About AA

Drinking may be enjoyable with friends and in moderation, but it has led to the destruction of many lives. The power it holds over people is frightening and can cause damage in many ways, both on the surface and deep within those suffering. It hurts the drinker and all who care about him or her, which is why so many try to reach out a helping hand. To stop this path to destruction before it worsens or comes to a tragic end, groups like Alcoholics Anonymous have come together to give people the willpower and strength they need. They help people to overcome their alcoholism by providing a support system to make it a day at a time.

One of the major parts of AA is the 12 steps program. The 12 steps are:

    We admitted we were powerless over alcohol - that our lives had become unmanageable.
    Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
    Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
    Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
    Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
    Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
    Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
    Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
    Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
    Continued to take personal inventory, and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.
    Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
    Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

When putting your trust in AA, you are committing to a life of abstinence from alcoholism.   Relinquishing the bottle to cure to your problems frees you to focus more clearly on your daily. For the most part, this is about understanding that you have a problem, need help, figuring out what you can do to better yourself, making the necessary changes, and staying sober. Staying true to these steps will help you to find the light at the end of this very dark tunnel.

This is what the program was created to do, help you with your alcohol dependence. It has become a successful, reliable tool for recovery, helping many people. When you look to this for strength and guidance, you, too, can experience the wonderful results and life waiting for you when you give up alcohol.

As for the results, wondering if it will truly work is normal. Abstinence from alcohol is a difficult thing, of course, but it has shown to work for many individuals. The research results are mixed.  For some people, AA definitely works.  If other forms of self help or treatment have failed, AA should be tried.  What do you have to lose?  There are also some people who must remain abstinent and AA is thee abstinence based approach.  AA is not the only approach, and even though it does not work for everyone, it does work for many.

We encourage almost everyone to try AA.  However, sometimes people need more help than a support group can provide.  Our treatment program incorporates many different strategies, including AA and 12 step groups to help you work the steps.  Fortunately, there is now an Intensive Outpatient Program in Memphis, TN that has been proven to be effective in the treatment of alcoholism and other addictions.   Our programs provide services to those who need more treatment than one hour a week, but less than 24 hour care, by providing three hours of treatment per day, three to five days per week, in an intensive outpatient setting.  If you or a loved one is showing signs of substance abuse, they should be assessed by a trained mental health professional who can help design a treatment plan that can result in recovery.  Treatment for alcohol and drug abuse can be highly successful.  Call us at 901-682-6136 to schedule an appointment.