Third, and most significantly, AA is unique in its 12 traditions. If you are struggling with drug or alcohol addiction, it is common to struggle with feelings of loneliness and isolation. Groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) can provide a community of support as you work through recovery. These organizations have been pivotal in helping millions of people attain and sustain abstinence. If you’re relatively new to the idea of getting treatment for your addiction to drugs and/or alcohol, you’ve probably wondered about whether you need AA vs NA. There are probably a lot of words that are used in recovery that you don’t recognize right away.
Facts About Alcohol Abuse and Drug Abuse
- When you attend AA, you are attending a group that is based upon helping people who struggle with alcoholism.
- For a more detailed description of this work, please see Robinson, Price, Kurtz, and Brower (2009).
- In this article, we’ll talk about some of those differences, but we’ll also discuss some of the similarities.
- Marlon stuck with AA and went on to work in drug and alcohol treatment and recovery.
- Threats to the early survival of AA and NA were the same threats that could undermine any mutual aid recovery group.
- Third, and most significantly, AA is unique in its 12 traditions.
If someone you care about has a drinking problem, A.A. Has helped more than two million alcoholics stop drinking. Recovery works through one alcoholic sharing their experience with another. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol — that our lives had become unmanageable. Findings indicated that gender predicted outcome. At 4-, 6-, and 8-year follow-up, girls (40% of the sample) had more abstinent days than boys.
In general, 12-Step attendance and involvement good sobriety gifts decrease over time. In some meetings, attendees are invited to share burning desires. Other times, speakers may share their journeys with a major focus on their previous drug or alcohol use. Long considered a key component of recovery, 12-step programs are as popular as ever.
AA Video for Legal and Corrections Professionals
These steps guide the alcoholic into growing spiritually, becoming aware of the hurt and pain they have caused to themselves as well as to others, and making amends for that pain. As the person progresses through the program, he learns the importance of embracing these principles throughout every area of his life. In addition, he also becomes passionate about and learns the skills to help others as they begin and complete their own journey toward sobriety. AA is built upon the premise of post covid alcohol intolerance therapy via a support group.
You might be an alcoholic who is more comfortable with healing your addiction than blaming alcohol. If that is how you feel, Narcotics Anonymous might be the better option for you. In looking at the key differences between these two groups, you can find the right one for you. Here at Northpoint Recovery, we recognize the fact that AA and NA are both important. Both of these organizations have been instrumental in people’s lives. In fact, there are many people who feel they could never have recovered from their addictions without them.
Some meetings may include speakers, or people sharing about their experiences. Others will involve discussions or reading from a chosen textbook. You won’t be called upon to answer questions or speak at all.
Your General Service Office (G.S.O.), the Grapevine and the General Service Structure
Threats to the early survival of AA and NA were the same threats that could undermine any mutual aid recovery group. They include leadership relapse, struggle for consensus about the program, program infidelity and instability, professionalism, issues of money, and limits of inclusion and exclusion. Other groups fail by way of entanglements related to religion or politics or stagger under challenges to the group’s credibility. White talked about why AA was successful among the succession of mutual aid recovery groups. First, AA has been thriving and expanding since 1935, and membership surveys count two million members worldwide. Second, AA is accessible and available in an abundance of communities, whereas other recovery organizations may not have meetings in as many locations.
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You might hear about Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous and wonder what the difference is between the two, for example. In this article, we’ll talk about some of those differences, but we’ll also discuss some of the similarities. First, let’s go over some basic background behind each of these addiction treatment programs. Study participants mentioned several qualities of the AA fellowship and the AA program as helpful, such as identifying with other alcoholics, sharing, talking, and telling is ambien better than xanax for sleep stories; having a sponsor, and working the steps. Those who said AA was not helpful said they couldn’t relate to others in AA groups, found there was too much negativity and complaining, or felt they could handle the problem on their own. For a more detailed description of this work, please see Robinson, Price, Kurtz, and Brower (2009).
All you need to do is listen and learn as much as you can. Among those who started NA and AA attendance, the majority (85% and 91%, respectively) stopped NA and AA attendance for a month or longer. Data support the idea that the 12-Step career, like the treatment career, consists of multiple interrupted episodes of participation.
