Does AA Really Work?
I can’t tell you How Many People have Asked Me this Question. You may be somewhat Shocked by this, but No, AA Doesn’t work for
“Most” People.
So why is this? Because as wacdenney pointed out (who BTW I am Gaining a New Found Respect for), if a Person has a Problem with their Drinking but does Not Want to Quit, Nothing is Going to Work. Nothing.
No $30,000 Rehab Center. No “Get Well Cards” from a Judge. No amount of Nagging from a Spouse. Or Encouragement from a Friend, Co-Worker or Boss. Nothing.
People come to AA for Many Different Reasons. Some come to AA to Cut Down on their Drinking but Not to Quit. Some will come to show Others that they are Doing Something about a Problem and to get People Off their Back. Other because they were Convicted of a DUI or similar Alcohol Related Offense and they Have To. Some go because they have heard that Other People have had Success with AA.
For these People, very Very Few have any Long Term Success in Quitting Drinking. Because Most of these People do Not Really Want to Quit Drinking. (I don’t want to put numbers on these people, but if someone told me these were the 5-Percent-ers, it Wouldn't Surprise me.)
Drinking is a Exactly Like Smoking. If you Don’t Want to Quit Smoking, you’re Not Going to. You have to Want it. Want it on the Deepest Level. You have to Want to Quit 100%, from the bottom of your Heart and are Willing to go to Any Lengths to Achieve It Because if you Don’t, Guess what Sunshine, it Aint Gonna Work.
But is that AA’s fault? A Person doesn’t Deep Down Inside Want to Quit, they go to AA and they Don’t Quit, and so they Blame AA? Is AA Really to Blame? Is AA's Failure to Make a Person Quit who Doesn't want to Justification to make a Satirical Satire youtube video?
So who does it Work For?
Here is a Excerpt from Chap. 5 “How it Works” from the “Big Book” of Alcoholics Anonymous. It is one of the things that is Read at the beginning of Every Sanctioned AA Meeting for about the last 70 Years.
http://www.aa.org/pdf/products/p-10_howitworks.pdf
AA works for an Individual who Wants to Quit Drinking more than Anything Else. And who is Willing to Actively Pursue Sobriety on a Daily Bases. Notice that this is a TWO Part Condition. It Isn’t Enough to just Want to Quit Drinking for Most People who go to AA. If it was, they would have Done It Already! And it doesn’t Work if a Person does not Work the Program of AA.
I have seen Hundreds of People who have Lost EVERYTHING and Have Tried EVERYTHING with No Success achieve Sobriety. People who were Hopeless and Emotionally Bankrupt. People I wouldn’t bet a Used Carto on being able to Succeed. But they Wanted to Quit. And were able to be Completely Honest with themselves and Actively Work the Steps of AA and to Practice AA Principles Daily in All their Affairs. And they Did Succeed.
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I was Going to Fire Off a Scathing OUTSIDE reply when you posted that Video. Because I thought it was Complete Garbage.
But instead, I hope this gives you some Perspective of AA in General thru my Opinion. The Perspective from an Active AA Member who has seen people get their Lives Back On Track.
And Not the Perspective of some Vegas Comedian who has an Axe to Grind.
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BTW – Here is a Link to the Entire AA Big Book.
Big Book On Line - Table of Contents
If you Only Choose to Read one thing including Chap. 4, Please read the Paragraph on the Bottom of Page 63 an the Top of Page 64 in Chap. 5
