AA Meeting Reflection

I had the opportunity of being able to attend and observe The Serenity Seekers, an open Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A.) twelve step meeting. Upon arrival, I received a warm welcome by many different group members. They introduced themselves to me and one of the members even brought me pamphlets that provided me with information regarding what their A.A. program entailed. At first, I was apprehensive about going to an A.A. meeting; however, the members were all accepting of my presence, which made me feel comfortable. By accepting me, the members were displaying cohesiveness, the primary therapeutic factor allowing A.A. members to feel a sense of belonging, acceptance, and validation amongst the group. As I was waiting for the meeting to begin, I noticed that there was a total of seventeen men and twelve women ranging from young adults to older adults. Having a diversity in an A.A. group is an important factor because it displays universality by allowing other members to realize that they are not alone in their struggles. …show more content…
Then we had a moment of silence followed by a prayer. Thereafter, the instructor briefly read through what their program entails and emphasized that in order to be a member of A.A. all one needed was to accept their alcoholism as a disease and obtain the desire to stay sober. Additionally, the instructor asked for members to read the Twelve Traditions and the Twelve Steps of A.A. recovery, principal guidelines to spiritual progress towards achievement and maintenance of alcohol sobriety. Subsequently, two group members read chapters one and five from, “The Big Book,” the text that serves as the basis for A.A.