What is Alcoholics Anonymous?
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS® is a fellowship of people who share their experience, strength and hope
with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from
alcoholism.
The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. There are no dues or fees for A.A. membership; we are self-supporting through our own contributions. A.A. is not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization or institution; does not wish to engage in any controversy; neither endorses nor opposes any causes.
Our primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics to achieve sobriety.
Copyright C by AA Grapevine, Inc .;
reprinted with permission.
Not too long ago...
Alcoholism and Alcoholics
Not too long ago, alcoholism was viewed as a moral problem. Today, many regard it primarily
as a health problem. To each problem drinker, it will always remain an intensely personal matter.
Alcoholics who approach A.A. frequently ask questions that apply to their own experience, their own
fears, and their own hopes for a better way of life. Some of these questions appear below.
What is Alcoholism?
What is alcoholism?
There are many different ideas about what alcoholism really is.
The explanation that seems to make sense to most A.A. members is that alcoholism is an illness, a progressive illness, which can never be cured but which, like some other diseases, can be arrested. Going one step further, many A.A.s feel that the
illness represents the combination of a physical sensitivity to alcohol and a mental obsession with drinking, which, regardless of consequences, cannot be broken by willpower alone. Before they are exposed to A.A., many alcoholics who are unable to stop drinking think of themselves as morally weak or, possibly, mentally
unbalanced. The A.A. concept is that alcoholics are people with an illness who can recover if they will follow a simple program that has proved successful
for millions of people around the world. Once alcoholism has set in, there is nothing morally wrong about being ill. At this stage, free will is not involved, because the sufferer has lost the power of choice over alcohol. The important
thing is to face the facts of one’s illness and to take advantage of the help that is available. There must also be a desire to get well. Experience shows that
the A.A. program will work for all alcoholics who are sincere in their efforts to stop drinking; it usually will not work for those not absolutely certain that they want to stop.
How can I tell if I Am an Alcoholic?
How can I tell if I am really an alcoholic?
Only you can make that decision. Many who are now in A.A. have previously been told that they were not alcoholics, that all they needed was more willpower, a change of scenery, more rest, or a few new hobbies in order to straighten out.
These same people finally turned to A.A. because they felt, deep down inside, that alcohol had them licked and that they were ready to try anything that would free them from the compulsion to drink. Some of these people went through terrifying experiences with alcohol before they were ready to admit that alcohol was not for them. They became
homeless or indigent, stole, lied, cheated, and even killed while they were drinking. They took advantage of their employers and abused their families. They were completely unreliable in their relations with others. They wasted their material, mental, and spiritual assets. Many others with far less tragic records have turned to A.A., too. They have never been jailed or hospitalized. Their too-heavy drinking may not have been noticed by their closest relatives and friends. But they knew enough about alcoholism as a progressive illness to scare them. They joined A.A. before they had paid too heavy a price. There is a saying in A.A. that there is no such thing as being a little bit alcoholic. Either you are, or you are not. And only the individual involved can say whether or not alcohol has become an unmanageable problem.
Where can I find a meeting?
You can search for meetings near you using the meeting list. If you need further help finding a meeting please call us at (416) 487-5591.
Can an Alcoholic ever drink normally again?
Can an alcoholic ever drink ‘normally’ again?
So far as can be determined, no one who has become an alcoholic has ever ceased to be an alcoholic. The mere fact of abstaining from alcohol for months or even years has never qualified an alcoholic to drink “normally” or socially. Once the individual has crossed the borderline from heavy drinking to alcoholic drinking, there seems to be no retreat. Few alcoholics deliberately try to drink themselves into trouble, but trouble seems to be the inevitable consequence of an alcoholic’s drinking. After quitting for a period, the alcoholic may feel it is safe to try a few beers or a few glasses of
light wine. This can mislead the person into drinking only with meals. But it is not too long before the alcoholic is back in the old pattern of too-heavy drinking – in spite of all efforts to set limits for only moderate, social drinking. The answer, based on A.A. experience, is that if you are an alcoholic, you will never be able to control your drinking for any length of time. This leaves two paths open: to let your drinking become worse and worse with all the damaging results that follow, or to quit completely and to develop a new pattern of sober, constructive living.
What is an open meeting?
An open meeting of A.A. is a group meeting that any member of the community, alcoholic or nonalcoholic, may attend. The only obligation is that of not disclosing the names of A.A. members outside the meeting. Those who take part in the meeting have been chosen beforehand, so a newcomer need not feel intimidated.
Meetings in Toronto generally begin with a moment of silence, followed by The Serenity Prayer. The chairperson, or a person they designate, then reads a brief portion of ‘What Is AA?’ from the book Alcoholics Anonymous, briefly identifies themselves as an alcoholic, emphasizes the importance of anonymity, and may note that AA is a spiritual—rather than religious—program of recovery.
An open meeting of A.A. is a group meeting that any member of the community, alcoholic or nonalcoholic, may attend. The only obligation is that of not disclosing the names of A.A. members outside the meeting. A typical open meeting will usually have a “leader” or “chairperson” and other speakers. The leader opens and closes the meeting, chooses people to read parts of our literature and introduces the speaker. The speaker may review some individual drinking experiences that led to joining A.A. Speakers may also give their interpretation of the recovery program and suggest what sobriety has meant to them personally. All views expressed are purely personal, since all members of A.A. speak only for themselves. Coffee and other refreshments are frequently offered at open meetings. Literature is sold at cost and a basket is often passed around for “self support” to help pay for the rental of the room and supply coffee.
What is a Closed meeting?
What is a closed meeting?
Closed meetings are exclusively for those who admit they are alcoholics; and for those who think they may have a drinking problem.
Closed meetings may take many forms. The most common is the “Big Book Study” discussion meeting. As it’s main focus is the contents of the book, “Alcoholics Anonymous” from which the organization takes its name. From it we learn about the nature of the disease of alcoholism and many have found it helpful in identifying whether they too were alcoholics. It’s useful to have a copy of the Big Book so you can read along and many meetings supply in house copies or you can purchase your own copy found right here in our bookstore.
Another popular format is the 12-Step discussion meetings where attendees discuss the Steps, ask questions, or sharing how they’ve used each Step in their daily lives and what results they got when they did. Many “Step discussion” meetings will have multiple rooms with a “Step 1-2-3” room appropriate for beginners; and another rotating step room. Many groups read each step before discussing it and it’s often useful to have a copy of the book, “12 Steps and 12 Traditions,” available from many open meeting library tables throughout the city or found right here in our bookstore .
Other closed meeting formats include “Open Topic” discussions, where attendees may discuss the Steps, or raise any topic they feel may affect their sobriety. Here, too, the meeting is a mixture of questions and sharing of experiences.
Can’t an alcoholic even drink beer?
Can’t an A.A. member drink even beer?
There are, of course, no musts in A.A., and no one checks up on members to determine whether or not they are drinking anything. The answer to this question is that if a person is an alcoholic, touching alcohol in any form cannot be risked. Alcohol is alcohol whether it is found in a martini, a bottle of wine, a pint of cheap bourbon or a can of beer. For
the alcoholic, one drink of alcohol in any form is likely to be too much, and twenty drinks are not enough. To be sure of sobriety, alcoholics simply have to stay away from alcohol, regardless of the quantity, mixture, or concentration they may think they can control. Obviously, few persons are going to get drunk on one or two bottles of beer. The alcoholic knows
this as well as the next person. But alcoholics may convince themselves that they are simply going to drink two or three beers and then quit for the day. Occasionally, they may actually follow this program for a number of days or weeks. Eventually, they decide that as long as they are drinking, they may as well “not hold back.” So they increase their
consumption of beer or wine. Or they switch to hard liquor. And they are back where they started.
I can stay sober quite a while between binges; how can I tell whether I need A.A .?
I can stay sober quite a while between binges; how can I tell whether I need A.A .?
Most A.A.s will say that it’s how you drink, not how often, that determines whether or not you are an alcoholic. Many problem drinkers can go weeks, months, and occasionally years between their bouts with alcohol. During their periods of
sobriety, they may not give drinking a second thought. Without mental or emotional effort, they are able to take it or leave it alone, and they prefer to leave it alone. Then, for some unaccountable reason, or for no reason at all, they go off on a first-class binge. They neglect job, family, and other civic and social responsibilities. The spree may last a single
night, or it may be prolonged for days or weeks. When it is over, the drinker is usually weak and remorseful, determined never to let it happen again. But it does happen again. This type of “periodic” drinking is baffling, not only to those around the drinker, but also to the person still drinking, who cannot understand why there should be so little interest in alcohol during the periods between binges, or so little control over it once the drinking starts. The periodic drinker may or may not be an alcoholic. But if drinking has become unmanageable and if the periods between binges are becoming shorter, chances are the time has come to face up to the problem. If the person is ready to admit to being an alcoholic, then the first step has been taken toward the continuing sobriety enjoyed by thousands upon thousands of A.A.s.
The God word
The GOD word in AA?
A.A. is not a religious organization. Alcoholics Anonymous has only one requirement for membership, and that is the desire to stop drinking. There is room in A.A. for people of all shades of belief and non-belief. Many members believe in some sort of god, some members belong to a religious body of their choosing, but many are also atheist or agnostic and attend secular meetings; all meetings are found on our meeting listing page. It’s important to remember that A.A. is not a religious organization; we have a simple idea that there is a power greater than us as individuals.
What we all have in common is that the program helps us find an inner strength that we were previously unaware of — where we differ is in how we identify the source. Some people have thought of the word “God” as standing for “good orderly direction,” or even “group of drunks,” but many of us believe that there is something bigger than ourselves that is helping us today. This power may lie within some person’s religious beliefs, or it can be completely separate from any religion. For example, one member looks at the sea and accepts that it is a power greater than him. We could ask ourselves, “Do I believe that somehow there is a power greater than myself? …Whatever you do, please don’t let someone else’s religious beliefs prevent you from finding the solution that is available to you through Alcoholics Anonymous.”
parts of this message are borrowed from the pamphlet “The God Word” P-86_0825 on www.aa.org
What is a 12th step call?
A 12 step call is part of our program of recovery. It is the traditional way to help fellow alcoholics who are still suffering and those new to A.A.. When someone contacts AA, usually for the first time, they can be put in touch with someone who has been sober for a while who can accompany them to their first meeting, help explain how meetings are run and share their experience, strength and hope.
Contact a Sober Alcoholic for help