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The only program availible to most of them is the 12 step program which effectively requires them to be deeply religious. ITs a sick scheme to take advantage of people in a vulnerable state.
@freemo @zpartacoos @funny I'm honestly struggling to see how these programs are taking advantage of people in some fundamental way by introducing them to a religious perspective as a means of reducing recidivism.
I would make the case that most people who become addicted to drugs lack a sense of purpose and meaning in life, and a way to appropriately deal with the tragedies of their lives that were thrust upon them. Notably, one woman said that she did heroin because it "felt like a warm hug".
At the very least, even if you are an atheist and think religion is ridiculous, you have to admit these hurting people are being directly connected to a perceived transcendent source of meaning that allows them to properly contextualize their trauma as something that can be used for good, rather than the injustice of an arbitrary, uncaring universe. Most people tend to respond better to the idea that their suffering has a greater purpose, as compared to the alternative.
Even better, these programs tend to work for the people who join them([source](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3753023/)), and the Christian worldview aids in allowing adherents to forgive themselves and others, as they have a mechanism of redemption of their past faults and the associated guilt.
Obviously, there are ways that this can be taken too far, or shady individuals may take advantage of the vulnerability of the system. But I think that can be said for most institutional hierarchies, not just the subset of them which are religious in some way (just look at Larry Nassar for example).
Thoughts?
@johnabs @freemo @zpartacoos @funny
As someone who has intimate experience with AlcoholicsAnonymous since before I could understand what I was seeing(before I could even walk), I can honestly say that this is all partially true.
To say its explicity religious would be a misstep- as it actually repeatedly asks members to 'surrender to a "higher power" ' which is never specifically detailed or characterized in the same fashion as orthodox religion. That being said, it does however- bring up 'god' more as a passive literary tool to convey a message. This is last bit imo is in steep contrast to its usage in whatever judaic/christian testament you might skim through.
Honestly though, most people are likely to read 'god' in non-religious documents as the same 'god' referred to in christian scriptures that is predominant is most media.
@lucifargundam @freemo @zpartacoos @funny Thank you for the input! I was unaware that many of these programs use a more pseudo-religious shift, rather than a preexisting world religion to base their sessions on. I would imagine more concrete teachings and applications would be more useful than this seemingly "new-age" interpretation (i.e. a more "pick a lane" approach).
To clarify, which part is in steep contrast? "Using 'god' to convey a message?" I kind of lost what you getting at in the last two sentences of your post.
@johnabs @freemo @zpartacoos @funny
Programs like AA are heavy on the idea of talking about your problems that trigger you relapsing towards addiction. In addition to that, they ask that you try to 'let go' of the negative thoughts and feelings that lead one to resort to substance abuse. Trusting in the idea that your actions and burdens are subjective- that that of which exists outside of yourself has led you to where you are. Having faith in inevitable future good will give you strength to move foward with sobriety.
An example:
(Prayer of Serenity)
God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change,
The courage to change the things I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference.
Another example:
Shoemaker wrote about the necessity of making daily surren-ders.Yes, the Sixth Step is also about surrendering, just like theThird. But Shoemaker made one point very clear: We surrenderas much of ourselves to as much of God as we understand.Inother words, our spiritual progress is based in direct proportion toour dropping the rock. We are very fortunate that all of our de-fects aren’t revealed to us all at once. Recovery works by givingus daily insight into what we can do to remove what blocks us.We need a daily awareness that our character defects are the op-posite of the principles of our Program.
Here's a link to some speeches:
https://www.rehab4addiction.co.uk/resources/best-aa-speeches-all-time
