Origin of the Twelve Steps

The twelve steps is a program that originated from alcoholics anonymous. The steps are designed to help AA members through their recovery journey and remain sober. Although the 12 steps trace their roots in AA, they are used by Narcotics Anonymous, Gamblers Anonymous, and Neurotics Anonymous, among other groups.

Bill Wilson was the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. He had been struggling with alcoholism, and it hurt his life. In the Big Book of AA, Bill recounts the fateful meeting that changed his life and sowed the seed of what would later become the twelve steps. Ebby Thatcher, an old school friend of Bill’s who’d been struggling with alcoholism, called him and informed him of his sobriety. When they met, Bill recalls seeing a glowing Ebby. His appearance made it clear that he had turned his life around. Ebby was a member of the Oxford Group, a Christian organization that held the principle that the origin of all problems was fear and selfishness. Surrendering one’s life to God’s will could help conquer these problems. The Oxford Group was a fellowship of people who desired to follow a new way of life through adherence to Christian principles. They had six principles for a spiritual revolution;

  • Men are sinners
  • Men can be changed
  • Confession is a prerequisite to change
  • The changed soul has direct access to God
  • The age of miracles has returned
  • Those who have changed must change others

Bill Wilson initially hesitated to join the Oxford Group due to his contempt for religion. Ebby’s words to Bill on how he should choose his conception of God would prove fundamental in developing the twelve steps. It was evident that the transformation Ebby had gone through had taken more than simply willpower.

After being hospitalized for alcoholism again, Bill Wilson decided to turn his life around. Bill never drank again since that day. Once he became more involved with the Oxford Group, he found himself gravitating toward members that were recovering alcoholics like him. Dr William Silkworth, a friend of Bill in the medical field, provided further inspiration for the 12 steps. He encouraged Bill to stop preaching and introduced the theory of alcoholism as a disease.

He met Dr Robert Smith, the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, during a business trip to Ohio. A failed opportunity made him crave a drink. He called a local religious leader who referred him to other alcoholics he could talk to, and it led him to Dr Robert. Dr Bob was a member of the local Oxford Group. He had lost his job in the local hospital, and his career was going down the drain, yet he couldn’t stop drinking. Dr Bob took his last drink on June 10 1935, which is widely considered the date when Alcoholics Anonymous was founded. In the August of 1937, Bill and Dr Bob left the Oxford Group and started raising money for a new fellowship. In 1938, Bill began working on a book that would allow them to reach people who couldn’t attend meetings in person. Early members of AA and Dr Bob would go through the chapters once written and send it back for a rewrite.

When Bill got to Chapter five, he used the six tenets of the Oxford Group to come up with the twelve steps. The book was finished eventually, titled Alcoholics Anonymous, and was published in April 1939. The overall theme of the twelve steps is

  • Honesty, admitting you’re powerless over alcohol.
  • Faith, believing in a power greater than yourself could restore you to sanity.
  • Surrender, decide to turn your will and lives over to a higher power.
  • Soul searching, make a fearless moral inventory of yourself.
  • Integrity, admit to a higher power, others, and yourself the nature of your wrongs.
  • Acceptance, be ready to have higher power remove all the defects.
  • Humility, humbly ask Him to remove character defects.
  • Willingness, make a list of all people you’ve hurt and be willing to make amends to them.
  • Forgiveness, make direct amends to these people.
  • Maintenance, continue to take personal inventory and be quick to admit when you’re wrong.
  • Making contact, seeking through prayer and meditation for conscious contact with a higher power, praying to know His will for you and the power to carry it out.
  • Service, after your spiritual awakening, carry this message to other alcoholics and practice the principles in every aspect of your life.

The success rate of twelve-step programs can be challenging to estimate since anonymity is alcoholics anonymous’ founding principle. However, it is generally accepted that those who join twelve-step programs and regularly attend meetings can maintain sobriety. If you or someone you know is struggling with alcoholism or substance abuse, you call us today at 844-844-3463.