Getting Started in Rational Recovery:
or, How to Make Your Big Plan Final
The Declaration of Personal Independence
(DPI)
Nearly all who come to Rational Recovery have already had
unsuccessful experiences with Alcoholics Anonymous or other
12-step program. Although practically all AA newcomers eventually drop out, and some of them fulfill the grim prediction of AA by destroying themselves and their families, a great many of them, according to AA’s own literature, move on independently and create a new and better life based upon abstinence from alcohol and other drugs. However, AA members are often fearful of independent living due to the intimidating message of the 12-step program:
“To be doomed to an alcoholic death or to life on a spiritual basis are not always easy alternatives to face.” (Bill Wilson, the “Big Book” of Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 44)
This short passage, intended to limit choice between AA and death, can be read two ways, both of which produce feelings of hopelessness and depression. Notice that both alternatives can refer to the antecedent, “doomed.” Although I’m no fan of Freud, this eerie quote from a social reformer who was fully in the grip of his Addictive Voice strongly suggests that he was suffering from the addicto-depressive condition that affects all addicted people, in recovery or not. In other words, Bill Wilson, who suffered from a recovery group disorder, created a system of beliefs that will produce the same results in anyone who takes them seriously.
Lois and
I first observed the harmful
effects of the 12-step program over two decades ago, as Rational Recovery® was becoming known as “the place to call” for the multitudes seeking an alternative to 12-step recovery. Most of the callers disclosed nearly identical experiences during their AA days, Many common problem faced by those who contacted
us. We observed that AA dropouts were afflicted with persistent
self-doubt and "relapse anxiety," specifically related
to their recovery group experience. Others described a variety
of emotional problems that were acquired during their participation
in AA/NA. Many found that they were drinking/using more self-destructively
than before attending AA meetings. We started calling this constellation
of acquired problems recovery group disorder, and
if acquired through professional consultation or counseling, addiction
treatment disorder. A thorough list of these recovery-related
difficulties is posted elsewhere at this website.
Here is one brief email message from a website visitor showing how recovery group disorder can be reversed by asserting one’s individuality, personal responsibility, and independence:
What a great program! It really cleared alot of confusion out of my mind. I feel safe to walk away from A.A. now and never look back. No more fear! George, VA
More
recently, we have noticed that people who consciously reject any
further affiliation with the 12-step program report significant
improvement in their moods, and also find that rejecting AA/NA
facilitates execution and affirmation of the Big Plan. It appears
that one of the 12-step cult's "hooks" is the seemingly
friendly and caring invitation, "If you ever need us, we'll
be here." This family-like parting embrace remains an open
enticement that, "When the going gets tough, and I finally
relapse, I can always go crawling back to Mother Group, and I
will be met with warmth and understanding by others wearing the
team harness of 12-step recovery, lovingly placing the worn leather
back on my shoulders." AA cultists thus use the addiction
as the carrot and relapse anxiety as the stick, to keep people
coming back. It is difficult to imagine a more diabolical scheme.
The
invitation to return to AA is often made to me, even though I
firmly state that I do not like or respect AA, and that I will
never drink again. Rightly or wrongly, I interpret this invitation
as the sender's wish that I return to drinking and suffer because
of it. And, strangely, there is a part of me, fifteen years after
my last drink, that wants to drink and crawl back to AA. Of course,
this is my Beast, poor thing, which yearns to mingle with others
of its kind. I can therefore appreciate the difficulty groupers
experience in their attempts to shake free from the grip of the
group. It is difficult for AVRTers to take full personal responsibility
for their personal conduct, when alcoholic absolution (AA) is
so conveniently at hand in every community. When AA forces itself
by intimidation or the force of law, which is increasingly the
case, it takes considerable courage to set a course based on self-reliance
and moral principle. Toward this end, AVRT now includes straightforward
advice to stay away from recovery groups of all kinds.
A central concept of AVRT
is the Declaration of
Personal Independence, which we recommend for recovery
groupers getting started AVRT-based recovery:
"I will
never, ever, attend another meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous
or any other recovery group organization, nor will I obtain
professional services of any kind, for the purpose of ending
my addiction."
Making this commitment is nothing more nor less than accepting
personal, moral responsibility for your own conduct. That's
all it is, but neverthess usually produces a cringing feeling,
similar to that which accompanies execution of a Big Plan.
This distress signifies the Beast's fundamental attachment
to AA; AA is the embodiment of the Beast, and the DPI vividly
illustrates this fact.
Along with the relapse anxiety caused by
AA's disease concept, however, comes an immediate, simultaneous
sense of liberation, and genuine readiness for permanent
abstinence. As long as the option of more 12-step groups
exists, the Beast will present AA as a big soft mattress
into which one may drunkenly fall, innocent, diseased, forgiven,
and grateful. Thus the promise of AA, "We'll always
be there for you," has the paradoxical effect of making
"relapse" appear more inviting. The DPI sets you
up with total responsibility for abstinence, and
the impact is quite forceful and significant. Don't give
your Beast the option of AA; just let it be homesick and
die of a broken heart.
I suggest you consider
this as you move toward your Big Plan. I am observing excellent
results from emailers, phone callers, and AVRT: The Course participants.
When you go on to the The
Internet Crash Course on AVRT, you may want to come
back here to take care of this little piece of unfinished business.
The idea of mixing AVRT-based recovery with 12-step recovery is bizarre — typical shallow-but-compelling, Addictive Voice. While it is true that all who abstain, even momentarily or one-day-at-a-time, engage a generic version of AVRT®, the idea of combining AVRT® with addiction treatment or recovery group participation is like putting training wheels on a new, Harley Davison motorcycle. AVRT® means freedom and dignity without assistive devices!
The inability to leave AA in spite of feeling hopeless and depressed in 12-step recovery signals a serious recovery group disorder. Many seek substance abuse counseling or psychiatric help for this chronic form of depression, but the key to mental health is clearly a declaration of personal independence along with diligent studies in AVRT-based recovery such as in the subscription area of this website, and ideally including AVRT: The Course.
I hope you are impressed
with the way that AVRT evolves, based on the real-life success
of self-recovered people, rather than upon the ramblings of spiritually
inspired zealots, or the pronouncements of government-funded scientists.
Remember, AVRT® is essentially a summary of universal family values and does not introduce you to psychological nonsense, medical mumbo-jumbo, 12-step occultism, or New Age silliness.
The DPI is offered to you because it is a phenomenon that is commonly
observed among successfully self-recovered people. That is why
AVRT can be called a phenomenological method. AVRT just copies
reality and reflects your own ancestral heritage.
