Study the Big Book


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Step One

Step One “We admitted we were powerless over alcohol [or other drugs]—that our lives had become unmanageable.” Keep in mind that we don’t just work the Steps once and then never return to them. Recovery is about continuously working the Steps. Each time you work a Step, you can gain more from it because of this new perspective. Step One asks us to admit powerlessness, which means acknowledging that we can’t stop at just one drink or hit. Others who use drugs or drink alcohol can stop if they get sick or it interferes with their family or work life. But those of us who have a substance use disorder can’t stop using even when we are faced with losing everything: our job, our family, our friends, our life. This is because we can’t control the addicted way our mind and body reacts to alcohol and other drugs. Once we understand that addiction is a disease, we’re no longer baffled by why we’re using. We can let go of shame and guilt and start to work toward our recovery. When we admit powerl...
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step one

When we admit our powerlessness and the inability to manage our own lives, we open the door to recovery. No one could convince us that we were addicts. It is an admission that we had to make for ourselves. When some of us have doubts, we ask ourselves this question: "Can I control my use of any form of mind or mood-altering chemicals?" Most will see that control is impossible the moment it is suggested. Whatever the outcome, we find that we cannot control our using for any length of time. This would clearly suggest that an addict has no control over drugs. Powerlessness means using against our will. If we can't stop, how can we tell ourselves we are in control? The inability to stop using, even with the greatest willpower and the most sincere desire, is what we mean when we say, "We have absolutely no choice".  Narcotics Anonymous Basic Text, Chapter 4/Step 1  Admitting powerlessness is absolutely essential to breaking the addiction cycle, which is made up of fi...
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Lies

You cannot weave truth in a loom of lies. —Suzette Haden Elgin Before you admitted you were powerless, you may have created a false reality that enabled you to see yourself as you wanted to be and validated the lies you fabricated. The worse your addiction became, the more lies you may have told and the more you repressed the truth—until eventually the lies became the truth. Honesty is not simply the absence of lying, but the commitment to truthfulness. The program teaches you the difference between being honest and being rigorously honest. Admitting you are powerless over your addiction is being honest. But rigorous honesty means living each day with total awareness of what is true and what is untrue, and speaking always to the truth, no matter how painful. As you go to meetings, be inspired by the honesty of others. As you work with your sponsor, learn how to view your past actions and behaviors with an objective eye. As you read and reflect upon the teachings of the Big Book, gain a...
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