12 steps for addicts. Feelings table, program with explanations

Many people call the “12 steps” method the most effective technique, which allows you to abandon various addictions, especially alcohol. The use of the table and the diary of feelings together with the described program models indicates that the patient has a good result, which makes it possible for him to start a new life.

The essence of the program "12 steps for addicts"

The 12 Step Program or Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a group of people who share their experiences, weaknesses, and different thoughts with each other. Thanks to this, it is possible to effectively solve common problems, thereby helping others to quickly get rid of alcohol addiction.

The only requirement to join A.A. is an indirect desire to stop drinking. Classic methods do not require participants to pay membership or admission fees - the money is subsidized through voluntary donations.

Since chronic alcoholics in most cases lose control of themselves due to alcohol consumption, the main goal of the community is to maintain a sober and healthy lifestyle. It helps to completely avoid alcoholic beverages.

Communities in 12 Steps are an association of people who meet regularly to share their recovery stories with other members in need of attention and help.

At some meetings, participants speak out about their complaints about life or talk about painful ones, but experience indicates that such actions can only interfere with healing.

In productive communities with fast recovery rates, victim behavior is frowned upon or prohibited by internal rules. In effective groups, participants are committed to sharing their own quitting success, but not painful feelings. It is this approach that contributes to a quick recovery.

Execution method

The 12 Steps Feelings Chart is fundamental to the treatment of Alcoholics Anonymous. For the first time, the technique was described in the book of the same name "AA", which was published by members of the first community.

The time taken to complete all steps is calculated based on the unique characteristics of the person. On average, it takes 2 to 3 weeks, during which the beginner receives the necessary knowledge and tools used in the context of healing for the rest of his life. After a favorable course, the individual can become a free mentor for other patients.

Funding the organization

Features of the conduct also include the use of long stages, in which health improvement work lasts for several months or years. This feature is typical for participants who cannot get rid of addiction for a long time.

Funding for the group is based on voluntary private contributions from members, which are then used for renting premises, buying the necessary literature, tea, coffee, food, as well as other agreed expenses. Such a decentralized system provides greater autonomy and independence for individual communities, contributing to the stability of the group mechanism within the country.

Criticism of the technique

Some experts in the field of drug addiction have noted a strong exaggeration of the effectiveness of the method "Alcoholics Anonymous". Based on pseudo-scientific publications, fame is due to the fact that popularity is more competent than actual results.

The same position is taken by Joe Miller, a well-known psychiatrist, author of the book "How the 12 steps distort the science of alcoholism" Group studies indicate an estimated 5% of participants are making significant progress in the fight against drug abuse. addiction.

It should also be noted that there is virtually no solid scientific basis for justifying the technique. In contrast, researchers at Stanford University call the 12-step technique the most effective method for dealing with alcohol addiction.

Former addicts argue that the underestimated performance is only due to a factor that indicates that many members of the community are not putting in enough effort.

The program can give excellent results only if the person himself is interested in its work. If all the instructions are followed correctly and honestly, the technique shows effective results in groups.

12 principles-traditions of the program

Each community has 12 principles that are based on the functioning, development and well-intentioned communication between people. Such traditions are not laws or regulations; in fact, they are private desires based on the visual experience of cured alcoholics.

The 12 pillars of Alcoholics Anonymous are:

• The well-being of the community is not at the forefront; personal recovery is determined by team cohesion.
• There should be a higher power in the work of the group - this is a loving God who perceives each person as he is able to manifest himself in the collective consciousness. Community leaders are trusted sinners who do not command but only instruct on the right path.
• The only requirement for membership is a strong urge to get rid of alcoholism.
• All communities are completely independent, except in general cases that are related to or affect other groups.
• Each community has a primary and primary goal: to understand and convey an idea for those alcoholics who still cannot get rid of addiction.
• The Group may not be held, financed or intended for use by an associate or a foreign company. This allows you to get rid of unnecessary thoughts that are associated with monetary assets, popularity and property, moving away from the main goal.
• Each community has a responsibility to fully rely on its own strength, rejecting any outside help.
• While groups should remain a private and non-professional community of people, it is possible to attract skilled workers.
• The community should not have a rigid management system, and the creation of various committees and councils is not prohibited.
• The community does not have its own opinion on issues that are not related to thematic activities. On this basis, the name of the group should not be involved in public discussions or discussions.
• PR policy should be based on the attractiveness of goals and ideas, but not on propaganda. Group members should always be anonymous when dealing with journalists, radio and television.
• Anonymity is a fundamental quality of the group tradition, which constantly reminds participants that the 12 steps are just principles of behavior, not a personality characteristic.

The 12 foundational traditions are based on exemplary descriptions of how a community functions. These features allow you to learn more about the goals of the group, as well as understand how it builds relationships within the team.

Description of 12 steps for addicts, program with explanations

The practical foundation of the Alcoholics Anonymous program includes 12 separate steps that ultimately characterize the end of alcohol addiction recovery.

12 foundational steps to overcome alcoholism:

• Awareness of the lack of willpower against addiction and the impossibility of self-control. It is the most difficult step from which a renewed life begins. Here, the alcoholic will need special courage to truly admit personal defeat. In the first step, the addict must be ready to take responsibility for relatives and friends: spouses, children, parents. Also, the patient needs to understand that his actions are destructive in relation not only to his personal life, but also to the most dear and valuable people.
• Awareness and acceptance of the existence of greater power, which will help to believe in a quick return to normal life. The individual must believe in the very possibility of overcoming his own addiction, in re-felt happiness, without distorting consciousness with the help of alcohol. It is necessary to believe that there is a divine power that helps in a particularly difficult and painful path.
• A conscious decision to completely submit to a higher authority, because she wants only the best. An addicted person must cope with stubbornness in the same way as with selfishness - he will not give up and not regret the past, having learned to enjoy what is. With the help of a conscious mind and heart, it is necessary to make a firm decision in order to get rid of the addiction.
• Introspection and moral evaluation of actions. The patient must impartially analyze who he really is, honestly admitting his own motives for performing certain actions. The individual has to gradually eradicate anger and selfishness in order to find a true personality that is subordinate to him. The addict should find out what exactly can irritate him, as well as what relatives and friends really want from him.
• Awareness of their own mistakes in front of other people. In this step, the team member must present the results of introspection to another person, most often to the leader of the conversation. The information expressed requires great courage from the participants, as well as responsibility from the mentor, who must silently listen and advise the necessary solution.
• Awareness of readiness for a free life from addiction. In this case, the individual can observe how the addiction has become on the way to a healthy and happy life. Here you need to learn to put up with yourself, as well as notice shortcomings, see how recovery is taking place.
• Seeking help from a higher power. This step is a great time to change habits and have a positive experience. As soon as the patient realizes his own impotence, there is a strong desire to promote and overcome alcohol dependence. Also, the dignity of a renewed personality is revealed, which is ready to follow the new rules, completely abandoning temptations.
• Compilation of a detailed list of relatives and friends who have been harmed in any way by the alcoholic. Here, a step-by-step action plan is created to make amends for your own guilt. This step allows the patient to get rid of the persecuting guilt in that time period when he was still on the right track. The individual will need to remember everyone who has suffered in some way from his actions, followed by remorse for each person. Even though the 12 Step participant must humbly and shamefully listen to a self-critical speech, this is the only sure way to say goodbye to a past life.
• Redemption of shame and guilt before relatives. This stage is characterized by an awareness of responsibility for what they have done, thanks to which the patient tries to establish social relations and compensate for the harm to relatives. Alcoholics compensate for both material and moral damage.
• Awareness of mistakes with their subsequent transformation into creative activity. The individual must learn important skills that allow him to control himself and honestly approach the analysis of his own actions. In addition, one should learn to build high-quality social relations with their subsequent maintenance.
• Understanding and confidence in a higher power, self-improvement. In this step, a person must learn to look for abilities and hidden talents. Despite the fact that the inner world of alcoholics is in the recovery phase, the correct application of the steps allows him to develop much faster. Negative attachments are eliminated, the ability for self-reflection is enhanced.
• The desire to share the knowledge gained to help other people. The last step is a great opportunity to share the joy of getting rid of addiction.

Despite the fact that the described 12 steps often mention a divine and higher power, the program does not differ in religious overtones and does not belong to any denomination. The technique excludes the presence of spiritual mentors, while the word "God" is interpreted by each person differently.

Misconceptions of the addict's relatives

Initial psychological counseling with the addict's family is often characterized by the same stereotypes, fears, as well as prejudices, natural for those who first encounter a problem alcoholism.

As a result, drug addiction psychologists often struggle with various misconceptions, to dispel the established myths, as well as to teach an objective opinion about the prevailing situations.

Often, mothers of drug addicts see the problem of the addict as a sign of lack of will, therefore they often feel anger or aggression towards the patient. For example, you can often come across words that such a child is not able to control and limit himself, because this is purely his problem.

Psychiatric practice indicates the behavior of the addict based on internal personality traits that cannot be corrected by the strength of the spirit. In many cases, addiction problems stem from a chemical that makes a person powerless.

Aggressive behavior towards the patient is a waste of time, since the individual can control himself and not be held accountable for his actions, which indicates a lack of personality development.

Many psychiatrists compare the addict with a pregnant woman who acts based on the characteristics of the hormonal background. So, its mental component reacts only to chemical and physiological processes in the body. Therefore, the actions committed by the addict are not part of his character, but only an echo of the disease.

A relative or close person of an alcoholic tries to:

• find any reasons that may justify the presence of alcoholism;
• pay special attention to the patient's appearance, in every possible way contributing to the concealment of the consequences;
• make excuses to the authorities, trying to explain the absenteeism of the alcoholic;
• hide drunkenness from other people
• constantly keep drunk at home, not allowing him to appear in public.

Also, close people often do the things that a patient with alcoholism should do. In addition, relatives can drink with the patient so that he does not get too drunk.

Relatives can console a person, hide the real financial situation, or make various claims. It should be understood that any persistent attempts in which a relative wishes to isolate the alcoholic from drinking are more harmful than beneficial.

Table of feelings for the concept of self-awareness of addicted people

The 12-Step Feelings Chart is a great opportunity to understand and feel the significance of the experiences and subsequent emotions in the context of your own personality. This technique allows you to evaluate your actions from the outside, by examining certain experiences.

The main goal when filling out the table is to take into account all kinds of emotions, based on the thematic section of those. It also allows you to learn how to manage experiences, turning to psychotherapeutic recovery without the presence of specialists.

A table of 12 steps feelings, considered in one of the examples:

Fear	Shame	Sadness	Joy	Anger
Fear Excitement Anxiety Horror Anxiety Confusion Doubt Trembling	Guiltiness Shyness Embarrassment The discomfort Regret Insult Dishonesty Oppression Lust Inferiority Being lost	Frustration Despondency Compassion Hopelessness Pain Bitterness Misfortune	Delight faith Appreciation Delight Love Peace of mind Tranquility Climb Ardor Delight	Rage Irritability Discontent Disturbance Dislike Neglect Chagrin Envy Ehidstvo Disgust

Emotions should fit into the chart based on memories of the subject, experience, or situation. It is important to think about the moment that triggered these emotions. If necessary, you should ask yourself clarifying questions that will help you collect thoughts on the right track.

The 12 Step Feelings Chart, combined with a diary, shows good performance not only in terms of getting rid dependence, but also with problems of the depressive spectrum or diagnostic measures to reduce mental problems.

Keeping a diary of feelings for emotional awareness of addicts

Despite the fact that a diary describing feelings is a fairly simple technique, it is a particularly effective tool for working with emotions. The technique takes a little time, so you can quickly learn its basic rules.

From the first days of use, the diary shows significant effectiveness, which is observed almost immediately - providing satisfaction and motivation for further work.

Working with the diary can be roughly divided into 3 stages:

• recording;
• reading;
• Feedback.

It is better to fill in the table or diary of feelings in a notebook or notebook, step by step.

A form for filling out a tactile journal according to the standard pattern, often used in the 12-step technique:

• date and time;
• thoughts and feelings about the described event. It is worth describing in detail the reason for which this or that emotion arose. It is recommended to pay attention to bodily experiences and sensations;
• the action taken in the situation;
• conclusion in the form of "+" or "-" depending on the positive or negative experience

Sometimes other columns are added, such as "Wouldn't it be better if something else happened?" If desired, you can modify the form of the diary, which will become the most effective.

Other features of journaling

The event should be described in one expression, in a very short and understandable syllable. The described situation can be either an action or a statement or a separate experience.

Despite the initial difficulty in some patients, as the experience increases, thoughts will come about which events are important to the recording. Most often, these will be emotionally vivid experiences that differ in various emotions - from joy and happiness to anger and aggression.

It is recommended to keep a daily entry in a diary for several months, which will allow you to return to the described events and feelings after a long time. This will allow you to better analyze an individual situation and bring out both negative and positive aspects.

It is also possible to record the event immediately as it happened. It is an excellent choice for real-time note taking, which can indicate various physiological characteristics of the body. In this vein, the addict learns to understand the feeling of “here and now.

In addition to quick notes, you can mark memories that come to mind that are closely related to emotional experiences. It is recommended to pay special attention to various emotions at night, so that you can reveal the hidden motives of certain actions.

It is recommended to read the diary of emotions often - 2-3 times a week. If necessary, you can report to friends, family, small groups, or psychologists. When embarrassed, it is best to re-read your own emotions over the phone, which will avoid a number of negative experiences.

It is worth noting that getting feedback is a particularly important step towards solving a problem. Social interaction is an additional reaction to reading the experiences or emotions of other people, which will allow you to better understand the motives of your own addiction.

As the analysis of the recorded feelings, events or experiences, a person makes certain conclusions that indicate the accomplishment of this or that event. In this case, a realization may come about why the act was done in this way and not otherwise. It is also worth investigating value judgment based on the positive or negative aspects of the experience.

Despite the criticism of the "12 Steps" program, its methodology shows impressive results around the world. Recovered people motivate others to quit alcohol with a foundational step-by-step guide, chart, or feeling diary. It is best to use the techniques in combination, which will allow you to get out of addiction much faster.

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