Alternative Approaches to the Twelve-Step Program

The Twelve-Step Program is a widely recognized, successful technique that aids in the recovery from alcoholism. The program involves a set of twelve guiding principles that outline a trajectory for rehabilitation. The principles, as encouraged by Alcoholics Anonymous, were published in 1939 in the book Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men Recovered From Alcoholism. Though the program is highly regarded and has helped innumerable individuals reroute their lives, the specialized course is not for everyone. For one, the program attracts more theists than non-religious individuals. Six of the twelve guiding principles encourage God's assistance in the recovery process, including:

11. "Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out."
12. "Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs."

Making a decision to turn one's will to God can be a powerful motivator to regain self-control. However, if individuals feel as if success that lies partially in a pious belief will elude them, there are alternative strategies that reside independently from any religious affiliation.

A form of rehabilitation that is not associated with the Twelve-Step-Program, but inspires similar results, is the practice of holistic medicine. Holistic health combines various aspects of a patient's needs including the physical, psychological, and spiritual. Holistic routines include - but are not limited to - counseling, exercise, meditation, and diet remedies. A holistic practitioner views a patient as, not an example of a disease, but as an individual with a particular set of needs. In fact, the role of a holistic doctor could be viewed similarly to a mentor - guiding the patient to implement his/her own self-promoting choices. This form of therapy promotes a healthy lifestyle as well as serving to remedy diseases like addiction.

Recent studies have revealed that a constructive way to devise a treatment for alcoholism includes identifying chemical imbalances and assembling a personalized therapy based on the psychological needs of each individual patient. This can be done though therapy and/or brain scans that are indicative of psychological pressure points. Integrating technology into other forms of therapy has proven by numerous sources to be highly effective. An examination of both the psychological and neurological aspects of addiction provides a more thorough understanding as to how to map out a path for recovery.

Alcoholism, for example, is a condition that can be triggered by a chemical imbalance in the brain thus making it helpful to perform brain scans and brain mapping in order to accurately diagnose. Once the source of the addiction is identified, the psychological side may be addressed through therapies that integrate both the psychiatric and emotional aspects. Approaching rehabilitation from an angle that encompasses advanced science and holistic medicine is sure to renew all areas of one's life.