Alcoholics Anonymous is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1935 by two recovering alcoholics, Bill W (William Griffith Wilson) and Dr. Bob (Dr. Robert Holbrook Smith). They were the first to put forward the idea that alcoholism was a treatable disease to a national audience. They also wrote the "Big Book" that is the cornerstone for Alcoholics Anonymous.
The twelve steps outlined in the Big Book are now famous:
1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol -- that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
5. Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics and to practice these principles in all our affairs.
While many of these twelve steps have religious overtones, remember that this was written in a time when religion, specifically Christian religion, permeated American society much more than it does today. Today, Alcoholics Anonymous realizes that many people are either not practicing their religion, they're atheistic, or they may practice a non-Christian religion.
AA doesn't care what you decide the "Power greater than ourselves" is?just that you realize you are not alone.
At any Alcoholics Anonymous meeting there are people at every stage of recovery, from Day 1 to people with decades and decades of sobriety. Most Alcoholics Anonymous meetings are for members only?that's one way they help create a safe, Anonymous environment. But there are also occasional "open meetings", where members may bring spouses, relatives or friends. People will speak about the AA process, how they discovered it, and how it has affected them.
In the more traditional "closed" meetings, it's alcoholics only. This is a chance for the alcoholic to ask for help, ask sometimes pointed questions, but also to get answers. You may think you're the only one who's had a particular problem, but you'll find someone else has conquered that before, and is willing to show you how.
The only requirement to join Alcoholics Anonymous is a desire to stop drinking. AA is a non-profit organization that does not have membership dues or fees. At most meetings a basket is passed around to help offset the cost of meeting treats, coffee, or hall rental. Contributions are gratefully accepted but not expected. You contribute what you can, when you can.
For many people looking to kick the alcohol habit, Alcoholics Anonymous is the supportive lifeline they need to take that first step back into sobriety.
Alcoholics Anonymous 12 Steps
Follow these steps I have specifically found to help anyone who is new to Power of Creative Visualization.
Step One: Choose a quiet place, which is free from all distraction, interruption or disturbance. This may even be inside a bus or in your own room. The idea is to be able to concentrate in any environment that you find is suitable. The ideal is to be able to concentrate in any environment that you find is suitable. The ideal time, however, I have found to be is, early in the morning or before going to bed. The ideal place however, may be anywhere as long as you can concentrate.
Step Two: Feel comfortable. Wear loose clothes or else loosen your belt and tie.
Step Three: Be comfortable. Keep your spine straight. Loosen your hands. Relax! This eases your body tension and helps your blood circulate efficiently.
Step Four: Close your eyes. That way your physical world does not interrupt you and you can concentrate on your mental world. But avoid quenching your eyes. Close them gently. In fact, once you focus on your images, you may find your eyes closing naturally.
Step Five: Breathe normally. Let your body roll with the rhythm of your breathing. Listen to that rhythm.
Step Six: Now begin the process of visualization. Create the key images of the subject you have chosen. Form the shape. Add color. Build the sound. Sense them! Focus on them. See them as sharply and clearly as you can with your minds eye.
Step Seven: Put yourself in the images you have created. You must be inside the picture so as to let your subconscious mind know that the image you see that leads to your goal is actually meant for you, and not for anyone else.
Step Eight: Feel the image you have created. Now that you are inside the picture imagine yourself to be leading
the time you see. Feel the environment. Watch how different it feels to lead a life that you had desired. Bring your images alive.
Step Nine: Experience the images with all your emotions. See! Hear! Smell! Feel how it feels to have achieved your goals. Let the excitement and happiness of success flow through you. Let the thrill of success build in you. Feel your success.
Step Ten: Once you have experienced your images with emotion, let your mind go blank. If you hold on to your images for too long, the images might disappear due to overexposure. So, let go of it.
Step Eleven: Create a space in your mind to receive what you desire. Say to yourself that what you desire - like, I deserve to be healthy, I deserve to be rich and famous. By doing this, you not only let your subconscious mind support the picture, you literally achieve your success.
Step Twelve: Feel creative while creating the images. I have given you the basic guidelines in the following pages to create visuals that will help you achieve your goals. You may change them accordingly to suit your needs. The more the images meet your specific needs, the more effective they will be.
These then are the twelve important steps to mind-power. Remember, it is better to visualize 2-3 times a day for a shorter duration than to visualize for a long stretch during the day. Doing this, the quality of visuals remain fresh instead of becoming stale and plaid and draining all energy out of you.
Steps one to ten might take you anything between 5-10 minutes. It is better if you do not prolong it. Instead, repeat it at another time of the day.
When you release the image after this brief exercise, your mind will become free of the mind-power you had activated. But your subconscious mind keeps on supporting the image you had seen. This helps your goal and your dreams to be a reality.
The twelve steps to Mind power that I have explained above is the most powerful tool in this world. When you switch on your mind power and extend it to creative visualization for turning your dreams into reality - then, that is exactly what will happen. Your dreams will become reality.
Both Randy Kimbrell & Pradeep Aggarwal are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Randy Kimbrell has sinced written about articles on various topics from Web Development. Find out how can help you just like it's helped millions of others. Visit. Randy Kimbrell's top article generates over 6600 views. to your Favourites.
Pradeep Aggarwal has sinced written about articles on various topics from Internet Marketing, Web Development and Online Business. is a renowned Hypnosis & NLP guru with career spanning two and half decades He is also a much sought after speaker and peak performance consultant fo. Pradeep Aggarwal's top article generates over 22200 views. to your Favourites.
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