Because recovery is a lifelong process, there is no wrong way to approach the 12 Steps as the participant tries to figure out what works best for their individual needs. In fact, most participants find that as they grow in their recovery they will need to revisit some steps or even tackle more than one-step at a time. Steps 1, 2, and 3 are considered the foundation of a 12-Step program and are recommended to practice daily.
AA’s 12-Step approach follows a set of guidelines designed
as “steps” toward recovery, and members can revisit these steps at any time.
The 12 Steps are:
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 inventory 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 contact 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 alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.