Proof of Concept: Twelve Steps

I've been sitting on this one for a while. About a year and a half to be precise. Mainly because I knew this was going to be difficult to write and I kept putting it off. But I do feel this is important to have. Plus, this is the "year of will" for me and I'm trying to catch up on things I've been putting off but know that I want to do. So here goes...

If you haven't read the short story yet, you can do so at the above link. Or, even better, you can read the more refined version that made it into my book.

Up to this point, the proof of concept pieces I added were more for fun. The underlying point that society will try to deny its pitfalls or that politics can be superficial are fairly obvious. I have a feeling people would have believed me, even if I didn't have an example ready to go.

Pictured: I needed an image to spice things up. Pretend this is super relevant.

This proof of concept, however, I felt that I had to write. The story in question takes aim at a specific program that many have a personal attachment to.

For the uninitiated, the twelve steps are the backbone of many addiction groups, most famously from Alcoholics Anonymous or AA. It's been in use since the 1930s and (though we will get to efficacy later) many believe in it. Indeed, our justice system believes in this system so much, they will require certain defendants to attend twelve steps meetings. The steps outline what a newcomer should do to overcome their addiction (with the support of the group). There are many versions of the steps, but I will be using the steps as currently displayed on AA's official website.

Pictured: The full list, in case you wanted it.

For my critique of step one, I don't touch the second half because that's a different standard I don't have an issue with.

I'd like to start by reiterating a point from the story. If a twelve step system has helped you overcome any kind of addiction and you are okay with the ramifications of the system, that's great. I truly mean that. The story should not be seen as a critique of your journey and I wish you the best of luck with your struggle. I'd be lying if I said I hope you are not disillusioned with the system (that's the point I'm trying to make) but I hope that you can see/appreciate that distinction.

So here we go! Disclosing my personal relationship with the twelve steps (even though anonymity is promised).

While I first knew about the program second-hand via entertainment, my first real experience was in my teens when I was interning at a courthouse with one of the judges there. While I assisted with various things, including the establishment of a Veteran's Treatment Court, my primary duties were to observe and learn.

I was truly surprised how often twelve step groups came up. To the degree I thought they were sponsored by the government in some way (they aren't). But that was where I learned that not all participants in the group are there because they want to be there. At the time, I was squeaky clean as far as alcohol and substances were concerned. But I still felt strange that the government was forcing this upon defendants as part of their plea deals or sentences.

Going into the end of college (and my turning 21), my relationship with alcohol (specifically) changed dramatically. I no longer had the same apprehensions that I once did and began to have the occasional drink. Then law school happened.

Alcohol is baked into the fabric of the legal profession and law school is no exception. Nearly every school sponsored event had an open bar of some kind. I started to drink quite heavily at these events. It also didn't help that I liked to have a full bar at home for entertaining guests, which I also began to utilize for personal consumption. Upon graduating law school, I then started at a large law firm that similarly had an omnipresence of alcohol. As the stresses of Biglaw mounted, I found myself drinking to get drunk almost every night.

Pictured: A bottle or two of wine per night is a rough habit.

I had a problem. A very real one. And learning to distance myself from alcohol was a journey in and of itself. Heck, it's an ongoing one (as I'm writing this, I'm in the midst of a self-imposed three-month dry period as I take the Words of Wisdom as more than just guiding principles). But through it all, I didn't attend an AA meeting for the reasons I set out in the story we are discussing today. Had the underlying philosophy been more palatable, it could have been a useful resource. And that's why I felt my critique could not sit in silence.

Alcohol itself was not the problem. I was never powerless over alcohol. I was making the choice to drink too much as part of the one of the world's oldest and worst coping mechanisms. And by attuning my will to drink less, I did so.

Anyone can do the same. To suggest otherwise is to deny something fundamental about humanity. Sometimes we need help from others who have been in that situation (and there's nothing wrong with that). But denying our will and handing it over to the substance itself? That's a recipe for... well, I think I've made my thoughts on that quite clear.

If you want more shortcomings of the efficacy of the system, they are quite easy to find. It's similarly easy to find studies that tout the twelve steps as useful and effective. But, I'll leave you with a question. If you can blame any recidivism on the individual but have the organization take credit for any successes, is the system actually any good?