Substance abuse is our nation’s number one health
problem. People who have substance
abuse problems range from the man in the suit, to the girl on the street. Treatment is accessible for a small number
of the millions who are affected by substance abuse, but at what cost. Substance abuse treatment has failed
countless patients, and will continue to fail. A reason for this epidemic of failure is
simple; a one size fits all approach.
Welcome to the 12-Steps; a world of dishonesty, labels, religion, and
mental and psychological abuse.
The dominant treatment model used in at least 95% of
Why this information is so very important, one needs to
look no further than the 95% failure rate of Alcoholics Anonymous. However, we rarely hear from those 95%
of so-called failures (In the eyes of A.A.). Many would ask, “who wants to listen to an alcoholic in denial.’ Or a dry drunk [the AA term for
sober individuals who reject AA], for goodness sake?” Any serious criticism of the 12-step
program invites the barbed reply, “A.A.
bashing,” followed by a challenge to the character or integrity of
any one who would look askance (Trumpery).
The pilot of the 12-steps is not therapy, nor was it ever
intended to be (Schaler). What has
happened over the past 25 years is that, for a variety of reasons, many
recovering and non-recovering counselors, therapist, and administrators in the
substance abuse field have been brainwashed by A.A. This paper will examine why the 12-Steps
have failed. Why they are harmful
and how members are trapped into believing in the A.A. creed. The term A.A. will be used for all
programs which follow the 12-step doctrine in this paper.
A.A practices Groupthink, and forbids any criticism of “the
program.” Groupthink or dogma
is a set of beliefs a group hold to be true. The dogma is found in the Twelve Steps,
the Twelve Traditions, the Big Book (the A.A. bible), and several others
publications. The old-timer (a
member who has been in A.A. for a number of years) may often be heard advising
that everything one needs to know be within the first 164 pages of the Big
Book. A.A. believes that it has
unquestionable truths, even God-given
truths, so it considers any criticism of its founders, their teachings, or
the organization to be invalid, untrue, even evil, because it is the “Will of God” who dictated
that (Orange). Critics of AA are
called AA-basher by the members of “the program.” The A.A.-basher is always wrong and
imagines everything, and can be dismissed out-of-hand, just because they are
AA-bashers. By this circular logic,
A.A. can never be wrong, and criticisms of A.A. seriously or honestly reflect
on what the critics are saying.
A.A. and those who endorse it deserves credit for the many grossly wrong
or blatantly dishonest statements in their literature and their program, which
is one of the big differences between information and dogma. In addition, they deserve the credit for
the gross irrationality and sheer insanity of dogma, tenets, and beliefs, and
the members’ fanatical dedication to that dogma and those beliefs (A.A.
Deprogramming). All those who
endorse twelve step programs are continually poisoning and reinforcing the
failed 12 step philosophy, in the mind of an addicted person. While offering patients no other option
for treatment is “cunning, baffling, and powerful.” Any competent doctor will tell you that
a one-size-fits-all medical treatment program is a good way to kill many
patients (
The first 164 pages of the Big Book are scared because Bill Wilson
(co-author and founder of A.A.) wrote them and those pages cannot be changed,
corrected or updated even one little bit.
They have not been changed in three editions, and they will not be in
the fourth edition. The 12-step
philosophy and principles are 66 years old. Since that time, our nation has
changed drastically. For those who
choose to look the other way, and refuse not to use the resources we have today
is inexcusable, inhumane, and pathetic to say the least. The disease theory will not be debated
here, but note everyday our country is striving to find better ways to treat
and cure diseases like cancer, diabetes, and M.S. Unfortunately, one must conclude that
substance abuse takes a back seat to change or improving. Alcoholics and drug addicts are just
that, “once an alcoholic, always
and an alcoholic,”
“powerless” (Big Book 33). Enough said!
A.A. especially preys upon newcomers’
while continuing to instill to its members misinformation that is unethical, law
breaking, and mind controlling.
Most of A.A s dogma is based on myths about how the human mind and body
works, not facts. Teaching people
in treatment for substance abuse problems that they “don’t know they have a problem” creates a
problem for them (Schaler). As you
will see, one of the biggest problems with the twelve steps is when members are
taught to confess that they are powerless, and they can no longer manage their
lives. The only way to have any
chance to be in recovery is to completely turn your life over to the care of
God. However, since people are
themselves rather then complex and will really do what they want anyway they
transgress against the set of adopted beliefs and hide their acts and thoughts
in a veil of secrecy and shame. The
cycle repeats as it eats them up inside causing them to be held hostage of
A.A. It is also psychologically
harmful, driving some believers to suicide, multiple relapses, illogical
thinking, and misdiagnosis. A.A.
fails to recognize who is and who is not a true alcoholic today.
The first step of the program is, “we
admitted we were powerless over drugs-that are lives had become
unmanageable” (Big Book).
Wow, that will make a newcomer “keep
coming back.” Teaching
people to believe that they are powerless
enables them to act powerless.
This leads people to believe that once they have a drink, that a
full-blown relapse and total loss of control is inevitable and unavoidable
(Daily). There is evidence that the
A.A. doctrine of powerlessness leads to binge drinking. In a sophisticated controlled study of
A.A.’s effectiveness, court mandated offenders who had been sent to A.A.
for several months were engaging in four times as much binge drinking as the
no-treatment control group (outpatient Treatment of Alcoholism, by Brandsma,
Maultsby, and Waelsh pg 105). Note,
Project M.A.T.C.H., was designed to see if patients with alcohol dependence
fared better outcomes when matched with treatment. The study found over a one-year period, that alcoholics
reduce their drinking sharply and to roughly the same degree after completing
any of three randomly assigned treatments.
The treatments that were used for this study were cognitive therapy,
motivational enchantment therapy, and A.A.
(NCADA). Project MATCH,
largest study on drug addict’s to date was a disappointment. Individuals also dependent on drugs
other than alcohol were excluded from the study, although more than one in
three volunteers for this study reported having addictions to an illicit
substance (BOWER).
“Lack of power that was our dilemma. We had to find power by which we could
live, and it had to be a Power Greater than ourselves. Obviously. But where and how were we to find this
Power? Well, that is exactly what
this book is about. Its main object
is to enable you to find a Power greater than yourself, which will solve your
problem… {That} means, of
course, that we are going to talk about God. Here difficulty arises with
agnostics” (BB 45).
“Next we decided that hereafter in
this drama of life, God was going to be our Director. He is the Principal; we are His
agents. He is the father, and we
are His children” (BB 62).
The only reason they teach you that you are powerless in A.A. is to
induce a religious conversion experience.
Many newcomers are overwhelmed by hearing this nonsense and they should
be, that is what the 12-steps are designed to do. The powerless people have one option,
continually seeking God. If God is
not found you are doomed. A.A. will
tell you that your Higher Power (God) will fix all your problems. Making people, think God will fix all
your problem is a set up for failure, because problems are a part of life. In addition, many newcomers are not
seeking a spiritual recovery, nor want it.
Nevertheless, the fellowship has failed to know the difference. “…you may be suffering from an
illness which only a spiritual experience will conquer” (BB 44). Substance abuse treatment centers force
people into A.A. which has also contributed to its failure. What about patients’
who suffer from depression and chemical dependence, that already have
“God” in their lives?
It has become the rights of professionals and A.A. to determine that one
needs a new God or religion.
Someone who is suffering from drug dependence, who seeks help, must know
that once help is found, your own beliefs are no longer welcomed and must be
left at the door upon entering.
The Big Book forecast
certain dooms to those who reject any of its teaching and steps, giving victim
the following either-or- ultimatum:
(
“To one who
feels he is an atheist or agnostic such an experience seems impossible, but to
continue as he is means disaster…
To be doomed to an alcoholic death or to live on a spiritual basis are
not always easy alternatives to face” (Big Book 44).
Using the ultimate form of coercion, the 12-step program says you have
two options, religion or death: The predators (AA) are designed to prey upon
the weak, mainly newcomers, stripping them of their ability to think for
themselves. A.A. is ripe with stern
suggestions to conform to its belief system or face the terrible consequences
of jail, institutions and death (REAL).
“But after a
while we had to face the fact that we must find a spiritual basis of life
– or else. Perhaps it is
going to be that way with you. But
cheer up, something like half of us thought we were atheist or agnostics”
(BB 44). A.A. is not ashamed to
paint the nonbelievers as being dishonest with themselves (we thought we were
atheist). Implying that they
“really do” believe deep down inside.
“But
{newcomer’s} face falls when we speak of spiritual matters, especially
when we mention the word God, for we have re-opened a subject which our man
thought he had nearly evaded or entirely ignored. We know how he feels. We have shared his honest doubt and
prejudice. Some of us have been
violently anti-religious” (Big Book 45).
The 12-steps and their surrounding dogma are highly sophisticated in
their ability to quickly burrow into the consciousness of newcomers. You don’t get more than five
minutes into a meeting before someone is reading a canned statement
that’s says, anyone who doesn’t make it in A.A. is
“constitutionally dishonest”
Rarely have we seen a
person fail who has thoroughly followed our path. Those who do not recover are people who
cannot or will not completely give themselves to this simple program, usually
men and women who are constitutionally incapable of being honest with
themselves. There are such
unfortunates. They are not at
fault; they seem to have been born that way. They are incapable of grasping and
developing a manner of living which demands rigorous honesty. --alcoholics anonymous, ch5, “How
it Works”
New members are told very little at first, in order to avoid
confusion. The most important
advice is presented carefully, and can be summed up by the cliché “90 meetings in 90 days.” One popular way of expressing this and
exhorting the newcomer to return is “Just
stick around for 90 days and we will refund your misery.” The suggestion may also be, “If you are new here, you are too new
to know if you need A.A, so just go
to 90 meetings in 90 days and then you can decide” (Gleaves 3). In other words, keep reinforcing A.A.
beliefs to convert the newcomer to their dogma. “Keep
coming back, it works.”
Newcomers that might be in question of what is going on is told, “Your best thinking got you
here.” Another method of
bypassing the critical faculty is through use of double blinds. One example is a statement such as, “if this is your first meeting, and
you are wondering if you might be alcoholic, let me assure you are. You wouldn’t be here if you
weren’t.” New
member who have trouble with understanding the A.A. philosophy say they get
this advice: "Fake it till you make
it."
Many clichés are used to obscure reality in newcomers and old
timers alike. A.A. has its own
cliché-ridden language, which is meant to confuse members and have mind
control effects. Notice throughout
this essay how many of them are negative, and condescending or demeaning. That helps in the A.A. (cult) conversion
process, breaking down the minds and wills of newcomers.
A.A. members always assume that newcomers are suffering from the mental
symptoms of severe alcoholism: the clouded thinking, unrealistic beliefs and
expectations, rationalizing drinking, and being in denial about having a
drinking problem. In addition,
"they haven't been around long
enough to know.” A.A.
believes that newcomers must get a sponsor to supervise them, help with their
indoctrination, and do their thinking for them. A.A. members always consider any
disagreements a beginner may have with the standard program as examples of "diseased thinking" --
problems that will disappear when the beginner has "recovered enough"
(meaning been indoctrinated enough) (Orange).
Everyone is supposed to get a sponsor when they arrive in any 12-step
modeled program. This is the first
rule of A.A. and substance abuse treatment centers. Sponsors serve two very important
purposes, keep the newcomer inline, and quickly make them surrender their minds
to A.A.
"Let Go, and Let God" is the
slogan. "Do what your sponsor
tells you to do" is the teaching.
Alcoholics who have just quit drinking often really do have mental
problems like cloudy-headedness, unclear thinking, short-term memory loss, and
sleep disorders. Sometimes they
really are in denial about how bad their drinking problem is. This is when Sponsors take advantage of
the newcomers' weaknesses to convert them into cult members before their thinking
clears up too much...Like: "You must do 90 meetings in 90 days.”
Whatever A.A. has
wanted of me I have tried to do to the best of my ability.
The Big Book, page 340.
In
addition, the Big Book says: Those
who do not recover are people who cannot or will not completely give themselves
to this simple program... (Big Book
58.) … maybe some addicts
need more than A.A., maybe some aren’t even addicts, or can it be they
had a sponsor that imposed false views and inappropriate advise to the
newcomer, which caused their failure.
All too often, the sponsors demand that you surrender your
soul to them. In fact, sponsors can
be extremely dangerous in this regard: when someone does a fearless moral
inventory, (step 4) he or she is supposed to confess all of his or her sins to
another person and to God. “Admitted to God, to ourselves,
and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs,” (Step 5
of the 12-step program).The "other person" (step 5) is usually the
sponsor. Thus, largely, the new
inductee surrenders to the sponsor, who ends up knowing all of his or her
innermost secrets, and runs his or her life and even guides his or her
thinking. The slogan is, "You're only as sick as Your Secrets", so get on your
knees and start blabbing (
It is interesting to watch the pattern as newcomers are
indoctrinated and trained in what to say while "sharing" their
stories. The evidence as stated
above is clearly harmful to the newcomer and anyone that may doubt the A.A
creed. These brainwashing tactics
has clearly created a false disease for some. A.A. and treatment centers have
irresponsibly led some of its patients to iatrogenic conclusion (medically and
AA induced).
I have witnessed many new inductees be converted by the
A.A. dogma. A young girl was sent
to treatment by her employer for failing a urine screen. The young woman showed up in treatment
as a person who just happened to be at a party and smoked a little weed and was
caught. She claimed to the group
that she has only smoked pot 3 times in her life, and she did not feel she had
a problem. Maybe she just made a
mistake. Of course, her feelings
meant nothing to the group, or the counselor leading the group, and she was
quickly labeled as being in denial. She was given the basic requirements of
treatment, go to meetings, get a sponsor, and do the steps. While this was being reinforced to her
over the next 3 weeks, suddenly, the 3-time pot smoker and non-drinker became a
drug addicted addict. How is this
so? Let us not forget that everyday
for three weeks she was torn down, told she was powerless, and forced to attend
four A.A. meetings per week, or face unemployment. She also had to listen to the Counselor
everyday point out, “God put you
here in this room for a reason, nobody comes here by accident” (group
therapy). The Big Book says on page
31 and 32: “We do not like to pronounce any individual as alcoholic, but
you can quickly diagnosis yourself.
Step over to the nearest barroom and try some controlled
drinking.” I wonder how many
members were sent to their grave with such a statement.
There are many cases just like the one I presented. This is the power of A.A. Members are shamed and made to feel
weak, taught to distrust their own minds, which is evident in the example
above. Note, this young lady did
not only diagnose herself with a life long disease, but was brainwashed to
believe she did not know she had a problem with drugs prior to treatment. One question comes to mind, was she in
denial before entering 12-step treatment or is she now in denial because the
12-steps put her there?
One
24-year old-timer said,
I have also noted how angry so many of the “old
timers” are. I have observed
that closely and concluded for myself that the problem is most people have a
lot of grief in their lives and in a way, A.A. is always focusing in
losses. At the same time, there is
nowhere to go with grief, as it is not allowed. Therefore, the sadness is stuffed
leaving only the anger to dump out in the meeting, usually aimed at someone who
is not getting the program or was foolish enough to tell the truth about their
selfish life. Notice that sometime. Old timers in A.A. are often an angry
lot: a mask of serenity with a seething cauldron underneath.
The A.A. saying is,
"If you keep
on doing what you've always been doing,
You will keep on
getting what you have always been getting.
To expect
anything different is insane."
I attended A.A. for a year, constantly told
to be patient and eventually I would realize that I belonged there. It was difficult listening to all the
stories of alcohol abuse that in no way matched mine at all. I rarely drank during the day, nor
everyday. I was young and felt completely
trapped and confused. I felt that I
could never leave the organization to face their predicted doom. I felt I could not stay and devote my
life to alcoholism, which I was not sure I had.
The final straw came when a local member told
someone I knew that I attended A.A.
Thus, my local reputation became that of an alcoholic with all the
associated horror stories. I tried
to confront AA with this vagrant breach of principles, but alas, they were
impotent to do anything about it. I
was told to practice acceptance and forgiveness and that it was the will of
God.
Frustrated in
The 12 step program has miserably failed all aspects of
humanity. The program has turned
into a river of horror stories. Members
today think they have a right to walk into a meeting bitching and moaning about
how unfair life is. Who in the hell
do they think they are? A.A. was
never intended to be a place where all you hear is someone speak so dam
negative about himself or herself.
It is all to common today that a newcomer walks into a meeting only to
hear someone’s drunkalog, which has no purpose, but to get a few
laughs. The drunkalog has killed
many people and has kept many from returning to A.A. On page 44 of the Big Book, it clearly
explains making the distinction between a real alcoholic and
non-alcoholic. The fellowship today
does not know the difference between a moderate drinker and a real alcoholic,
which as a result has caused the floodgates to open and has drowned the 12-step
program. A.A. is not treatment, it
is a fellowship designed to help a suffering addict have a spiritual
awakening. The Big Book says you
are suffering from an illness, which
only a spiritual experience will conquer. In meetings today, you never hear one
speak of what you need to do have this spiritual experience, instead most
people just say “easy does it.” and “one day at a
time.” The “meeting
makers” and treatment centers, who quickly label someone as an alcoholic
no matter how they got there can blame themselves for turning the 12-step
program into a cult-like sham.
Nevertheless, the A.A. fellowship has done nothing to
rid it self of these arrogant, evil people. The “meeting makers” brought
their own program and personal views into A.A. and took away Bill
Wilson’s message. As a
result, the program has failed itself.
They let things get out of control and the fear kept them quiet. A.A. has forgotten its own
teachings. The fellowship has
forgotten how to take inventory of itself, and did not get rid of old stock,
which has been decaying the new wood.
Whatever the purpose of A.A. was, it is not today! If we let A.A. and treatment facilities
keep doing what it has been doing, the results will be even worse than they
already are. The real alcoholic
(one has lost control) and the non-alcoholic (one who can control) are lost in
the mix of A.A. and the treatment community. To continue to mislead people from the
truth is not only breaking the First Amendment of our constitution, but has
taken away man’s liberty.
Continued silence will only serve to encourage further transgression and
allow the cult to further consolidate power under its cloak of anonymity. Therefore, to all the professionals (the
bad ones) who have failed so many, the time is coming and you will be
revealed. How dare you miserable
human beings get away with letting this happen. It is
time to step to the plate! To my
fellow AAer’s, you have dug a hole so deep that the A.A. program shall be
buried in your own dirt. You are
doomed.
By,
Reference:
·
· Shaler, J., Cult-busting. (The Interpsych Newsletter, 1995) vol. 2, No. 5.
·
Kirton,
· Ragge, Ken. "SPIRITUAL, NOT RELIGIOUS"??? The facts behind the cliché "spiritual, not religious." < http://www.cris.com/>
·
Agent,
· Trimpey, Jack. “The Horror of Alcoholics Anonymous.” http://rationalrecovery.com/
·
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions
(written by
Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
·
For the standard party line about everything,
see "The Big Book", really:
Alcoholics Anonymous, Third Edition.
(written by
Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.