(March 13, 2014 at 7:20 pm)futilethewinds Wrote: It's been shown that trying to kick addiction by one's self is about equally likely to be a success as trying to do it with a support group, so if I had such a problem, I wouldn't bother with a 12-step program.
This is because the vast majority of people that join 12-step programs don't work the steps. The numbers skew heavily towards success for people who get a sponsor, attend multiple meetings per week, and talk regularly. When you just go to meetings, you are effectively doing the same as trying to take care of it on your own.
One of my duties as an officer in the Navy was to run some of the 12-step groups on ship. I am certified, and I know this stuff, and there were several guys that ran into this problem. It is actually fairly common. You just have to have "God" be something bigger than you. A lot of guys chose the actual group they're attending, the cosmos, the ocean (Navy...), or even music. Something that inspires them, something bigger than them, it's important that addicts believe that there is something they can turn to to find peace and serenity. Step 6 is all about accepting help. Being humble enough to know that you can't do it by yourself. The most important by-product of step 6 is placing your pride in getting better, that letting others help isn't a bad thing.
The steps work, as long as you work them.
"There remain four irreducible objections to religious faith: that it wholly misrepresents the origins of man and the cosmos, that because of this original error it manages to combine the maximum servility with the maximum of solipsism, that it is both the result and the cause of dangerous sexual repression, and that it is ultimately grounded on wish-thinking." ~Christopher Hitchens, god is not Great
PM me your email address to join the Slack chat! I'll give you a taco(or five) if you join! --->There's an app and everything!<---
PM me your email address to join the Slack chat! I'll give you a taco(or five) if you join! --->There's an app and everything!<---
