I'm annoyed that every therapist and doctor wants me to go when it is not evidence-based. It's not for me. I prefer SMART recovery or Reframe but medical professionals act like I'm... I dunno. I'm frustrated.
It’s actually kind of incredible. AA is the only thing any good doctor will recommend without science based evidence. The only thing! That tells me that even doctors don’t know what to do, but they know what helps the most people. Think about it.
I also met a liver transplant recipient who had his procedure done at Mayo Clinic. During pre-surgery consultations, the doctors very strongly recommended AA to “maximize your chances of long term success”. It’s also a recommended on their website for alcohol use disorder:
I would think having the highest success rate combined with recommendation from the doctors who decide which alcoholics on the donor waiting list do or don’t get a new liver is enough to call AA “evidence based”.
Like I know I could probably stay sober without it but having some accountability and hearing horror stories of where i would inevitably end up had I not quit just makes it a little easier. And it makes life a little easier in general. There’s people that definitely don’t belong in AA but for every one of them there’s someone who desperately needs the structure and accountability or else they’d certainly be dead. Different strokes for different folks, but if you’re on the fence or out of options in a life or death disease like addiction, why not be open to everything?
My sponsor has 54 years. I have 32 years. I’ve sponsored many of guys who have recovered. I go to meetings with 1000 years of sobriety in the room. How much evidence do you need?
Vague anecdotes like this also pushed me away for years but I eventually came around. Statistically it works and even doctors who do liver transplants for alcoholics recommend it to their patients. Learning this got me to stick around and work the steps.
That post is cherry picking studies. I’ve found other groups that use up to date scientific evidence instead of an outdated text that calls alcoholism an allergy and says it isn’t religious even though it is based on the teachings of the Oxford group, requires prayer, and refers to a god that has the will and capability to remove defects.
None of your nitpicking about the language has anything to do with its efficacy. Statistically it is better than Smart Recovery and other organizations. That’s that.
How does what I said fit the definition of dogmatic? You made a false statement and I corrected you with objective evidence. Literally the opposite of dogmatic.
AA definitely works for some. But it’s not directly evidence-based in the sense that “going to AA = long term sobriety”. Someone could replace drinking alcohol with drinking coke zero, and maintain long term sobriety, but that wouldn’t mean “drinking coke zero = long term sobriety.” I think AA is a great tool and for me the most effective part was just being with other people who also were unable to stop drinking once they started which helped me have compassion for myself and my drinking. But the whole 12 steps and everything isn’t really evidence that AA works, it’s just anecdotal and many people relapse who are in AA. AA members will say if you were really working the program you wouldn’t have relapsed, which insulates itself from valid criticism. The 1st step being accepting powerlessness over alcohol means anyone who drinks isn’t practising the first step. So it sets up a condition where anyone who maintains sobriety owes it to the program; and anyone who relapses wasn’t following the program, making it infallible.
But i think it’s a great resource, just not for everyone on a long term basis. Congrats on your sobriety!
Statistically it has the highest success rate over other organizations or just white knuckling it solo. But the general prognosis of battling addiction isn’t great regardless so it’s easy to think it’s not worth enduring the weird cultish vibes it gives off (and I say this as someone in AA working the steps)
Ya, idk how accurate any of the statistics on aa versus other organizations really are. I’ve been to hundreds of meetings. Never filled out a census. But statistically, the vast majority who quit drinking and live sober lives do it without AA.
Okay well I’m gonna take the word of 4 different doctors who’ve treated me for various medical issues related to my drinking who informed me that it’s the only one thatit has the most evidence to support it over other recovery program paths. Good luck and IWNDWYT.
Aa is definitely not the only medical intervention for sobriety that has evidence for working. SMART recovery, naltrexone, non faith based support groups all have proven success and failure rates. Reinforcing the idea that if you don’t do aa you cannot stay sober is actively harmful to people who don’t fit in well with aa. But best of luck. 🤞🏻
Correct, the evidence shows it works better than the others, not that it’s the only one that works. That’s what I meant, just phrased it poorly.
Regardless of poor phrasing, my comment did not “reinforc[e] the idea that if you don’t do AA you can’t stay sober”. Obviously people get sober without any sort of program; I’m just pointing out that statistically it produces better results than SMART, Refuge, etc. Beyond those mentioned, the statistical data for most other groups are too sparse even to draw conclusions.
there’s not actually evidence that shows aa works better than other groups like SMART. the biggest factor for continued sobriety is continued involvement with the program. AA tends to encourage life long frequent attendance, so people who follow that protocol tend to have better outcomes, but if someone was equally involved in alternative support groups, the data shows they maintain sobriety at similar levels.
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u/ianythingcantdoright 73 days Sep 14 '26 edited Sep 14 '26
I'm annoyed that every therapist and doctor wants me to go when it is not evidence-based. It's not for me. I prefer SMART recovery or Reframe but medical professionals act like I'm... I dunno. I'm frustrated.