection on my observation of how a group interacts with each other. The 12-step meeting I attended was Overeater’s Anonymous (OA). OA uses the same Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions as Alcoholics Anonymous, the words are changed from “alcoholic” to “compulsive overeater”. The meeting I went to had seven people in attendance even with this small of a group it was definitely a diverse group. All seven attendees were women whose ages ranged from a young college student to an elderly homemaker, there was a middle age professional (just left the office type), and a good old ranch gal boot wearing, hair in a braid ranch women. I was a bit nervous about being there but someone patted the seat next to herself and I immediately felt welcomed.…
Delirium tremens will mostly take place in 48-72 hours regarding the previous drink that the victim had. Delirium tremens will also involve some several features, which will accompany during the time of an attack. With delirium tremens, it will involve all the early as well as the intermediate symptoms that we have discussed. However, with delirium tremens, an addition of sensorium, which is altered and profound, should be included. (Depoy et al, 2002. p45-58), Disorientation, Hallucination as well as the agitation are also common when it comes to delirium tremens. More so, Spartan autonomic, which will include tachycardia, diaphoresis as well as hyperthermia, will be evident. It is also important to learn that delirium tremens may also be present even with the absence of preceding…
If you are reading this letter, it means you have chosen to seek help for your addiction and by doing this, you are asking for support from fellow members and utilizing the Higher Power through an Alcoholics Anonymous 12-Step program. We have to commend you for your “STRENGTH” and “COURAGE.” AGAIN, you should be very proud of yourself for making an enormous and the most important step towards recovery by admitting that you are “POWERLESS” over alcohol and secondly that your life is unmanageable and chaotic. Yet, you chose to come clean with this behavior because you want to live a healthier lifestyle away from alcohol and addiction(s). By committing to Alcoholics Anonymous, you have already chosen to “set yourself free” from alcoholism…
I attended two different meetings in my area that addressed alcoholism and compulsive gambling. Initially, it was easy to see the similarities. The overall culture was similar. People introduced themselves as either alcoholics or compulsive gamblers. There was no cross talk. Certain literature was used to guide the meeting and help it flow. It seemed as if Gamblers Anonymous was simply an offshoot of Alcoholics Anonymous or any other 12-step program.…
Alcoholics Anonymous is a program that is used worldwide that helps individuals recover from an alcohol addiction. Anyone is welcome to attend the meetings and there is never a fee or charge. There are two types of meetings an open and closed. An open meeting means that anyone can show up to the meeting with the alcoholic such as family members, students, or anyone interested in the topic. A closed meeting is just for the individuals with the addiction. Everyone that participates in the meetings has suffered or is currently suffering an alcohol addiction. It is an informal meeting and there are no doctors or psychologist that attend. It is the responsibility of the individuals (alcoholics) to hold the meeting. The purpose of Alcoholics Anonymous is to provide a supportive environment to achieve sobriety. The origin of Alcoholics Anonymous dates back…
Wine, beer liquor, all shares the same properties. That is when consumed do something magical to a person. Alcohol makes situations more comfortable and fun. Ancient myths and folklore depict alcohol in their stories. Some depict alcohol as having wonderful healing assets. While some like the bible states many warnings against the misuses of alcohol. For the contemporary drinker alcohol when misused potentially can have devastating effects on his or her life. Not only his or her life but also their family, friends, co-workers lives as well. Although this is the case, there is means of arresting the disease. Before rehabilitation programs individuals were places in sanitariums with the mentally insane. One program changed all that. The program titled Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) was the first of its kind. Alcoholics Anonymous is a 12-step program. To the common person A.A. may seem mystical. Except for the millions of individual who have gotten clean through A.A the steps are no magic fairy dusts. This paper will examine the first four of the 12 Steps in order to understand the content of each step with the goal of developing a spiritual awaking, and the process of a continuum for the recovering individual. The 12 steps represent a beginning of a continuum for a recovering individual, and the acculturation of upright principles and ethics.…
I recently attended an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting for the first time. Because of the fact that I live in a small rural town, I had expected not to find a meeting anywhere in my local area. To my surprise, there were two different meeting locations all within walking distance from my house. The fact that my small town needed two separate meetings, and there were many others in nearby towns as well, was an eye opener for me.…