The ACA Promises Really Do Come True.
Good Intentions: From Fear and Judgment to Loving Service A personal reflection on ACA Promises 10, 11, and 12 When my ACA group reads The Promises each week, I no longer hear them as distant or aspirational. More and more, I find myself thinking, Yes, this works -...
The Laundry List Traits Led Me to My Inner Family
My Higher Power lead me to ACA at my rock bottom moment. I stumbled on the laundry list and felt like someone was writing about me personally. I was astounded that other people resonated with the list, I spent my whole life feeling like I was the only one with these...
What I Thought Making Amends Would Fix
When I first came to Step Nine, I thought I understood what an amends was. I had hurt people. I had made mistakes. There were things I regretted. So I figured I was supposed to find the people involved, apologize, clean up the mess, and hopefully feel better...
Service – An Unexpected Healing Gift
I am an Adult Child. I have always needed and even created service to/for others. I wanted to make you happy. I wanted to make you admire and like me. I volunteered for everything. It gave me value. Made me feel better about myself. I enabled and used my co-dependence...
Outreach Is Outrageous Self-Care
People often ask me why I say outreach is outrageous self care - it peaks people’s interest enough that they will often call me to explain this philosophy. The answer is simple: outreach changed my life. Relationships felt confusing and beyond challenging for me...
I’ve Been Told I Should Have a Sponsor – Now What?
When I first heard people in ACA talk about getting a sponsor, I assumed there must be some process everyone else understood but nobody had explained to me. Was there a right way to ask? Was I supposed to know exactly what I needed? And how was I meant to choose...
Step 12: The Gift of Freedom
“Step 12: Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others who still suffer, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.” BRB p. 279 My life in recovery got better when I stepped into service. Early on,...
The Tenth Time I Tried to Stay Alive
On conditional love, an absent father, hypervigilance, and learning to become my own loving parent. I lost track somewhere after the fifth psychiatric admission. Each one followed the same shape: a self-inflicted injury, a doctor asking why I wanted to kill myself,...
What Could the Proposed Revision to Concept II Mean?
Many ACA groups are starting to discuss and cast a vote on a proposed revision to Concept II of the Twelve Concepts of Service. At first glance, the change appears small—but one new phrase has become the focus of discussion. What is changing? Current Concept II...
Step 10: Taking Inventory Without Turning Against Myself
After a difficult conversation, I can replay it for hours. I think about what I said, what I should have said, whether my tone was wrong, and whether I made everything worse. Sometimes I decide pretty quickly that the whole thing was my fault. For a long time, I...