12 Step Program Analysis

An addiction is a harmful relationship with drugs, alcohol, things or activities that brings about negative consequences by over use. People over use this relationship as a form of relaxation, reward or escape and overtime become dependent on these harmful relationships. Extensive research has gone into developing a program to help individuals overcome these harmful relationships. Alcoholics Anonymous has developed a 12- Step Program, which is a model that has been proven to benefit the community in helping to resolve addictions. The 12 step program helps to combat different type of addictions, although minor changes are made to deal with specific additions it is a very successful program. In Saint Petersburg Florida and program called

The majority of research that exists on 12-step programs often focus on determining the success rate of 12-step programs such as AA. There is little to no research on problems associated with 12-step programs or problematic areas of 12-step programs. The little research that does exist argue that 12-step programs are not structured for comorbid individual, they may not be the best option for mild substance use disorder, and the central theme of powerlessness can conflict with a therapist’s theoretical orientation and be harmful to the therapeutic alliance. (Kelly & Myers, 2007, Laudet et al., 2004, L, Ingvarson, Richard, 1995). The National Institute of Mental Health (2013) has found that 43.6 million adults aged 18 and older have at least one mental illness and 45 percent of individuals with one mental disorder met criteria for two or more disorders. The presence of comorbid disorders can severely affect the treatment and outcome of individuals (Terra et al., 2006). Many studies have found that clients with a dual diagnosis experience increased rates of hospitalization and increased use of emergency services (Helzer & Pryzbeck, 1998). It is easy to imagine how hospitalization can interrupt treatment by making it difficulty for individuals to attend.

6. Individual and/or group counseling and other behavioral therapies are critical components of effective treatment for addiction - This is an essential part of helping patients develop the life skills necessary for relapse prevention.

My current career objective is to work in the field of addictions and I hope to work directly with individuals seeking substance abuse treatment. Although it has recently been announced that addiction is a brain disorder rather than a behavioral issue, there is still argument that drug use is a choice and not a disease. I want to contribute to the substance abuse population because I feel the stigma that surrounds recovering addicts does not accurately portray the strength and positivity that comes from the recovery process. I want to be a part of empowering these individuals to put the pieces of their life back together.

There are many programs dealing with changing addictive behavior. Addiction is a huge problem in the world today and has grown throughout the years. Addiction can be attributed to substance abuse, drugs and alcohol, but can also be some sort of behavior addiction. There have been many programs that have been formed to help people with varying sorts of addictions. When I looked up programs in my area, for example, I was very surprised of the number of differing programs and varying dates and times that they were offered as well as the number of them. There were all different days with morning, afternoon, and evening times for them. I was very surprised that

This experience has given me more insight about addiction and recovery. I have more respect for individuals in recovery, individuals seeking treatment, and professional providing treatment to the addiction population. Even though I believe my addiction/habit is significantly less severe than addiction to drugs and/or drug, I feel this project has given me a personal perspective on attempting a behavior change. I can share feelings and understand a client’s perspective. The behavior I chose does not relate directly to substance and drug abuse, some people consider behaviors such as these behavioral addictions. This experience not only has help me better serve people addicted to drugs and alcohol but other addictions such as sex addiction, work addictions, and gambling. I will have more patience with individuals striving to change or stop a behavior because I see how hard it was for me to abstain from a simple

Addiction is something most people are not able to solve on their own. No matter how much they try, no matter how strongly they desire it, most people simply fail repeatedly when they go it alone. This is why a good drug treatment program is so important: It can provide the necessary support to actually succeed.

Twelve Step programs have been helping people for more than seventy years ("Twelve Step History," 2011). The durability of the program proves its efficacy in addressing the underlying problems and symptoms of addiction. Although the Twelve Step program began with Alcoholics Anonymous, the system has expanded to include and embrace all other addictions from overeating to gambling. Narcotics Anonymous is the Twelve Step group for persons who have an addiction to drugs. It started in the 1940s as a response to the growing number of chemically addicted persons who did not have a comorbid addiction to alcohol ("Narcotics Anonymous," 2012). According to Peyrot (1985), Narcotics Anonymous is the oldest and largest self-help group for substance abusers. The program exists worldwide, and serves a diverse population. One of the key reasons why Narcotics Anonymous should be included in any treatment repertoire is that the group serves multiple functions, serving as "underground social movement and major treatment modality for drug abusers," (Pevrot, 1985, p. 1509).

As one takes on the task of working with those who have an addiction problem we come to the realization that it is multi-dimensional and affects them in various aspects of their lives. The individual can be affected in a physical, emotional and spiritual ways. This aspect is called the Tri-Fold Model or some call it the Biopsychosocial approach. By using this approach, the professional will take into account all different aspects of the addiction and how it is affecting the client. A complete recovery must encompass every facet of life, because each and every aspect of life is deeply affected by addiction (Journey Malibu website, 2016, para. 1).

In the article “What Can I Say to Make You to Stop?” written by Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation writes about how a friend/family member can do to help their loved one find help with addiction. It also gives advice regarding how to help them. When I was going through my addiction days this sort of information would have helped my family immensely. It’s hard to have someone you care about have an addiction and not know what to do, or how to help. So, I will be discussing on how the main points the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation talk about in their article could really help others, with friends/family members that have an addiction problem.

Before taking this course and reading the material I was shockingly and embarrassingly unaware that defined theories existed to explain addiction. I knew from job practice, that people contributed addiction to a multitude of causes ranging from habit, personal choice, trauma, sickness, and so forth. Yet, unaware of the developed theories that explained a perspective towards addiction with outlined causes and treatments to follow in practice. Reading this material gave an educational base to my experiential knowledge. I was now able to review my past experience and see that practitioners that had serviced my clients may have had perceived notions of how to practice with individuals who had addictions according to a theory.

The Twelve Step programme, first formulated by Alcoholics Anonymous but now widely applied to other addictions, is the essential long-term treatment. It helps to maintain abstinence and peace of mind in spite of unsolved problems. It leads towards happy and mutually fulfilling relationships, creativity, spontaneity and enthusiasm. These are the building blocks of a good life. Trying to achieve those beautiful end results without the discipline of a daily Twelve Step programme would be as shaky as building a house on quicksand or a bog.

life of regret. Most people never regret the risks they take in life, but they often regret the risks they

These types of programs have proven to be particularly effective with patients seeking drug rehab. They involve counseling sessions that teach the patients how to control consumption and abuse of drugs. These sessions are either with groups of

In this article, the authors examined factors that might predict attendance and participation in 12-step programs. Participants were recruited for intensive outpatient treatment upon admitting into community treatment programs. After the baseline assessment, participants were randomly enrolled to treatment as usual (TAU) with (Stimulant Abuser Groups to Engage in 12-Step Programs) Stage-12 or TAU alone. Participated were took the assessment at baseline, week 4(mid treatment), week 8 (end-of-treatment), 3 and 6 month after the treatment. The four variables of outcome assessment were speaking, attending, duties at 12 step meetings, other peer recovery support groups. They found baseline measures of perceived benefit of 12 step groups predicted