What Are the 12 Steps to Recovery and Why Do They Work?

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There are several pathways to recovery from substance addiction, but one particular method that has been implemented very effectively for decades is the so-called 12 Steps. Since it was first devised by Alcoholics Anonymous in 1935, this collection of spiritual principles has been adopted and adapted by many groups, not only those who suffer from the disease of addiction but anyone looking for a change in their life. 

No single treatment is right for everybody, but the 12 Steps program has been shown to produce remarkably consistent results, especially when combined with other methods of addiction treatment in a CBUS rehab such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Contingency Management (CM), and Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT). 

12 Step Facilitation Therapy takes the patient through a series of consecutive actions that ultimately result in a radical paradigm shift, a much-needed change in perspective that can be a powerful tool for maintaining lifelong sobriety. 

The 12 Steps to Recovery

One prerequisite that precedes all of the following guidelines is the mindset that no one can do them for us. Although external aid and support are there to facilitate our transformation, it is we who have to go through that. 

1. Acknowledge That You Are Powerless Over Your Addiction 

One of the fundamental elements of the 12 Steps program, which contributes immensely to its effectiveness, is that it acknowledges the mind-altering effects of addiction and requires the patient to do so. When you set aside denial and admit that the consequences of your substance use have spiraled out of your control and you have reached the point of utter desperation, you open up the possibility to change.

By identifying there is a problem, you put space between where you are and where you can be. This reinforces, deep within you, the idea that the distance between can be measured and treaded.

2. Believe That You Can Be Restored from Your Insanity

The term “insanity” refers to the internal condition that is ever-present in us during the time of active addiction and stays with us on our road to recovery. During use, the mind-altering effects of the substance create a compulsion in us that keeps us from stopping. After we go through the pain to become sober, those mind-altering effects create an obsession in us that keeps us from staying sober.

By identifying this problem as some level of insanity and believing that you can be restored from it via external intervention, you acknowledge that those persistent reoccurring thoughts that do not respond to reason will go away.

3. Acknowledge That You Don’t Have Absolute Control over Your Life

The idea behind surrendering and turning your will and life over to a higher power is that we human beings are subject to innumerable and incalculable external forces that affect our lives, and we don’t have control over them. By acknowledging this humility, we start to accept help and experience a sense of relief as we understand that we cannot control everything and everybody in every minute of our lives.

4. Make a Fearless Moral Inventory of Yourself

This is the step that we start taking action. We take a deep look into ourselves and make an honest inventory of our resentments, fears, and harms. The purpose behind this step is to articulate our flaws and the baggage we carry with us in the written form. In doing so, we can look for patterns and see what needs to be fixed. This is one of the most difficult steps as it exposes us to parts of ourselves that make us very uncomfortable. It is about narrowing down and delimiting the problems so that we can fix them in subsequent steps.

5. Admit to Your Defects of Character 

Step 5 is about sharing your findings in the fourth step with yourself, the God of your understanding, and another human being that you trust. When you verbalize the wrongs of your thoughts and behavior, they lose some power over you. The sense of transparency that results from this process is freeing and helps you let go of certain liabilities to open up space for change. By the end of step 5, you should have fully accepted your flaws with no sliver of doubt.

6. Be Willing to Have Your Defects of Character Removed

The sixth step is about looking at where we fall short and asking ourselves if we are willing to part ways with them. Sometimes we come to terms with our character flaws but are not willing to let go of them.

7. Ask Those Character Defects to Be Removed

This step is about declaring the desire to change every character flaw that we have identified and are willing to let go of and have the humility to accept that we cannot do it without the help of a higher power.

8. Make a List of Those You Have Harmed and Be Willing to Make Amends

The next few steps are pretty much self-explanatory. Here we make a list of everyone affected by our wrongdoings and become willing to square things away. Because without action, we have not truly owned our mistakes which blocks our way to change.

9. Make Amends to Such People Wherever Possible

This step will take some time. But when done right, we will come out on the other side as someone who is much closer to where we wanted to be in step 1.

10. Remain Vigilant of Your Flaws Continuously

The last three steps help us stay on the path of recovery. Change is not a one-and-done phenomenon. Rather, it is a continuous effort to get ever closer to what we deem ideal. Step 10 emphasizes the fact that there will always be mistakes on our part, and we need to remain vigilant when things start to waver.

11. Maintain the Conscious Contact with Your Higher Power

This step is about remaining cognizant of what was talked about in the third step, and there is no ritualistic way to do it. It is about a constant effort to engage yourself in the state of spirituality that you have come to experience throughout your recovery journey so far. 

12. Be of Service to Others and Carry the Message

The last step is what gives the 12 Steps its group therapy attribute and forms a supportive community around it. It is essentially about being willing to help those who are reaching out for help and keeping the torch lit.

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