What is Al-Anon and Alateen?
Al-AnonA group designed for friends and family of alcoholics. Using the 12-step program as adapted to this purpose, it helps affected individuals deal with the consequences of addiction while supporting the addict in their lives./Alateen is a 12-step program that was created to help individuals cope with family alcoholism. Whether it is for their friends or family, these fellowships are a place for those who may not suffer from a drinking problem but want to find answers because they are friends with or family members of someone who does. Like other 12-step programs, the fellowships of Al-Anon and AlateenA group established in order to assist younger friends and families of alcoholics deal with the consequences of addiction. It is designed to help youngsters love the addict in their lives without supporting the drinking habit and to remind them that they are not to blame for the situation. provide 12 steps and 12 traditions for both groups, while following the same 12-step programA 12 step program includes 12 steps of recovery to help those struggling with substance addictions or behavioral addictions. The 12 steps are also used in programs dedicated to helping loved ones of addicts. 12 step programs include 12 step meetings where members go to share their experience strengt... format.
When Al-Anon and Alateen Began
Al-Anon began in 1951 and was started by Lois W., wife of Bill W., and Anne B., wife of Dr. Bob. Bill and Dr. Bob were the founders of the 12-step program Alcoholics Anonymous. These women and many other wives of the original Alcoholics AnonymousThe original 12-step fellowship, formed in 1935, to help alcoholics, regain control over their lives. It remains the largest 12-step organization and has contributed to the sobriety of millions worldwide. Read more about Alcoholics Anonymous groups began meeting while their husbands met for meetings and started discussing some of their own experiences together, finding that discussing with one another helped them as much as the Alcoholics Anonymous meetings helped their husbands.
They met independently for many years before finally deciding that an official program should be formed for the group, and after asking for the approval of the group name from Alcoholics Anonymous, Al-Anon was born. Shortly after Al-Anon was made official, in 1957, Alateen was formed. The group came about when several teenagers began attending meetings because they too had experience with family alcoholism and were looking for others in a similar situation.
Who Al-Anon and Alateen is For
Because alcoholism is a family diseaseSome refer to addiction as a disease, comparing it to physical ailments. There are similarities, as both have a detrimental influence on body and soul and are treatable through medical means., the programThis refers to any official course of treatment for addiction. This could be anything from in-patient facilities, to 12-step programs to harm-reduction programs. is open to anyone who is suffering in silence because of an alcoholicAn individual with an unhealthy dependence on alcohol. From the perspective of AA, it is an individual who has lost control over their life due to an inability to stop drinking. in their life. Whether it is a family memberAn individual who attends 12-step program meetings and has the desire to overcome addiction., friend or spouse, Al-Anon offers a place for these individuals to meet and share their stories. Alateen is for children or young adults who also share these experiences and have dealt with family alcoholism, but it allows them to meet with people in their age group so that they can share stories as well.
When dealing with an alcoholic, individuals tend to do many things to try and control the drinking, as well as place blame, guilt and shameFeelings of shame and inadequacy often contribute both to the onset of addiction and its continuation. Addicts also often commit immoral acts, leading to further shame. This leads to a destructive shame-addiction cycle. Breaking the cycle is one of the keys to recovery. on themselves. Although not alcoholics themselves, members of Al-Anon and Alateen suffer and can sometimes get involved in the same behaviors as the alcoholic. These programs are in place to help members find happiness and solutions to some of their problems.
The relationship to the alcoholic is not what’s important in these meetings. The only requirement for membership to an Al-Anon or Alateen group is that there is a problem with a friend or family member’s drinking, as stated in their third tradition. Because there are no dues or membership fees for members of both Al-Anon and Alateen, everyone is welcome.
How Al-Anon and Alateen Works
Dealing with an alcoholic who is active in their addiction can be hard for anybody, but for members of Al-Anon and Alateen, it is affecting their lives significantly. Both programs work for their members because they each focus on learning to find happiness, even if the alcoholic they are dealing with doesn’t think they have a problem or knows they have a problem but are still drinking. Meetings allow members to share how they are feeling, how they have been affected and even what continues to frustrate them while living or dealing with an alcoholic.
The fellowshipThis refers to the members of AA and the bonds of support between them. It is this fellowship that allows addicts to share their stories and accept each other in a world that is not always understanding. also provides individuals, especially newcomers, with the understanding of the illness of alcohol addiction. Instead of trying to change the alcoholic, Al-Anon and Alateen focus on the individual improving their own quality of life and how they can play a more positive role in the life of the alcoholic. Some research has even shown that alcoholics in recoveryThe process by which addicts attempt to break the hold a certain substance or behavior has on their lives. This can refer to participation in a wide variety of methods. What they all have in common, is a sense that life is improving and the addict is regaining control. may be more successful if their family members or friends are in programs like Al-Anon or Alateen.
Handling the disease of alcoholism can be painful and difficult for those affected, but it is possible to live a better life by working the 12 steps of the program and building a support system with similar individuals. The 12 steps of both programs are the same as Alcoholics Anonymous except for the twelfth step.
Why Al-Anon and Alateen is Effective
Al-Anon and Alateen are effective for many members of the fellowships because it gives individuals a place to share their feelings and discuss their experiences with alcoholism to others who have been there or may understand. For some of these members, discussing these problems with people who can’t relate was a problem and keeping it a secret was only harmful to themselves. Finding a place to meet with others who share similar stories provides members the assurance that they are not alone and there is hope for the family member or friend of an alcoholic.
While every situation may be individual to each member, they are all similar in the fact that someone else’s drinking was creating a problem in their lives and making their lives unmanageable. Whether or not they are dealing with an alcoholic who knows he or she has a problem, the fellowship focuses on ways to improve their quality of life and tries to offer solutions to help them live happily and healthily. Sharing12-step meetings are structured so that member sharing takes up most of the allotted time. It is the bread and butter of the fellowship between members. When sharing, addicts are encouraged to stay on topic and avoid interrupting by engaging in crosstalk. personal stories of experiences and strengths can give other members hope and show them that the program does work.
12 steps of Al-Anon/Alateen
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 inventoryStep 4 recommends the addict conduct “a searching and fearless moral inventory.” This involves coming to terms with the flaws which preceded addiction and those that came as a result of it. 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 contactBuilding a relationship with a Higher Power is a crucial element in recovery. This involves conscious contact with a Higher Power through prayer and meditation regularly. 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 others, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.
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12 Traditions of Al-Anon/Alateen
1. Our common welfare should come first; personal progress for the greatest number depends upon unity.
2. For our group purpose there is but one authority—a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants—they do not govern.
3. The relatives of alcoholics, when gathered together for mutual aid, may call themselves an Al-Anon Family Group, provided that, as a group, they have no other affiliation. The only requirement for membership is that there be a problem of alcoholism in a relative or friend.
4. Each group should be autonomous, except in matters affecting another group or Al-Anon or AA as a whole.
5. Each Al-Anon Family Group has but one purpose: to help families of alcoholics. We do this by practicing the Twelve StepsThe term "12 steps" refers to the core principles of the approach to addiction exemplified by Alcoholics Anonymous and other similar groups. The 12 steps are a set of guidelines designed to help individuals overcome addiction and rebuild their lives. They were created by the founders of Alcoholics A... of AA ourselves, by encouraging and understanding our alcoholic relatives, and by welcoming and giving comfort to families of alcoholics.
6. Our Family Groups ought never endorse, finance or lend our name to any outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property and prestige divert us from our primary spiritual aim. Although a separate entity, we should always co-operate with Alcoholics Anonymous.
7. Every group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions.
8. Al-Anon Twelfth Step work should remain forever non-professional, but our serviceAA and other 12-step fellowships do not normally have employees. Instead, members volunteer and take roles necessary for the operation of the different groups and the larger infrastructure of the fellowship. Common roles of service include secretary, treasurer, and chairing meetings. centers may employ special workers.
9. Our groups, as such, ought never be organized; but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve.
10. The Al-Anon Family Groups have no opinion on outside issues; hence our name ought never be drawn into public controversy.
11. Our public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion; we need always maintain personal anonymityAlcoholics Anonymous and all the 12 step groups modeled after it, protect the anonymity of its members. Members are forbidden from disclosing the identity of other addicts to outside sources or identifying themselves with the group on any form of public media. The idea behind this is to focus on the... at the level of press, radio, films, and TV. We need guard with special care the anonymity of all AA members.
12. Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our Traditions, ever reminding us to place principles above personalities.
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