12-Step Observation - Case Study Example

The Online Intergroup Alcoholic Anonymous utilizes the 12-point observation in helping people with addictions both in its online and face to face meetings which takes place every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 7:30-8:30 EST. I chose this group because it helps treat addictions through face to face and online meetings and allows men and women of different ages and backgrounds to share content, experiences, hope and strengths that assist in solving common problems and help individuals to recover from alcoholism.

The meeting routine of this group is established because it had an organized flow without anyone assigned any role. All members contributed to the meeting set-up and observed the different meeting sections. I had no idea who the leader of this group was until everyone was seated. The posted meeting time was followed, the members introduced themselves to new attendees, and the members exchanged greetings by name in a respectful tone. Time management was followed, and the meeting led itself. The members, regardless of the recovery or addiction state, interacted cohesively with good communication by pronouncing their alcoholism and articulated the reflection of the status using the twelve steps. There was also a shared control of the meeting conventions and a collective sound running of the meeting.

The perception of the underlying dynamics was evidently seen because the members responded to interactions and approved any advancements or gains such as the personal choice to attend the meeting and the length of sobriety achieved by becoming a member of the group. The members made friends who helped them in attending more meetings, talked often, and provided moral support and shared experiences with the new members. This support helped the members in undergoing a superior ease, increased abstinence and hence fewer relapses into abuse.

One evident strength of the program was the symbiotic collaboration between members as no member wished to disappoint the other and shared the responsibility for the soundness of the other member against the lure or compulsion to alcoholism. The members gave testimonies of the feelings of empowerment and affirmed conviction about the importance of the recovery process. Despite this, some of the members of the group moaned the loss of their social lives because they made a choice of removing themselves from places of risks and friends to pursue sobriety.

The 12-point observation was applied in this meeting. The first step involves the admission that addiction makes a person powerless and cannot manage life anymore. The addicts took a step by admitting how addiction has taken a toll on health, relationships, finances and other areas of life and hence finding a solution to the problem is a form of honesty. Step 2 recognizes that sanity could be restored by a power greater than ourselves. Addicts in Online Intergroup Alcoholic Anonymous replaced denial with hope by believing that it is possible to live an addiction-free life. The third step involves the commitment by the addicts to take an action that leads to a solution. They took the hope and truth in the first two phases and put them into action by deciding to prioritize their recovery and learn ways of living free from alcohol.

Step 4 explores how an individual can approach life by acknowledging that alcoholism took root long before addictions, and realizes that it is up to the individual to use the strengths and assets to influence the life progress. Step 5 involves the addict admitting to God, oneself and other human beings about the exact nature of the mistakes. During meeting, the members confessed the extent of their addictions, behaviours and secrets. Some members of the group commented on how their reactions could be measured and adjusted as no member moralized or patronized their hardships and mistakes. Step 6 encompasses the identification of behaviors that do not work by becoming ready to let God eradicate the defects in character. Some members confessed that drinking led to other problems such as isolation, resentment, lying and self-pity and acknowledged that it was time to let go and approach things differently.

Step 7 is aimed at asking God to remove the shortcomings faced in alcoholism. This is because most individuals in the group realized how addictions and other destructive behaviors associated with alcoholism have played an integral part in how things have turned out. During the meeting, some members asked God to remove their defects and shortcomings. In step 8, the individual admits that people have been harmed by behaviors in step 7 and were willing to make amends. Members who admitted having hurt themselves and others because of alcoholism were absorbed calmly by the warmth in the meeting. Saying sorry was a means of making amends, being accountable and remorseful for causing harm as well as a way of releasing guilt and shame. Step 9 encourages making amends to the people hurt by owning the behavior, repairing the damage, and returning clarity. Some admitted never to repeat the injury caused.

Step 10 regularly checks how life is approached by addressing problems as they occur and ensures that the individual is heading the right direction. The members had hope of the insights developed through working the steps that yield outstanding shifts in the quality of life. Step 11 considers how God can empower an approach in life. It gave the members an avenue to develop personal means of connecting with a sense of worth and love unimpeded by shame and humiliation and ensured that there was a connection to a solution. The final stage involves carrying the principles, knowledge, and message of recovery to addicts. In the meeting, new members were given moral support and encouraged to attend meetings because the members believed that if experiences are shared, it leads to recovery and anyone can live free from alcohol.