A Humble Plea for Corrections
I am wrong with alarming frequency. Though I have tried my best to assure that this site’s description of addiction and the research into it is accurate, I may have made errors, omitted relevant research, or missed important nuances.
If you have questions about the accuracy of this site or any other concerns about the content, please let me know so I can make corrections.
Thank you.
Steve Castleman
Why do you recommend AA (religious cult) and not SMART, SOS, Life Ring, Women in Recovery or any other treatments or fellowships for help? Bias in not true science. Shame.
Thank you for your comment.
When I first got sober, I agreed with you that AA was a religious cult. When I objected that AA as a cult in rehab, the counselors pointed me to the 12 Traditions, in particular the Fourth one, which states that all AA groups are autonomous. They asked, “What kind of religion or cult allows every group to be autonomous?” I had to agree, that didn’t fit with a religion or cult. What I have found in the many years I’ve been involved in AA is that my preconceived notions about it were wrong. It IS a spiritual program, based on universal spiritual principles (ie. honesty, tolerance, open-miondedness, forgiveness, gratitude, treating others the way you’d want to be treated, etc.). In my experience, AA IS NOT a religion or a cult — I know people of all religions, as well as many agnostics and atheists, who participate freely despite their different theologies. I’d suggest that anyone give AA an honest try over a period of months; if they do, I think they’ll probably have a similar experience to mine and find that the “religious cult” objection isn’t warranted.
As to other programs of recovery, please check back in a couple weeks. I do intend to add an article (or articles) about alternatives to AA, but I have little experience with them and am still doing research. For example, I want to go to some SMART Recovery meetings, but there are a limited number of them in the Bay Area (compared to AA) and, unfortunatley, they’re at a time and place that’s very inconvenient to my current schedule. Rest assured, however, that I do intend to cover non-12-Step recovery as soon as I am able to complete my research.
Hi, Steve! Great website, by the way.
I was doing a general search for “the god thing” and found your site. Can’t remember exactly which page I was on, but thought you might want to fix “Group of Dunks” to “Group of Drunks”. (Hey, maybe you should use them both! Ha Ha)
Best wishes for continued happiness in sobriety.
Patricia Major Reed (author of “Spiritual Meatloaf: Develop Your Personal Recipe for Spirituality in Twelve-Step Recovery”)
I don’t care what it actually is, if a religious cult or not. I was forced in the beginning by the courts, but came back because of desperation and a lack of alternatives. Sadly, after a certain length of sobriety and equal misery I just become so burned out. To the point where I dread getting up. I don’t think I can work the program any better that progress would allow. I tried my best to live by spiritual principles, have a sponsor, go to meetings,stay involved in service work. Not to mention the step work, taking inventory, imploying spiritual help recognizing and lessen character defects. Then the amends. Plus I would sponsor others when my own sponsor told me too. Obsession in the program is necessary for me too stay clean in it. Sorry for that rambling…..I was really hoping for info into other methods of obtaining a healthy and lasting sobriety. I’m not some lazy punk who wasn’t putting any effort in changing. lol