Comments for Twelve Step Facilitation.com

Comment on Helping Alcoholics by Sparrow

Sparrow — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 05:20:55 +0000

Hello Allison,
So sad to hear about your friends alcoholism.
You could try contacting Al-anon. A support group for family and friends of alcoholics. Al-anon members discuss how to cope with alcoholic behaviour not how to change them. To contact Al-anon look in your local phone book or at http://www.al-anon.org/meetings/international.html
I suggest you attend several meetings and talk to several people your own age and situation.
Regards
Sparrow

Comment on Helping Alcoholics by Alison

Alison — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 06:22:23 +0000

Good Day,
I am enquiring for a friend who has a girl friend who is a fully fledged alcoholic.
He has requested my help as I have the means to sought out the help he needs to help her, Jacque is scared that he will come from work one day only to find Michelle “dead” as she drinks all day everyday, this to the extreme that she sells the groceries and household goods to get money for drink. This is affecting him as he does not want to buy any foods for the house due to her selling it and household goods he is not replacing. She borrows money from people who knock on his door at month-end requesting their money back. She does not look after herself anymore ie: bath, clean the house or even give him a decent meal due to her illness.
She has been in a facility called Stepping Stones years ago, her parents put her there when she had a baby, but to no avail she jumped the fence and ran away. Her family has disowened her completely and they are nowhere to be found. Her son was taken away by the father and he raises him.
Jacque has found her wondering the street for alcohol and is also scared she will be raped and would not even know what has happened, she helucinates about being pregnant and so forth.
Please could you help us help her as she is in her mid thirtys, we lost another friend November last year who also drank herself to death. He is willing to pay for a rehab place but does have to work on a budget.
Could you help or recommend advice on what to do, as trying to help her at home will not work we have tried.
Thanking you kindly
Alison

Comment on Stress Affects Relapse by easiersofterway

easiersofterway — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 16:22:39 +0000

Thanks for the post! Makes perfect sense! I have definitely experienced that in order to stay sober, I must find a more peaceful way through reality, and to deal with stress more healthily.

Comment on AA v Professional Treatment by andrew park

andrew park — Wed, 12 Sep 2012 03:56:47 +0000

AA is not “treatment”. The term “12 step programs” is referring to rehabs (90%) who use the steps as treatment philosophy. Essentially Bill W.’s worst nightmare.
Thanks for receiving my comments, Andrew Park LCSW

Comment on Counseling and the 12 Steps of AA by Sparrow

Sparrow — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 18:59:19 +0000

Nothing is denied in TSF.

Comment on Counseling and the 12 Steps of AA by andrew park

andrew park — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 12:34:50 +0000

Please, address why “informed consent” and the “right to choose” are denied in TSF?

Comment on 12Step Programs Offer Broad Benefits by Michael aka SantaC

Michael aka SantaC — Sun, 13 May 2012 06:24:57 +0000

God I am really disappointed when someone calls AA a Selfhelp Program when it really is a God Help program. If one were to study the Big Book and not just read it; it states the God is the source of our recovery and that is what this book is all about. Turning oneself over to the care of God is what it all about. If it were a self help program I wouldn’t need anyone else to help me to make this connection and to clean up the wreckage of my past and to show me how to do God’s will not mine. Maybe that is why Tx facilities have such high failure rates. It is just a thought… of course there is the money facture too. ho ho ho SantaC 11/22/1976

Comment on AA and Spirituality by William

William — Wed, 09 May 2012 11:14:33 +0000

I think that all the God talk in AA is not appealing to Atheists and Agnostics. What I think is a far bigger problem is the tone of AA Ideology toward secular people. The source of this negative Ideology comes from the dated literature used in AA meetings.

Comment on Counseling and the 12 Steps of AA by andtre park

andtre park — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 04:06:37 +0000

Chris, thank you for a necessary history lesson of the origin of our field. First I am a member of the “bill w. ” club. I also was clinical director in NYC of the largest comprehensive hospital treatment program ending in 2009, I still have a practice that focus’ on addiction and for the last 18 years I manage the National Football Leagues, drug program for the 9 teams in the Northeast.
AA is not treatment it is self help used as a support for the professional treatment process. This is where I differ sharply, can recovering counselors tell the difference between their own personal recovery values and the ethical requirements of the job? Obviously for the most part 12 steps has become a counseling philosophy and the patients’ care I’m sure you agree is our ever primary concern. The job of the professional program and staff is to make sure they have provided “informed consent’ so we can ensure the patient knows he has a “right choose which self help groups to attend. We must be honest with ourselves with what the “right thing” ethically is when referring to after care for discharge planning that needs to use Self-Help group support. The problems is that 92% of the treatment system is asleep as the further damage of 12 step “blindness grows; as in 12 step facilitation groups. Answer this; why isn’t it called; SELF HELP FACILITATION GROUP? We already know how the higher courts in over 16 sates have ruled on mandated `12 step attendance in inpatient programs; they all were very consistent with the “religious” overtones that became a violation of Constitutional rights, unless a “lay” alternative is available, so the patents’ right to choose is protected. My point is that in my practice I made sure I knew about ALL the groups like SOS, Women for Sobriety, SMART RECOVERY(GREAT WEBSITE FOR “HOW TO” RECOVERY LISTS), THE ONLINE GROUPS; SOBER RECOVERY, AND A MANY MORE. I did what is not yet done by the majority of primary treatment professionals who are supposedly ethical; I called and met with these groups leaders or reps., and learned what they have to offer, when meetings were available, include them in the schedule and obtain plenty of literature and surf GOOGLE to discover the vast numbers of recovery sites and orgs. who are so easy to access. This new part of the recovery subculture didn’t exist until until last 15 years. To finish what counselors should know etc., I attended the other group meetings and prepared my own handout so it would stand a better chance of patients’ utilizing it if it was pre-organized, In my office I have books, handouts, literature, CD’s, DVD’s about all the groups. I tell them what they are about and I ask one thing and it is part of a quote by Spencer in the latter end of the Big Book; paraphrase–”do not judge prior to investigation.” I will sometimes accompany the rare person who needs that as I do field sessions anyway.

So Chris, I hope you get my point, we need to know ALL groups so we can educate and encourage them to choose. My issues is not with AA at all, it is with the professional programs who continue to take advantage of the early circumstances of needing AA members, and just openly using the steps professionally. Bill is turning over in his grave, his biggest fear for the future was not “remaining forever non professional.

Keep up the good fight, respectfully,

Andrew Park LCSW-ATOD, MAC, DAPA.

Comment on Principles of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Treatment by Bjorn Button

Bjorn Button — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 20:36:15 +0000

Thank you for the information. It is hard to see someone struggle with Alcohol addiction. What do think are the best methods for long term addiction treatment