Drug addiction recovery groups

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Drug addiction recovery groups are voluntary associations of people who share a common desire to overcome their drug addiction. Different groups use different methods, ranging from completely secular to explicitly spiritual. Some programs may advocate a reduction in the use of drugs rather than outright abstention. One survey of members found active involvement in any addiction recovery group correlates with higher chances of maintaining sobriety.[ citation needed ] Although there is not a difference in whether group or individual therapy is better for the patient, studies show that any therapy increases positive outcomes for patients with substance use disorder. [1] The survey found group participation increased when the individual members' beliefs matched those of their primary support group (many addicts are members of multiple addiction recovery groups). [2] Analysis of the survey results found a significant positive correlation between the religiosity of members and their participation in twelve-step programs (these programs describe themselves as spiritual rather than religious) and to a lesser level in non-religious SMART Recovery groups, the correlation factor being three times smaller for SMART Recovery than for twelve-step addiction recovery groups. Religiosity was inversely related to participation in Secular Organizations for Sobriety. [2]

Contents

A survey of a cross-sectional sample of clinicians working in outpatient facilities (selected from the SAMHSA On-line Treatment Facility Locator) found that clinicians only referring clients to twelve-step groups were more likely than those referring their clients to twelve-step groups and "twelve-step alternatives" to believe less strongly in the effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral and psychodynamic-oriented therapy, and were likely to be unfamiliar with twelve-step alternatives. A logistic regression of clinician's knowledge and awareness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy effectiveness and preference for the twelve-step model was correlated with referring exclusively to twelve-step groups. [3]

Twelve-step recovery groups

Twelve-step programs are mutual aid organizations for the purpose of recovery from substance addictions, behavioral addictions, and compulsions. Developed in the 1930s by alcoholics, the first twelve-step program, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), aided its membership to overcome alcoholism. [4] Since that time, dozens of other organizations have been derived from AA's approach to address problems as varied as drug addiction, compulsive gambling, sex and overeating. All twelve-step programs utilize a version of AA's suggested twelve steps first published in the 1939 book Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men Have Recovered from Alcoholism. [5]

As summarized by the American Psychological Association (APA), the process involves the following: [4]

Participants attend meetings and are able to make new connections with other members who are striving towards a similar goal. If a person is unable to attend a meeting face-to-face, many of the groups have meetings by phone or online as another option. Each group has its own textbook, workbooks or both, which provide information about their program of recovery and suggestions on how to "work the steps". Often, free literature is available for anyone who asks for it at a meeting. This provides potential new members or family members with relevant information about both the addiction and that specific group's version of the twelve-step process of recovery. New members are invited to work with another member who has already been through the twelve-steps at least once. That person serves as a guide to the new member, answers questions and provides feedback as the new member goes through the steps. These groups are spiritually based and encourage a belief in a power greater than the members. Most do not have one specific conception of what that means and allow the member to decide what spirituality means to them as it applies to their recovery. The groups emphasize living on a spiritual yet not necessarily religious basis. Groups typically advocate for complete abstinence, usually from all drugs including alcohol. This is because of the perceived potential for cross-addiction, the idea that there is a tendency to trade one addiction for another. Despite the idea of cross-addiction being accepted as real in many addiction recovery groups, there is said to be little empirical evidence to support the idea and recent research suggests that the opposite is more likely to be true. The following is a list of twelve-step drug addiction recovery groups. Twelve-step programs for problems other than drug addiction also exist.

Non-twelve-step recovery groups

These groups do not follow the twelve-step recovery method, although their members may also attend twelve-step meetings. It is common for individuals to try many different meetings and groups while in recovery. What works for one may not work for another, so trying different types of meetings can be helpful to someone seeking recovery from drugs and alcohol.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alcoholics Anonymous</span> Sobriety-focused mutual help fellowship

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a global peer-led mutual aid fellowship begun in the United States dedicated to abstinence-based recovery from alcoholism through their spiritually inclined twelve-step program. AA's twelve traditions, besides stressing anonymity, establish it as non-professional, non-denominational, apolitical and unaffiliated. In 2020 AA estimated a worldwide membership of over two million, with 75% of those in the US and Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alcoholism</span> Problematic excessive alcohol consumption

Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite negative results. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records, such as in ancient Egypt and in the Bible, and remains widespread; the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated there were 283 million people with alcohol use disorders worldwide as of 2016. The term alcoholism was first coined in 1852, but alcoholism and alcoholic are stigmatizing and discourage seeking treatment, so clinical diagnostic terms such as alcohol use disorder or alcohol dependence are used instead.

Twelve-step programs are international mutual aid programs supporting recovery from substance addictions, behavioral addictions and compulsions. Developed in the 1930s, the first twelve-step program, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), founded by Bill Wilson and Bob Smith, aided its membership to overcome alcoholism. Since that time dozens of other organizations have been derived from AA's approach to address problems as varied as drug addiction, compulsive gambling, sex, and overeating. All twelve-step programs utilize a version of AA's suggested twelve steps first published in the 1939 book Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men Have Recovered from Alcoholism.

Rational Recovery was a commercial vendor of material related to counseling, guidance, and direct instruction for addiction designed as a direct counterpoint to Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and twelve-step programs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Narcotics Anonymous</span> Mutual help 12-Step organization

Narcotics Anonymous (NA), founded in 1953, describes itself as a "nonprofit fellowship or society of men and women for whom drugs had become a major problem." Narcotics Anonymous uses a 12-step model developed for people with varied substance use disorders and is the second-largest 12-step organization.

Drug rehabilitation is the process of medical or psychotherapeutic treatment for dependency on psychoactive substances such as alcohol, prescription drugs, and street drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, heroin or amphetamines. The general intent is to enable the patient to confront substance dependence, if present, and stop substance misuse to avoid the psychological, legal, financial, social, and physical consequences that can be caused.

Higher Power is a term used in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and other twelve-step programs. The same groups use the phrases "a power greater than ourselves" and "God of our understanding" synonymously. The term is intentionally vague because the program is not tied to a particular religion or spiritual tradition; members may use it to refer to any supreme being or deity, another conception of God, or even non-supernatural things such as the twelve-step program itself.

The term Oxford House refers to any house operating under the "Oxford House Model", a community-based approach to addiction recovery, which provides an independent, supportive, and sober living environment. Today there are nearly 3,000 Oxford Houses in the United States and other countries.

Al-Anon Family Groups, founded in 1951, is an international mutual aid organization for people who have been impacted by another person's alcoholism. In the organization's own words, Al-Anon is a "worldwide fellowship that offers a program of recovery for the families and friends of alcoholics, whether or not the alcoholic recognizes the existence of a drinking problem or seeks help." Alateen "is part of the Al-Anon fellowship designed for the younger relatives and friends of alcoholics through the teen years".

Crystal Meth Anonymous (CMA) is a California-based non-profit, public-benefit corporation founded in 1994. The members of the fellowship of Crystal Meth Anonymous work a twelve-step program of recovery with recovering crystal meth addicts. Participants in local groups meet in order to help others recover from methamphetamine addiction. CMA advocates complete abstinence from methamphetamine, alcohol, inhalants, and all other psychoactive drugs not taken as prescribed.

Sober living houses (SLHs), also called sober homes and sober living environments, are facilities that provide safe housing and supportive, structured living conditions for people exiting drug rehabilitation programs. SLHs serve as a transitional environment between such programs and mainstream society. Many SLHs also accept people who are in recovery from substance use disorders but have not recently completed a rehabilitation program.

Nicotine Anonymous (NicA) is a twelve-step program founded in 1982 for people desiring to quit smoking and live free of nicotine. As of July 2017, there are over 700 face-to-face meetings in 32 countries worldwide with the majority of these meetings occurring in the United States, Iran, India, Canada, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Australia, Russia and in various online community and social media platforms.. NicA maintains that total abstinence from nicotine is necessary for recovery. NicA defines abstinence as “a state that begins when all use of nicotine ceases.

SMART Recovery is an international community of peer support groups that help people recover from addictive and problematic behaviors, using a self-empowering and evidence-informed program. SMART stands for Self-Management and Recovery Training. The SMART approach is secular and research-based. SMART has a global reach, with a presence established in more than 30 countries. SMART Recovery is effective with a range of addictive and problematic behaviors

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LifeRing Secular Recovery</span> Addiction and recovery organization

LifeRing Secular Recovery is a secular, non-profit organization providing peer-run addiction recovery groups. The organization provides support and assistance to people seeking to recover from alcohol and drug addiction, and also assists partners, family members and friends of addicts or alcoholics. It is an abstinence-based recovery program with three fundamental principles: sobriety, secularity and self-empowerment. The motto of LifeRing is "empower your sober self."

Moderation Management (MM) is a secular non-profit organization providing peer-run support groups for anyone who would like to reduce their alcohol consumption. MM was founded in 1994 to create an alternative to Alcoholics Anonymous and similar addiction recovery groups for non-dependent problem drinkers who do not necessarily want to stop drinking, but moderate their amount of alcohol consumed to reduce its detrimental consequences.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Secular Organizations for Sobriety</span> Non-profit network of autonomous addiction recovery groups

Secular Organizations for Sobriety (SOS), also known as Save Our Selves, is a non-profit network of autonomous addiction recovery groups. The program stresses the need to place the highest priority on sobriety and uses mutual support to assist members in achieving this goal. The Suggested Guidelines for Sobriety emphasize rational decision-making and are not religious or spiritual in nature. SOS represents an alternative to the spiritually based addiction recovery programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). SOS members may also attend AA meetings, but SOS does not view spirituality or surrendering to a Higher Power as being necessary to maintain abstinence.

Women for Sobriety (WFS) is a non-profit secular addiction recovery group for women with addiction problems. WFS was created by sociologist Jean Kirkpatrick in 1976 as an alternative to twelve-step addiction recovery groups like Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). As of 1998 there were more than 200 WFS groups worldwide. Only women are allowed to attend the organization's meetings as the groups focus specifically on women's issues. WFS is not a radical feminist, anti-male, or anti-AA organization.

Willingway, located in Statesboro, Georgia, is a privately owned hospital which specializes in treating alcoholism and drug addiction. The treatment modality at Willingway Hospital is based on the principles of the twelve-step program, Alcoholics Anonymous. It is referred to by many as "The Betty Ford Center of the South."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Big Book (Alcoholics Anonymous)</span> Bestselling book on how to recover from addictions

Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men Have Recovered from Alcoholism is a 1939 basic text, describing how to seek recovery from alcoholism. Written by William G. "Bill W." Wilson, one of the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous, and many of the first 100 members of the group, the composition process was collaborative, with drafts of the book being sent back and forth between Bill W.'s group in New York and Robert Holbrook Smith, the other AA founder, in Akron, Ohio. It is the predecessor of the seminal "twelve-step method" widely used to treat many addictions, from alcoholism, heroin addiction and marijuana addiction to overeating, sex addiction and gambling addiction, with a strong spiritual and social emphasis. It is one of the best-selling books of all time, having sold 30 million copies. In 2011, Time magazine placed the book on its list of the 100 best and most influential books written in English since 1923, the year in which the magazine was first published. In 2012, the Library of Congress designated it as one of 88 "Books that Shaped America."

Heroin Anonymous (HA) is a non-profit group founded in Phoenix, AZ in 2004 to help people addicted to heroin remain substance-free. Modeled after Alcoholics Anonymous, HA is a fellowship of people addicted to heroin who meet regularly to help each other practice complete abstinence from all drugs and alcohol. Heroin Anonymous does not provide drug counseling, medical or psychiatric treatment, or chemical dependency treatment.

References

  1. ↑ Weiss, Roger D.; Jaffee, William B.; Menil, Victoria P.; Cogley, Catherine B. (2004-01-01). "Group Therapy for Substance Use Disorders: What Do We Know?". Harvard Review of Psychiatry. 12 (6): 339–350. doi:10.1080/10673220490905723. ISSN   1067-3229. PMID   15764469. S2CID   2618294.
  2. 1 2 Atkins, R.; Hawdon, JE (2007). "Religiosity and participation in mutual-aid support groups for addictions". Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment. 33 (3): 321–331. doi:10.1016/j.jsat.2007.07.001. PMC   2095128 . PMID   17889302.
  3. ↑ Fenster, Judy (July 2006). "Characteristics of clinicians likely to refer clients to 12-Step programs versus a diversity of post-treatment options". Drug and Alcohol Dependence. 83 (3): 238–246. doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2005.11.017. PMID   16376025.
  4. 1 2 VandenBos, Gary R. (2007). APA dictionary of psychology (1st ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. ISBN   978-1-59147-380-0. OCLC   65407150.
  5. ↑ Bill W. (June 2001). Alcoholics Anonymous (4th ed.). Alcoholics Anonymous World Services. ISBN   1-893007-16-2. OCLC   32014950.
  6. ↑ "Cocaine Anonymous World Services …And All Other Mind-Altering Substances". ca.org. 27 April 2015. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
  7. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2021-03-08. Retrieved 2019-11-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. ↑ "Heroin Anonymous World Services | About" . Retrieved 2019-11-26.
  9. ↑ "Home Page". Marijuana Anonymous World Services. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
  10. ↑ https://www.na.org/admin/include/spaw2/uploads/pdf/litfiles/us_english/IP/EN3122.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]

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