Love and the 12 Steps
In the first step of the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous, the alcoholic admits that they are powerless over alcohol and that their life has become unmanageable. This powerlessness refers to the incapacity that the alcoholism or addiction disease creates. To have true power in our lives, we have to have a healthy and optimally functioning mind in order to perceive and take action to adequately take care of our responsibilities and to respond constructively to life. This true power is also the ability to truly love. Our mind must be healthy and clear so that we can be most effectively aware of reality. In this state, we are best able to see things as they truly are (within the limits that a human being can be aware of anything.) If we are able to see things as they truly are, we are able to recognize and understand what is truly important. Our ability to love at a higher level is absolutely dependent on our ability to understand what is truly important. Because in practical terms, true love is action that honors the priceless value of ourselves and others coming from the consistent awareness of the pricelessness of ourselves and others.
The effect of alcohol and other mood altering substances upon the human mind is that they work to compromise and incapacitate our clear awareness function. They also compromise and incapacitate our ability to think in a healthy way. Because of this, we lose awareness and the ability to think well enough to make good decisions in our lives. And the result of this is a lot of self-defeating and ultimately self-destructive behavior that manifests in suffering and heartbreak for ourselves and all others affected by our illness. The true powerlessness of addiction is created by incapacitating our ability to love truly. In order to recover, we must be willing to give up any and all substances that compromise our optimal mental health. In addition we also must be willing to give up any attitudes or behaviors that also compromise our ability to truly love. For true love requires openness of mind and heart. It requires the ability to be flexible and adaptable to life. It requires the ability to achieve a state of consciousness and awareness in which we are able to clearly see that all human beings are priceless and invaluable at the core.
True love is the power greater than ourselves. For true love embraces the expanse of existence and reality. It is the fundamental divine substance. It is the heart of life. In order to overcome and heal from addiction we must be able to connect with this power greater than ourselves and utilize it to create a life which is healthy and worthwhile. In order to achieve this, we must admit that we have become disempowered by our substances and behaviors and attitudes that are contrary to health and true love. We must emotionally grasp the gravity and reality of what our addiction or rigid attitudes and behaviors have created. We must recognize that the consequences of these things create unacceptable suffering for ourselves and others. We must accept that it is not worth it for us to remain in a state in which our ability to truly love is compromised and diminished. When we reach this acceptance, then we are ready to begin the wondrous journey to learn how to love truly in all that we think and do. This is the essence of recovery from any and all self-destructive behaviors. This is the great result and reward that recovery brings to us, because it enables us to reconnect with the greatest power in our hearts - our ability to love truly. Recovery is recovering our ability to love.
The effect of alcohol and other mood altering substances upon the human mind is that they work to compromise and incapacitate our clear awareness function. They also compromise and incapacitate our ability to think in a healthy way. Because of this, we lose awareness and the ability to think well enough to make good decisions in our lives. And the result of this is a lot of self-defeating and ultimately self-destructive behavior that manifests in suffering and heartbreak for ourselves and all others affected by our illness. The true powerlessness of addiction is created by incapacitating our ability to love truly. In order to recover, we must be willing to give up any and all substances that compromise our optimal mental health. In addition we also must be willing to give up any attitudes or behaviors that also compromise our ability to truly love. For true love requires openness of mind and heart. It requires the ability to be flexible and adaptable to life. It requires the ability to achieve a state of consciousness and awareness in which we are able to clearly see that all human beings are priceless and invaluable at the core.
True love is the power greater than ourselves. For true love embraces the expanse of existence and reality. It is the fundamental divine substance. It is the heart of life. In order to overcome and heal from addiction we must be able to connect with this power greater than ourselves and utilize it to create a life which is healthy and worthwhile. In order to achieve this, we must admit that we have become disempowered by our substances and behaviors and attitudes that are contrary to health and true love. We must emotionally grasp the gravity and reality of what our addiction or rigid attitudes and behaviors have created. We must recognize that the consequences of these things create unacceptable suffering for ourselves and others. We must accept that it is not worth it for us to remain in a state in which our ability to truly love is compromised and diminished. When we reach this acceptance, then we are ready to begin the wondrous journey to learn how to love truly in all that we think and do. This is the essence of recovery from any and all self-destructive behaviors. This is the great result and reward that recovery brings to us, because it enables us to reconnect with the greatest power in our hearts - our ability to love truly. Recovery is recovering our ability to love.
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