To put it in context, the phrase ‘progress not perfection’ is taken from the book Alcoholics Anonymous, Chapter 5 entitled ‘How it Works’. The actual phrase is ‘ We claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual […]
Doing esteemable things is a piece of advice often given to people in recovery who struggle with the own self-image or self-esteem. Whilst it may seem practical to make yourself feel better by doing good […]
Let it begin with me is perhaps one of the less well-known slogans in recovery, perhaps more commonly associated with Al-Anon or Coda, but it is definitely one of the more effective sayings in helping […]
What Are Character Defects? The phrase ‘character defects’ is often used in 12 Step Recovery, unfortunately not in the context that it was originally intended. This often leads to a more judgmental approach by people […]
Available Here -The Sobriety Handbook What is Sobriety – What does it mean? What seems like a really simple question takes on a very different meaning for someone who has struggled with a serious drink […]
Being gentle and being kind, especially to oneself, are in many ways at the heart of recovery from alcoholism but often get overlooked by a more macho do-or-die culture. Early Recovery It is probably fair […]
The term dry drunk is used a lot in AA and in recovery generally. Some people find it helpful, other people find it a bit judgmental. Whatever it may mean to people, its real value […]
Many people in recovery struggle with the idea of God at all, and find it even more difficult to approach or deal with the issue of what is God’s will for them as a person. […]
One of the main benefits of going to meetings in early sobriety is that people hear other peoples stories. Often they will hear things that help them make sense of their own drinking, even if […]
There is much talk in Alcoholics Anonymous about spirituality and religion, and the mix between the two. There is a fairly simple reason for this. Many people who look to get sober have had bad […]
Emotional sobriety is a phrase that was used by Bill Wilson in a Grapevine article, entitled The Next Frontier: Emotional Sobriety, published in 1958, some 20-plus years after he got sober. Originally a letter to […]
12 step programs can be a slightly confusing term for some people. It originates from the organisation Alcoholics Anonymous, which developed a recovery program based around 12 specific steps, which are really statements of experience […]
Many people who get sober do so in a rehab or treatment center. Many people are familiar with the idea of a rehab, but perhaps less clear about what happens there. Most rehabs are residential, […]
When people talk about an inner voice in the context of spirituality, they are normally referring to an inner intuitive sense of direction in their life. This sense of there being an inner world, and […]
It has become almost something of a cliche in society nowadays to use the adage that you cannot cope with a problem unless you first admit it. Not that this is a new or novel […]
Quite often in an AA meeting or similar, you will hear someone announce themselves as my name is so-and-so and I’m a grateful alcoholic/ addict, or I’m a grateful recovering alcoholic/addict. Equally, you are quite […]
Tough love is one of those expressions that has crept into the vocabulary of mental health and 12-step recovery in recent years. It sort of implies that an action or directive is being given or […]
People quite often like to categorise emotions as being good or bad, with emotions such as anger and self-pity being thought of as bad or weak. Emotions such as gratitude and a positive outlook are […]
Quite a simple question in many ways, but one that many people struggle with, both in terms of trying to set boundaries of their own, and dealing with other people who don’t respect, or don’t […]
The term rigorous honesty is used a lot in Alcoholics Anonymous, and in the 12-step recovery world generally. Its original intent was to make clear the need for people to own and take responsibility for […]
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