How Does Support Groups Help to Cope with Alcoholism
Posted on April 7, 2009
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Support groups can greatly increase the chance of successfully recovering from alcohol abuse or alcohol dependence. Support groups can also help with preventing relapses or dealing with relapse once it happens. They can also help a patient to stay sober.
One of the most helpful and widely recognized support group is Alcoholics Anonymous or AA. The goal of AA is to help members to totally abstain from alcohol to stay sober.
AA has a 12 step process to help people stay sober. These are straightforward suggestions that help alcohol abusers and alcohol dependents accept the fact that they are powerless over alcohol and that they should be honest about it. It also encourages alcoholics to accept the past and the present.
AA is centered around sharing experiences and the acceptance of different unique experiences. This is very helpful as alcohol abusers and alcohol dependents realize that they are not alone. Joining AA is free and there are no requirements. One only be willing to remain sober.
For family member of alcohol abusers and alcohol dependents, there’s also Al-Anon. Alcoholism affects not only the individual but the people around him or her. Like AA, Al-Anon lets the member shares stories helping the members with the knowledge that they are not alone. Al-Anon also promotes the 12 steps of AA and also encourages members to follow the 12 steps. Forgiveness and detachments are the emphasis of Al-Anon.
For teenagers whose parents are alcoholics, there’s Alateen.
A counselor or doctor can point you to the nearest support group. You can also use the Internet to search for groups in your locality.
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There are well over a hundred other national self-help support groups that have adapted AA’s 12-step program for a wide variety of other addictions and life-destroying compulsions, e.g., Narcotics Anonymous, Gamblers Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous, Nicotine Anonymous, Debtors Anonymous, Sexaholics Anonymous, and many others.
- Ed
“The human spirit remains one of the amazing aspects of life. Just like trick candles on a birthday cake, the unfairness of life temporarily blows out the flame, in spite of this, the fire refuses to be extinguished. I have unlimited gratitude for the courageous men and women in 12 step groups who have displayed that inextinguishable fire known as the human spirit.”
- James S., in his Forward to The Step Study Workshop for Depressed Anonymous, copyright 1999 (used here with permission), Depressed Anonymous Publications, Louisville, KY.