What is a Twelve-Step Program?

You may have heard about twelve step addiction programs, but do you know where they came from, or how they work? Alcoholics Anonymous originally developed the twelve-step program in the 1930s. Then, the steps were spirituality-based steps that strongly advocated for individuals to recognize God’s power to help them recover. Today, there are many variations on the original 12-step program that offer participants a way to recover in a safe, supportive environment.

The Foundation of the Steps

The American Psychological Association summarizes the twelve-step process as one that involves the following aspects:

• Admitting that one cannot control one’s addiction
• Recognizing the importance of a higher power to give strength
• Looking back to past mistakes with the help of a sponsor
• Making amends for past mistakes
• Learning to live a new life with new behaviors
• Helping others who also suffer from addiction

Now, over 200 different self-help organizations follow twelve-step principles in order to help people who suffer from specific addictions. In addition, many sober living facilities and halfway houses employ the methods to help residents.

Benefits of 12-step Programs

Twelve-step programs help participants to recover in a variety of ways, including providing on-going support and encouragement from others who want to stay sober. Participants gain confidence and often make life-long friends at meetings. The twelve-step program has been shown to be one of the most effective ways to deal with addiction and get life under control.