Sep
10
2010
Q&A: What do you know about Alcoholics Anonymous? Can it cure alcoholism? How does it compare to therapy?
Posted by: Alan in alcoholism treatment, tags: /therapy, About, Alcoholics, Alcoholism, Anonymous, compare, Cure, Know
Question by JustMe: What do you know about Alcoholics Anonymous? Can it cure alcoholism? How does it compare to therapy?
Best answer:
Answer by dawg
Supposedly, alcoholism is not curable. They call it a Disease but it is actually a condition. AA is a form of therapy. The biggest difference between a drunk and an alcoholic is that a drunk does not have to go to all those meetings.
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September 10th, 2010 at 7:20 pm
I go to AA meetings and it helps me. They use the 12 step program, and if you follow the steps it can really help. I think it’s better than therapy because you can relate to everybody that’s in the room with you.
September 10th, 2010 at 8:05 pm
There’s no cure to alcoholism…
You can only “recover” from it.
That organization helps with the recovery.
Me? I’m a drunk, not an alcoholic.
Alcoholics go to meetings.
September 10th, 2010 at 8:56 pm
There is no cure for alcoholism. Only abstinence (quit drinking). Alcoholics Anonymous is the most successful program in the world. It’s been around since June 10, 1935.
The difference between AA and going to a therapist is that AA is free and there you hear from other alcoholics and how they got sober and made it through difficult situations without drinking. That’s what it is all about.
**And those who make jokes about drunks and alcoholcs. The difference REALLY is that a drunk just can’t admit to themselves that they need help.
September 10th, 2010 at 9:05 pm
It works for some but alcoholism isn’t really curable, more like containable. Staying sober is a daily task for many. Therapy is good but costs whereas AA is cheap to free to participate. Alcoholism is a tremendously destructive disease to the aspects of life and people it touches. Hope it or something else works for whomever you’re asking for.
September 10th, 2010 at 9:44 pm
I have a friend who is currently in the process of leaving his wife because of her alcoholism. He has tried to help her work through it for years. Unfortunately, it has reached the point where she will drink rubbing alcohol or vanilla extract if booze isn’t available. He is just simply not willing to watch her kill herself.
I was talking with him about it the other day. He told me that Alcoholics Anonymous was one of the worst things in her case. As he put it, the last thing in the world she needed was a bunch of new alcoholic friends to chum around with.
September 10th, 2010 at 10:04 pm
One and a half to two million drunks in the USA are sober now because of AA.
There is no cure for alcoholism, but the disease can be arrested.
Alcoholism is recognized by the AMA as a disease. It fits all of the definitions of a disease—signs and symptoms, progression, outcome, treatment
September 10th, 2010 at 10:32 pm
There is no “cure” for alcoholism because alcoholism really isn’t a disease — it’s an addiction. Alcoholics Anonymous started the 12-step program and is based around the support group structure. It has been proven to be beneficial for people who want to stop drinking, and many people like it because they get to talk to people who have the same problems but come from all different walks of life and all kinds of different backgrounds. The support group structure is actually taken one step further — each AA member has a “buddy list” of other people in the support group that they are supposed to call if they’re tempted to start drinking again. So part of it works on the principle of peer pressure, but it’s a positive form of peer pressure and when you’re in that state of temptation you’re being talked to and encouraged by people who understand exactly how you feel and have been exactly where you are. There’s only one catch — a person who is an alcoholic must admit that he/she has a problem and must WANT to get better. No amount of therapy or AA meetings or anything will cure an alcoholic who won’t admit it or doesn’t want to kick drinking.
September 10th, 2010 at 11:14 pm
AA can help anyone that wants to be helped. There is no cure for alcoholism. A person just has to take it one day at a time and not drink any more. Therapy is also good, so a person just has to decide which is best foe them. Sometimes a person has to be put in a hospital to safely sober up, because there can be complications. AA has mentors that help and I believe a person needs help when quiting alcohol. If a mentor isn’t possible then a good friend or family member will do. If a person needs help then they should not wait and seek help ASAP from any source they think best for them.
September 10th, 2010 at 11:39 pm
A.A. is a spiritual program, therapy’s not. Alcoholics use the “Higher Power” (of your own choosing) to sub stain from alcohol, 12 steps to a better, fuller, spiritual life. These are very simple to practice in everyday life. The whole purpose is to help others, and one another to maintain continuous sobriety. One drunk to another.
September 11th, 2010 at 12:07 am
AA is a great acheivement of man it allows uncurable alcoholics a society that will help them achieve soberness for extremely extended periods. However, through the twelve step program it takes a determined individual sometime to get comfotable with the idea that sober is normal. Oh the bonus is you get a confidential buddy that will be there for you if you feel tempted. Compared to therapy? hmm i believe this is the therapy recommended. Ah yes, by the way God is predominately the greatest force used throughout the twelve steps. Perhaps i should tell you that a white poker chip is the start of the program.
September 11th, 2010 at 12:30 am
it helps them to deal with their alochol problem and it lets them know that they can get help and deal and know how not to drink anymore. It is not cureable but this program helps them to deal with it and gets the help that they need and they get a sponcer which they can talk to when they feel like drinking again. It is a very good proram for someone who knows they have problem and it is good for the family of the alcoholic to go to the meeting too. well hope this helps you.
September 11th, 2010 at 12:34 am
AA is a thinly disguised religious program that is more interested in you becoming an AA member than you getting or staying sober. Only one of the 12 steps mentions alcohol, but half of them talk about God.
In several studies, including AA’s internal Triennial Survey and one done by AA Board of Trustees, George Vaillant, AA has a 5% success rate for one year, no better than no program at all. However, Vaillant’s study showed that people in their first year of AA had a MORTALITY rate four times higher.
The Brandsma study showed that those exposed to AA where four times as likely to engage in binge drinking that those who attempt quitting on their own.
If there is an underlying mental health issue (present in half of all alcoholics, according to the National Institute of Mental Health) you might be better off finding an ACT (Assertive Community Treatment) program. To find one in your area, go to:http://www.nami.org/template.cfm?section=act-ta_center&template=/contentmanagement/contentdisplay.cfm&contentID=10650
AA has a large, vocal anti-medication, anti-therapy faction that claim if you take medication you are not sober, and you will be shunned.
I tried using AA on and off for over twenty years, only managing a few months sobriety here and there. In 2001, I got help with depression, turned my back on AA and have been sober since.
September 11th, 2010 at 1:33 am
Alcoholism is not a disease, it is a learned behavior, therefore, it can’t be cured. You either learn new behavior or you don’t.
I found therapy to be helpful, but, you have to be careful as a great many of the therapists out there are secretly members of AA and that skews their view of ways of abstaining.
AA is based on religious dogma. It does very little to help one to abstain and for the most part is a self-promoting, cult like activity. If you attend for awhile, you will see that very few people continue to attend meetings for more than a month or two. In fact, AA’s own studies say that less than five percent get sober through AA.