Under the care of William Duncan Silkworth , Wilson’s detox included the deliriant belladonna. At the hospital, a despairing Wilson experienced a bright flash of light, which he felt to be God revealing himself. Following his hospital discharge, Wilson joined the Oxford Group and recruited other alcoholics to the group. Wilson’s early efforts to help others become sober were ineffective, prompting Silkworth to suggest that Wilson place less stress on religion and more on the science of treating alcoholism.

Members are encouraged to find an experienced fellow alcoholic, called a sponsor, to help them understand and follow the AA program. The sponsor should preferably have experience of all twelve of the steps, be the same sex as the sponsored person, and refrain from imposing personal views on the sponsored person. The term alcoholism indicates an addiction, or dependency, to the substance alcohol. Over time, regular ingestion of alcohol can cause tolerance, requiring the person to drink more to achieve the same effect. Many people who struggle with alcoholism seek help through the Alcoholics Anonymous program, which provides a step system and meetings to help individuals overcome their struggles to achieve sobriety.

When was AA founded?

When someone wants to quit drinking and decides to check out an AA meeting for the first time, they’re sure to be slightly confused and unsure of what to expect. Meetings vary group by group, but the majority of them will have a few things in common. While movies, books, and other media portray the fellowship and the steps with a hint of skepticism mixed with Sober Home mystery, AA and the way it works is more simple and dull than people outside of AA would believe. Closed discussion meetings— conducted just as open discussions are, but for alcoholics or prospective A.A.s only. One or more members selected beforehand “share,” as described in the Big Book, telling what they were like, what happened and what they are like now.

These Steps suggest ideas and actions that can guide alcoholics toward happy and useful lives. Alcoholics Anonymous is a worldwide fellowship of people who help each other to stay sober. They offer the same help to anyone who has a drinking problem and wants to do something about it. Since they are all alcoholics themselves, they have a special understanding of each other. They know what the illness feels like – and they have learned how to recover from it in A.A. Many AA meetings take place in treatment facilities. Carrying the message of AA into hospitals was how the co-founders of AA first remained sober.

What is an AA group?

A typical AA meeting is a topic discussion meeting. The person leading the meeting chooses a topic and members to take turns sharing their experience on the topic. Some AA meetings are designated for a specific purpose, such as 12-step study groups or beginners’ meetings designed to teach newcomers about the basics of the program. In 1983, a review stated that the AA program’s focus on admission of having a problem increases deviant stigma and strips members of their previous cultural identity, replacing it with the deviant identity. A 1985 study based on observations of AA meetings warned of detrimental iatrogenic effects of the twelve-step philosophy and concluded that AA uses many methods that are also used by cults. A later review disagreed, stating that AA’s program bore little resemblance to religious cult practices. In 2014, Vaillant published a paper making the case that Alcoholics Anonymous is not a cult.

Visit A.A. World Service’s official website to read online pamphlets about A.A. And find out more about the fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous. This information is both for people who may have a drinking problem and for those in contact with people who have, or are suspected of having, a problem. Most of the information is available in more detail in literature published by A.A. This sheet tells what to expect from Alcoholics Anonymous. Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. According to AA traditions, the only qualification for membership is a desire to stop drinking. Anyone may attend open AA meetings. An open meeting is open to the public, while a closed meeting is for members only.

More informally than not, AA’s membership has helped popularize the disease concept of alcoholism which had appeared in the eighteenth century. Like individual groups, the GSO is self-supporting. AA receives proceeds from books and literature that constitute more than 50% of the income for its General Service Office. In keeping with AA’s Seventh Tradition, the Central Office is fully self-supporting through the sale of literature and related products, and the voluntary donations of AA members and groups. It does not accept donations from people or organizations outside of AA.

The 12 steps, along with books and literature, provide directions for early recovery and a framework for long-term sobriety and personal growth. People continue to “work the steps” by applying them in their daily life throughout their recovery. Alcoholics Anonymous had its beginnings in Akron, Ohio, in 1935 when a New Yorker on business there and successfully sober for the first time in years sought out another alcoholic. During his few months of sobriety, the New Yorker had noticed that his desire to drink lessened when he tried to help other drunks to get sober. In Akron, he was directed to a local doctor with a drinking problem. Working together, the businessman and the doctor found that their ability to stay sober seemed closely related to the amount of help and encouragement they were able to give other alcoholics.

Verywell Mind articles are reviewed by board-certified physicians and mental healthcare professionals. Medical Reviewers confirm the content is thorough and accurate, reflecting the latest evidence-based research. Content is reviewed before publication and upon substantial updates. A Walk Among the Tombstones , a mystery/suspense film based on Lawrence Block’s books featuring Matthew Scudder, a recovering alcoholic detective whose AA membership is a central element of the plot. “Thirteenth-stepping” is a pejorative term for AA members approaching new members for dates. A study in the Journal of Addiction Nursing sampled 55 women in AA and found that 35% of these women had experienced a “pass” and 29% had felt seduced at least once in AA settings. This has also happened with new male members who received guidance from older female AA members pursuing sexual company. The authors suggest that both men and women must be prepared for this behavior or find male or female-only groups. Women-only meetings are a very prevalent part of AA culture, and AA has become more welcoming for women.

The first meetings of what would become Alcoholics Anonymous were held in 1935 in Akron, Ohio. However, the program as it exists today began in 1939 when the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous was published. The sponsor-sponsee relationship continues after you complete the 12-steps, keeping in touch for advice, questions and support. If God is referenced in a meeting, it is just a word that some people replace with words like universe, spirit, consciousness or higher power. Pick whatever concept sits well with you. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable.

The only way to find out is to give it a try and see for yourself if you think the help and support from others struggling with the same problem will help you stay sober. AA has no dues or fees, so it won’t cost you anything to visit a meeting. what is aa? The effect of AA can be best seen when a correct “dose” is given, typically 90 meetings in 90 days. Trying a couple meetings is not an adequate trial. Clearly, faith-based programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous are not for everyone.

Members share their experience with anyone seeking help with a drinking problem; they give person-to-person service or “sponsorship” to the alcoholic coming to A.A. This is when her colleagues tell Jane about the Alcoholics Anonymous program. They explain that Alcoholics Anonymous , is a confidential group that exists to provide support to people trying to overcome their battle with alcohol addiction. Alcoholism is a dangerous addiction that requires support and effort for a chance at recovery. Read this lesson to learn about the program that provides assistance to recovering alcoholics so that they may successfully manage the challenges of addiction. There will be a secretary (someone who “runs” the meeting), a leader , and then the rest of the attendees.

Although millions of people claim to have found lasting recovery in AA, the spiritual aspect of the program can be a stumbling block for some who wish to stop drinking. In 1939, High Watch Recovery Center in Kent, Connecticut, was founded by Bill Wilson and Marty Mann. Sister Francis who owned the farm tried to gift the spiritual retreat for alcoholics to Alcoholics Anonymous, however citing the sixth tradition Bill W. Turned down the gift but agreed to have a separate non-profit board run the facility composed of AA members. Bill Wilson and Marty Mann served on the High Watch board of directors for many years. High Watch was the first and therefore the oldest 12-step-based treatment center in the world still operating today. “Open” meetings welcome anyone— nonalcoholics can attend as observers. Meetings listed as “closed” welcome those with a self-professed “desire to stop drinking,” which cannot be challenged by another member on any grounds. AA maintains neutrality towards the disease model of alcoholism though its program is sympathetic to it, still, its wider acceptance is due in part to many AA members independently promulgating it. Speaker – One group member or guest shares their personal experience with recovery and AA, followed by a discussion.