Alcoholics Anonymous is an international, spiritually oriented community of alcoholics who meet in groups. The primary purpose of A.A. members is to stay sober and help other alcoholics do the same. A.A. formed the original twelve-step program and has been the source and model for all similar recovery groups such as Gamblers Anonymous, Emotions Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Sexaholics Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous, and Al-Anon/Alateen, among others.

Until the mid-1930s, alcoholics who did not have the financial means to hire a psychiatrist or admit themselves to a private sanitarium could find help only at state hospitals, in jails, or through street ministriesEncarta Encyclopedia. The founding of Alcoholics Anonymous marked the first approach to supporting the sustained recovery of the alcoholic, regardless of their financial standing.

A.A. teaches that to recover an alcoholic should abstain completely from alcohol.The A.A. Fact File, 'The Recovery Program'

Another aspect of Alcoholics Anonymous is that it is exclusively run by alcoholics (aside from 7 out of 21 members of the A.A. Board of trustees who are listed as “nonalcoholic friends of the fellowship”The A.A. Fact File, 'The Structure of A.A.'). A.A. believes that the relative success of their program is owed to their opinion that a recovering alcoholic has a special ability to bond and provide insight into the necessity of sobriety to the alcoholic. The A.A. Fact Files, 'The Recovery Program'

A.A. literature describes a difference between an "alcoholic" and a "problem drinker", claiming that unlike a ‘problem drinker’ who may drink alcohol but retains the ability to stop or moderate his or her drinking, an alcoholic has an incurable disease rendering them unable to moderate their consumption of alcohol. A.A. states that only the individual him- or herself can determine whether he or she is an alcoholic The A.A. Fact Files, 'The Recovery Program'.

History and development

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A.A. was started by two alcoholics who first met on May 12, 1935. One was Bill Wilson (William Griffith Wilson), a New York speculator; the other was Dr. Bob Smith (Robert Holbrook Smith), a medical doctor and surgeon from Akron, Ohio. In A.A. circles, the former is known as "Bill W." and the latter, "Dr. Bob."

Wilson had been sober since December 11th, 1934 (six months) when he met Smith, although he had struggled with sobriety for years. In that time he had made several important discoveries about his own alcoholism.

First he had learned from a New York doctor, William Duncan Silkworth, that alcoholism was not simply a moral weakness. Silkworth told Wilson that, in his view, alcoholism was akin to an allergy, in the sense that it produced abnormal reactions to alcohol that were not observed in non-alcoholic drinkers. A "phenomenon of craving" -- with the first drink the alcoholic finds it very difficult to stop. In addition, Dr. Silkworth theorized that alcoholics had a mental obsession that gave them reasons to return to alcohol after periods of sobriety, even knowing that they would then develop overwhelming cravings. This "double whammy" (as he called it) meant that the alcoholic could not stop once started, and could not stop from starting again. This explained the enormous recidivism rate of alcoholics. In talks with Wilson during his hospitalization at Towns Hospital, Dr. Silkworth had made plain his view that the "Great Physician" could heal Wilson--something that prompted Wilson on his final visit to say, "If there is a Great Physician, I believe I'll call on him for help." See the accounts in Hazelden's biography of Silkworth and Norman Vincent Peale's The Postive Power of Jesus Christ.

Wilson also discovered that some alcoholics were able to recover on a spiritual basis. This approach had been used by one of Wilson's old drinking buddies, Ebby Thacher, to get sober. Thacher had learned about the spiritual approach from Rowland H., an American business executive and alcoholic who had undergone treatment with the famous Swiss analytical psychologist Dr. Carl Jung. After a prolonged and unsuccessful period of therapy, Jung told Rowland that his case, like that of most alcoholics, was nigh on hopeless. Rowland was horrified and begged Jung to tell him anything that might help. Jung replied there was only one hope: a genuine spiritual conversion experience. History, he said, had recorded isolated examples of recovery from alcoholism that appeared solely attributable to the spiritual conversion of the alcoholic. He told Rowland to seek out a conversion experience.

Rowland H. returned to America, became a member of A First Century Christian Fellowship (known as the Oxford Group). Rowland mastered their life-changing techniques and overcame alcoholism. The group was a self-styled first-Century Christian movement founded by Dr. Frank N. D. Buchman about 1919. It advocated finding God through moral inventory, confession of defects, restitution, reliance upon God, and helping others. It appeared, from the successes of several alcoholics in the Oxford Group that a conversion experience (which they chose to call a spiritual experience) would relieve alcoholics of the mental obsession that kept sending them back to alcoholism after periods of sobriety. Note that Wilson later (Alcoholics Anonymous comes of age, New York: Harper; 1957, p. 39) credited A.A.'s ideas of self examination, acknowledgement of character defects, restitution for harm done, and working with others, to the teachings of Wilson's friend, Rev. Samuel Moor Shoemaker and the Oxford Group. Later in an article published in A.A.'s Grapevine, Wilson said that every idea in Steps Three through Twelve came directly from Shoemaker's teaching. See Dick B., New Light on Alcoholism.

Following one of Wilson's relapses, he returned to the hospital where he was sedated and detoxified. He prayed in bed during his recovery: "If there be a God, will He show himself! The result was instant, electric, beyond description. The place seemed to light up, blinding white. I knew only ecstasy and seemed on a mountain. A great wind blew, enveloping and penetrating me. To me, it was not of air, but of Spirit. Blazing, there came the tremendous thought. 'You are a free man.' Then the ecstasy subsided. I now found myself in a new world of consciousness which was suffused by a Presence. One with the universe, a great peace stole over me." Wilson exclaimed: "So this is the God of the preachers."(Three talks to medical societies by Bill W., co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. New York; Alcoholics Anonymous World Services; 1973, p.10; Bill W. My First Forty Years, Hazelden).

Wilson questioned whether he had a genuine religious experience (see also peak experiences) or was on the verge of madness. Dr. Silkworth advised him that "hopeless alcoholics" sometimes report conversion experiences before being "turned around" toward recovery. He referred Wilson to William James' Varieties of Religious Experience and directed him to Lectures IX and X, dealing with conversion. James states in the first paragraph of Lecture IX, "To be converted, to be regenerated, to receive grace, to experience religion, to gain an assurance, are so many phrases which denote the process, gradual or sudden, by which a self hitherto divided, and consciously wrong, inferior and unhappy, becomes unified and consciously right, superior and happy, in consequence of its firmer hold upon religious realities. This at least is what conversion signifies in general terms, whether or not we believe that a direct divine operation is needed to bring such a moral change about." Lecture VIII, "The Divided Self" also refers to the condition before conversion. In When A.A. Came of Age, Wilson states that Dr. Silkworth "reminded me of Professor William James's observation that truly transforming spiritual experiences are nearly always founded on calamity and collapse."

James' Lectures IX and X discussed the conversion of "Mr. S. H. Hadley, who after his conversion became an active and useful rescuer of drunkards in New York." His footnote 104 states "I have abridged Mr. Hadley's account. For other conversions of drunkards, see his pamphlet, Rescue Mission Work, published at the Old Jerry McAuley Water Street Mission, New York City. A striking collection of cases also appears in the appendix to Professor Leuba's article."

William James cited the works of James H. Leuba and Edwin D. Starbuck frequently. Leuba quoted sections of Autobiography by John B. Gough, who describes his depression as an alcoholic. Leuba also points out that self-surrender is necessary for conversion. He quotes S. H. Hadley and comments "In this record the approach towards complete surrender can be followed step by step. He has laid aside pride enough to respond to the invitation and thereby confess publicly his inability to cease drinking. Old crimes, and that which the settlement of them will require of him, pass before his mind; for a moment he hesitates to accept the attitude towards them which submission to God would demand. His humble prayer for succour, and its effect, indicate that all the resistance of which he is conscious had given away, and that, as he called upon Christ, he threw himself unreservedly at his feet."

Starbuck describes conversion following what A.A. came to refer to as "hitting rock bottom." When "the divine urging has become imperative and irresistible. Here is the critical point, the tragic moment. The subject resorts to evasion of good influences, pointing out the perfection of the present self, the imperfection of others, and anything to preserve the old self intact. It is more often a distress, a deep undefinable feeling of reluctance, which is perhaps a complex of all surface considerations which a thorough break in habits and associations would involve. He continues until complete exhaustion takes away the power of striving; he becomes nothing; his will is broken; he surrenders himself to the higher forces that are trying to claim him; he accepts the higher life as his own."

While there is no evidence that Wilson read the long discussions by James, Starbuck, and Leuba, he could hardly have escaped reading the dramatic tales of Hadley's, McCauley's, and others' conversion at the altar of rescue missions. And, in fact, it was Bill's friend Ebby who had first gone to Calvary Rescue Mission and knelt at the altar, concluding: "I've got religion." Wilson in turn went to Calvary Rescue Mission, listened to the hymns, Bible reading, and testimonials and then went to the altar himself. According to Lois Wilson, her huband there "handed his life to Christ." According to Mrs. Samuel M. Shoemaker, Jr., who told Dick B. she was present, Wilson there "made a decision for Christ." Wilson himself twice wrote in his autobiographical manuscripts: "For sure, I'd been born again;" and wrote a letter stating he too had "got religion."

In keeping with practices in the Salvation Army, the Missions, and the Oxford Group itself, Wilson bought into the slogan: "You have to give it away to keep it." Importantly, Wilson found that his own sobriety seemed to grow stronger when he shared his personal alcoholic experience with other alcoholics. Wilson was on the verge of a relapse on a business trip to Akron. In a hotel lobby, he decided to phone local ministers and ask if they knew of alcoholics he could talk to. Dr. Smith's little group of Oxford Group people and alcoholic families had been praying for Smith's healing. And Wilson's phone call to Henrietta Seiberling caused her to exclaim, "You are manna from heaven." And she introduced Wilson to Smith. Had it not been for Wilson's decision to reach out to a fellow sufferer, AA would not exist today.

These were the ideas that he presented to Smith, who had been struggling with his own chronic drinking addiction. The two struck up a solid friendship. For three months, they studied the Bible, held long discussions, and reviewed Oxford Group ideas. Together they fashioned Akron's pioneer recovery program. Smith's last drink is said to have been June 10, 1935, and that is considered within A.A. to be the date of the founding of A.A. Their first publication in 1939, Alcoholics Anonymous, the first 164 pages , have been a perennial best-seller. The fellowship began to be called "Alcoholics Anonymous" after the publication of this book. Given this start, it is no surprise that A.A. groups and members are frequently called "Friends of Bill W."

The AA Grapevine is the international journal of Alcoholics Anonymous. It is written, edited, illustrated, and read by A.A. members and others interested in the A.A. program of recovery from the disease of alcoholism.

The growth of A.A., especially in its early years, was striking. In 2002, the General Service Office of Alcoholics Anonymous reported more than 100,000 A.A. groups in 150 countries, with a total membership of approximately two million alcoholics.

How the A.A. program works

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Some AAs believe that A.A's success lies in the sense of support its members gain from attending regular meetings. Far more members, as well as A.A's literature, hold that the essence of the program is having a "spiritual awakening" called a spiritual experience through the application of the Twelve Steps. The process of working the Steps is sometimes summed up as "Trust God, clean house, and help others." (See twelve-step program for a list of the steps themselves.)

A.A. members are encouraged to "work the Steps", usually with the guidance of a voluntary sponsor. (A sponsor is a more experienced member who has worked the Steps before) The Steps are designed to help the alcoholic achieve a spiritual, emotional and mental state conducive to lasting sobriety. Many A.A. members believe finding God through the application of the Steps has freed them entirely from the urge to drink alcohol. Whereas staying sober was once difficult and uncertain, these members report that sobriety is now much easier, provided they keep enlarging their spiritual life.

Some members regard attendance at A.A. meetings as important to their sobriety (although there are groups in A.A. made up of loners and members living in remote locations who communicate by mail and internet). Many members who achieved initial sobriety through AA have completed their return to life and no longer participate in meetings, although some members with 20 years or more of sobriety continue to participate.

With the above in mind, a typical individual program of recovery for a newcomer may include:

• Above all, avoiding the first drink.
• Attendance at one or more meetings daily for 90 days or longer. Some people coming into A.A. have attended meetings daily for the first year. (Note: nowhere in A.A. literature is there a reference to frequent attendance at A.A. meetings. This notion may started in the treatment centre industry; graduating patients were advised to attend many A.A. meetings, presumably in an effort to acquire a new peer group of abstinent friends to reinforce the effects of treatment. Within A.A., this is referred to as "staying away from slippery people and slippery places."
• Contact with one's sponsor daily in order to work the steps and to discuss whatever problems one may be having in one's life, problems which may, if not addressed, lead the alcoholic to take the first drink: "One is too many and a thousand [drinks never enough."
• Daily prayer and/or meditation, as suggested by Step 11: "Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood him, praying only for knowledge of his will for us and the power to carry that out."
• Daily attention to Step 10: "Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it."
• Service work, which, for the newcomer, can be as uncomplicated as making coffee at meetings, helping to set up and break down tables and chairs, etc.

It will be noted that the program is to be worked daily Dr. Bob cited the Sermon on the Mount for the phrases "Easy does it" and 'one day at a time.' His wife Anne often spoke of the "one day at a time" idea. See Matthew 6:34. Frequently heard at meetings: "I'm a winner today, no matter what happens, as long as I don't pick up that first drink."

A common feature of A.A. meetings is that members are asked to speak to the group about their experience with alcoholism and recovery. However, there is no requirement to speak. Some members speak every time they are asked; others simply sit and listen in meetings for years before they say anything; some may choose never to speak.

A.A. does not charge membership fees to attend meetings, but instead relies on whatever donations members choose to give to cover basic costs like room rental, coffee, etc. Contributions from members are limited to a maximum annual amount. At the local level, A.A. groups are self-supporting and not a charity. At the national level, A.A. is not self-supporting. About half of its sustenance comes from sales of the literature, mostly written by Wilson, and for which he received royalties. Local groups contribute to the national level. It accepts subsidies, as well, from two non-A.A. sources: literature sales to non-AA entities as well as cash from AA convention sites.

A.A. receives proceeds from sale of its book Alcoholics Anonymous along with other A.A. published books and literature, which are periodically reviewed from a cost standpoint. Revenues from literature sales constitute more than 50% of the income for the General Service Office.

Many A.A. groups use the famous Serenity Prayer and many AA groups in the United States often close their meeting with a prayer from the Bible, The Lord's Prayer.

Beliefs about alcoholism

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In the article Alcoholics Anonymous and the Disease Concept of Alcoholism, noted A.A. historian Ernest Kurtz, PhD.,wrote, "The closest the book Alcoholics Anonymous comes to a definition of alcoholism appears on p.44, at the conclusion of the first paragraph of the 'We Agnostics' chapter, where we are told that alcoholism 'is an illness which only a spiritual experience will conquer'."^*." target="_blank" > During the ensuing question and answer discussion Wilson was asked why he did not use the term disease when he spoke of alcoholism in that speech. He replied,

"We AA's have never called alcoholism a disease because, technically speaking it is not a disease entity. For example there is no such thing as heart disease. Instead there are many separate heart ailments, or combinations of them. It is something like that with alcoholism. Therefore we do not wish to get in wrong with the medical profession by pronouncing alcoholism a disease entity. Therefore we always call it an illness, or a maladay, -- a far safer term for us to use."[http://www.nccatoday.org/conversation.htm

There is no official creed of A.A. belief about alcoholism, since individual members are free to believe whatever they wish based on their own experiences. Even the core twelve step program is presented to members as suggested rather than mandatory. While AA literature states that "our twelve steps are only suggestions", many more traditionally-minded members claim that today's decreased emphasis on "Step Work" has resulted in a drastic decline in AA's success rate. Many others point out that the substitution of idolatrous "gods" in place of the Creator as the source of strength and guidance is largely responsible for the low success rates today. In the early days of AA, say critics of today's meeting-centred brand of Alcoholics Anonymous, the 12 Steps were mandatory and attendance at meetings were optional. They claim that during this time, AA experienced 75-93% success rates of recovery

6. Three Talks to Medical Societies by Bill W., co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous World Service, 1973.