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QUESTION A Humanist Alternative to A.A.’s Twelve Steps

For those who are seeking substance recovery, yet are turned off by the religious dogma within the 12 steps of AA, this is a more honest, humanist alternative.

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AMGT 8 Nov 26
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8 comments

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0

SMART recovery is great and there are far fewer meetings. Passages in Malibu is non-program NA AA rehab that does excellent care. Our treatment of addiction in this country and in the world falls far short of acceptable. There are fantastic asspects to 12-step programs and I generally help my patients negotiate the fanatical "god" aspects by changing to the language that suits them and finding meetings where the religion isn't pushed.

0

I worked for a fundamentalist Bible thumper recovered meth addict ( construction--go figure) who left AA because it wasn't Christian enough for him. I won't go into it, but he was one of the most disrespectful, abusive supervisors I've ever met. And I've met a lot.

1

There is also rational recovery which i have heard is good.

3

I was in AA for over 25 years. At least half of that as an unbeliever. Whenever anyone used the word god, I changed it in my head to G.O.D. (Group Of Drunks), because it was the group I was in that I considered my higher power. It wasn't until the last couple of years that the group I was in started getting more religious. I think because of the current political climate. Instead of a generic god, they would say "Jesus" for instance. It finally got to where I didn't enjoy the meetings. I haven't been attending meetings for a couple of years, and I really miss the group in a lot of ways. I've thought about trying to start a non religious group myself.

Don't know if this would have worked in your group but whenever anyone tried to make it more christian in any groups I was in, i.e. saying the lord's prayer, I always spoke up and was able to quash it. It helps I'm in the Twin Cities; 12-step capital of the world, cause I can always find another group.

Best of luck, I hope your recovery is going well.

2

I got my 2 year degree in Addiction Studies. The biggest comp0-laint I heard from people in recovery was that they were atheist and AA relied too much on god or a higher power. So, this would be very useful... if I didn't burn out during my counseling internships. I just don't have the patience to deal with peopel who know what they need to do to get better and yet do nothing often for years.

1

I do like the increasing amount of atheist 12-step literature out there but once I figured out how to create a non-theist higher power and that I could pass reading a 'god' passage in group I was ok with my 12-step program. Of course I wasted years to get to that point...

0

I'm not an alcoholic. I've never read the twelve steps before and I hadn't realized how religious it was. The Humanists version sounds like it should work. I didn't realize how difficult it must be to quit. Sounds humbling.

1

Here are a few resources for those interested in secular alternatives to A.A. and other 12-step programs:
[americanaddictioncenters.org]

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