Alcoholics Anonymous

Northeast Texas Area District 54

Who are we????

Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of men
and women who share their experience, strength, and hope with each other that they my solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism.

The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. There are no dues or fees for A.A. membership; we are self-supporting through our own contributions. A.A. is not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization or institution; does not wish to engage in any controversy; neither endorses nor opposes any causes.

Our primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics to achieve sobriety.

What Does A.A. Do?

(How does it work?)
A.A. members share their experience with anyone seeking help with a drinking problem; they give person-to-person service or "sponsorship" to the alcoholic coming to A.A. from any source. The A.A. program, set forth in our Twelve Steps, offers the alcoholic a way to develop a satisfying life without alcohol. This program is discussed at A.A. group meetings Importance of a Higher Power No new ideas - Surrender, self-inventory, admission, restitution, prayer, service

The 12 Steps
1. We admitted we were powerless over alcoholthat 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.

A.A. Meetings
Open vs. Closed Meetings Discussion Meetings Speaker Meetings Step Meetings Big Book Meetings

Correctional or Treatment Facilities Meetings Informational Meetings

A.A.s Spirit of Service

A.A. members help others in order to help themselves. From Page 89 of the Big Book, the basic text of Alcoholics Anonymous: Practical experience shows that nothing will so much insure immunity from drinking as intensive work with other alcoholics. It works when other activities fail

What does A.A. NOT do?

Recruit Check up on its members Promote any religious viewpoint Label or diagnose anyone as alcoholic

Provide medical advice or services

Affiliate with other organizations Accept money from outside sources

Reveal individual identities at the level of press, radio, films, or TV (or the Internet)
Provide letters of reference, or provide proof of attendance at AA meetings (though individual members might)

Singleness of Purpose
A.A. offers help to alcoholics

Focus on alcoholism
Anyone meetings may

recovery
attend

from
open

Only those with a drinking problem may attend closed meetings or become A.A. members The A.A. message offered is freely

AA Unity: Who runs A.A.?

AA Groups & Their Members Local District Committees

Area Assemblies
National Conference GSO

AA Cooperation,
(But Not Affiliation)

How Do A.A. members and Professionals Interact?

Referrals from professionals can save lives A.A. members in your community can help and provide a support network for your employees with drinking problems

AA Cooperation,
(But Not Affiliation)

Proof of Attendance at A.A. Meetings

Signing slips it is up to each A.A. member or chairperson whether to sign Professional familiar with A.A. counsels employee A.A. groups and members are not allied with any program and are not bound by the signature

Cooperation with the Professional Community (C.P.C)

Local A.A. members form C.P.C. committees
Contact local professionals

Provide A.A. literature

Offer presentations to professionals on history of A.A., Twelve Steps, what A.A. does and does not do, etc. Exhibit at health fairs professional conferences and

How to Find and Benefit from A.A.

Maintain contact with C.P.C. committee chair Use a local intergroup or central office for A.A. meeting information Attend an open A.A. meeting Read A.A. literature Subscribe to About A.A. newsletter Contact the General Service Office to get connected with a local A.A. committee

 Thank you