Recovery from Addiction: How Should I Feel After I Work the Twelve Steps?

Whether you are curious about the process of a loved one’s recovery from addiction or your own, it can help to educate yourself on the recovery process. The Twelve Steps of Fellowships like Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous can help alcoholics and addicts work on themselves so that they can take a look at the root cause of their behaviors in order to achieve and maintain sobriety.

What Are the Twelve Steps?

The Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous:

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 a 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.

The Twelve Steps of Narcotics Anonymous:

1. We admitted that we were powerless over our addiction, that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. We came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
3. We made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God, as we understood Him.
4. We made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
5. We admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
6. We were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
7. We humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
8. We made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
9. We made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
10. We continued to take personal inventory, and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
11. We 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 a result of those steps, we tried to carry this message to addicts and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

Understanding Twelve Step Programs

Twelve Step Fellowship Programs, like AA or NA, are free treatment programs that alcoholics and addicts are welcomed to. The programs help alcoholics and addicts work on their recovery from addiction to alcohol and drugs, respectively. The first 12 Step Program was Alcoholics Anonymous, which was founded in 1935. Afterward, dozens of variations of 12 Step Programs followed. The setup is similar in that the program is to be worked with a sponsor, who is someone that has already completed their steps, and that the meetings are run by recovering alcoholics or addicts, depending on the type of fellowship. These 12 Step Programs have been helping alcoholics and addicts recover from their addictions for several decades and almost all addiction treatment centers are 12 Step-based today.

But how should you feel after working all of the 12 steps? For some people in recovery, completing the twelve steps may leave them feeling relieved, free, absolved, and renewed. Everybody is different and may have a different reaction. However, just because alcoholics and addicts in recovery may not experience the same exact feelings after finishing the 12 steps, it doesn’t mean they did their steps “wrong” or that they missed something. In these 12 Step Fellowships, it is explained that some ideals come quickly and some are more of the “educational variety,” meaning that certain feelings like relief or freedom may come immediately or eventually over time. The reality is that finishing the 12 Steps doesn’t mean an alcoholic or addict will feel “cured” because there is no cure for addiction. It is treatable, but with the efforts of continual work and support, such as what is offered at these Twelve Step Fellowship programs. The programs don’t end when you finish your Twelve Steps because recovery is a process and you still need to work to maintain your recovery. After you complete your 12 steps, you are able to “give away” what you “have” in order to “keep” it, which means that sharing your experience, strength, and hope not only helps others in the fellowship and recovery community but it also helps you stay sober too.

Do you struggle with alcoholism or drug addiction? The Watershed Addiction Treatment Programs can be a great start to your recovery because of the medical detoxification center providing a safe space for you to get off all substances and inpatient rehab with treatment for underlying issues. Call The Watershed for help today at 1-800-861-1768.