Alcoholics Anonymous – Helpful Information
Whether your drinking alcohol has cost you a job, a relationship, your health or your freedom, an Alcoholics Anonymous session can be extremely helpful. The meetings will help you stay away from alcohol one drink at a time, one day at a time. At the sessions, you’ll hear both sad and inspirational stories and you’ll learn coping mechanisms. It helps more than you think to air your thoughts and feelings, especially with a group of strangers who won’t judge you or hold anything against you. At AA meetings, you’ll find a strong support system of peers all struggling with the same dilemma, which is recovery from alcoholism.
The Alcoholics Anonymous aim is at total abstinence. Various studies have shown that abstinence is the only reliable way to keep those with alcohol consumption problems to remain sober for good. Approximately 11% of its members come from court ordered attendance and AA is the preferred treatment of jail inmates as well. Of course, those on the outside will have separate meetings and will meet with other regular people whose one weakness is binge drinking. It can be enjoyable to socialize with others who share common ground. Many people have found love, long term friendship or short term support at AA meetings.
You may be wondering, “How effective is Alcoholics Anonymous?” Generally speaking, the real determining factor is your own determination. If you really want to start over and live a healthy life, free from alcohol addiction, then you likely will. However, those who attend AA meetings by mandate generally relapse within the year. Various studies have been done to determine the overall effectiveness of AA, with mixed results. Early studies in the 1960s found that those who attended meetings actually partied more afterwards. By contrast, a 1998 NIAA study and a 2001 Department of Veteran Affairs study both found that the best addiction treatment is AA. In the latter study, 45% of the men who went through a 12-step AA program were abstinent after 1 year, compared to 36% of those receiving cognitive/behavioral therapy. Of course, AA is not for everyone. For instance, staunch atheists aren’t likely to embrace any treatment model with religious overtones.
It can be tricky to direct a loved one to Alcoholics Anonymous because most binge drinking alcoholics feel their behavior is “normal.” One approach is to hand the drinkers AA pamphlets and allow them to assess whether they require assistance or not. Another approach is to offer to go with your loved one to a meeting. Some people are pushed to the limit and are forced to offer an ultimatum, “either an AA meeting or me!” Whatever the case may be, the most effective addiction treatment is naturally the one that the drinker decides upon for him or herself.
For help and more information about alcoholism and how to stop drinking, visit Alcoholics Anonymous.
By Healthy Relationships Editor
