Re: "RE-Aligned Self"?
At 15:13 25/11/96 -0500, you wrote:
>Patrick Rea wrote:
>>The spiritual dimension is very interesting: it underpins AA to a degree
>>that very few appreciate. (What are the Steps, other than Biblical
>>Commandments? And the meetings, the Catholic Confessional... and even the
>>ritual, incense... the cigarette fug?)
>Just to add a further comment, like the Catholic Church, AA tends to be
very absolute. Devout members will tell any who ask that there is only one
way to stay sober and that is by working the steps "by the book". It's very
disempowering long term to live in a perpetual state of powerlessness and
unmanageability -- a permanent crisis mode. Powerlessness is especially
destructive to women alcoholics/addicts who frequently have issues around
emotional/physical/sexual abuse and need to be empowered to deal with those
issues and situations rather than believe that they are powerless.
>Although they tell you they won't kick you out, if you don't toe the party
line you will get "jumped on" by the "recovery police". Orthodoxy is king!
>
>AA doesn't encourage "informed consumers" it supresses discussion of other
paths to recovery. Despite lousy results, AA and the 12-step model have a
stranglehold on the US "Substance Abuse Industry" to the exclusion of
discussion of other methods and modalities.
>
>>Jung said he was delighted at the progress of AA (to his credit)
>>and stated that the following had occurred to him: perhaps alcoholism was
>>a spiritual disorder and that alcoholics were people with a greater
>>thrust for the spiritual dimension than others...
>Definitely for me, it was the loss of my spiritual life that propelled me
into recovery more than anything else.
>
>HOWEVER -- and I shall repeat this caveat until people start listening and
agreeing with me.:)
>The human mind and human soul are extremely complex. I believe that
addiction is a symptom of one of a number of underlying spiritual and/or
biochemical diseases. Just as many things can cause a heart attack,
addiction can have more than one cause. As well as the spiritual pain,
other things that need to be considered (and which probably require
different treatment modalities) are
>* a genetic predisposition to addiction,
>* flawed/poor alcohol metabolism (this may be genetic in origin and so may
account for the racial groups that have higher levels of alcoholism such as
Native Americans),
>* faulty serotonin metabolism (large numbers of alcoholics suffer from
depression and use alcohol as a medication)
>
>We have in NLP a very powerful tool to help a large number of people.
However, it should be one of a number of tools, not our only one. There is
a tendency when all one has is a hammer, to think of all problems as
soluble by hitting them harder. We need to have hammers (AA), screwdrivers
(NLP), wrenches (talk therapy) and all the other tools at our disposal.
When we aren't very expert with the best tool for a particular client, we
should refer them to one who is.
>
>Sothat's my 5cents worth for today.
>Blessings to all,
>Jenni
>
>
Well said Jenny,
I am a "recovering alcoholic" in A.A. for the past 6.5 years after 25 years
of alcohol dependence. I totally support your views. I have been off and
completed to necessary drug and alcohol counselling courses in a search for
the how and why. About eight months ago in a depressed state I "busted "
and took a number of drinks - no rushing out and getting drunk - as stated
as likely in AA - but very uncomfortable physically etc. Talk about the
pious "older sober " members - there are no rules in AA but try breaking
one, such as busting. I can now see AA in a more objective light and most
do have "blinkers" on. I have now made a balanced decision to remain
abstinent rather than risking continued use.
I am at present going through NLP sessions with a practitioner here in
Sydney and I am facinated with the NLP results and ease of use- not for
abstinence but in dealing with the offshoots such as anger, depression etc.
I am looking forward to training in the future and assist in putting it
into practice for others after I master it for myself.
I believe I have inherited a body makeup that makes me predisposed to
greater reactions to mood altering substances than most others. etc for the
exact same reasons as you state. Also I grew up in a family system that
modelled self defeating behaviours. I still use most of these today and am
finding NLP a grater help in slowing these behaviours down - a lot quicker
than cognitive behavioural work, or A.A. or RET or ACOA or Codependence
studies etc etc.
Malheck