If AA has a 95% failure rate why haven't we looked for and found another way to treat people that works better

Question

When a disease needs to be cured the treatment offered is suposed to provoke more rapid healing and get results. In all other fields of medicine there is an expectation of progress so why do we still rely on the antiquated AA program. It was started by a flim flam man back when lobotomies were cutting edge medicine and we didn't even know there were 4 blood types. Medicine has advanced in many areas but not here... any thoughts on why the blinders are on as to the utter failure of 'the program' to 'work'

actually there are already other methods that work allot better like
http://www,recoveryfree.com/home.html
try reading the Orange papres and Smart recovery. the others work better than AA the monopoly favorite of treatment centers.

Answer 1

Timing had a lot to do with it.

In the early 1800s, Dr. Benjamin Rush proposed hospital care for drunkards; this led to the establishment of asylums, for it was believed that alcoholism itself could be considered a form of mental illness. Asylums were opened throughout the United States and Europe from the mid 1800s until the first World War. Circumstances and shifting economies saw the closure of many of these hospitals, and by the end of the war, many were changed over to the care of returning veterans. In a short time, the depression closed the rest. Due to political and economic influences, public opinion became that alcoholism was more of a moral failure on the part of the individual than as any form of illness. Prohibition came and went.

In the late thirties, the climate was right for a grassroots organization to take hold.

AA received a lot of good press over the following decades, much of it was self-reporting, praises raised by anonymous members in the press.

AA has always been friendly with the courts, but coercion didn't get into full swing until the 70s.

Doctors don't like dealing with drunks, too little success, but the demand was there. Rehabs sprung up, just about all they did was grab people in the program as (cheap) counselors and package 30 days of drying out and a crash course in AA as a miracle cure. Rehabs could charge top dollar because it was mostly insurance companies and the government footing the bill.

Treatment centers became big business, big enough to influence politicians, some of whom may be closet steppers themselves. Maybe they had monetary interests in rehabs or maybe they just had some drunk uncle they thought AA had saved. Whatever reasons made them friendly towards AA, it looked good in the eyes of the voters. Mandating people to AA gave the illusion that something was being done without costing as much as locking them up. It's been my theory that the politicians liked the new class of drone workers that rehabs turned out, unquestioning and willing to work cheaply and be grateful for it.

AA has become a sacred institution, they have opposed scientific research and attempted to silence or smear anyone who spoke out against it. For far too long it has been politically incorrect to question the program.

By trying to add so many new faces quickly, a whole new sub-class of people was born, people forced into the rooms and none too happy about it. With the birth of the internet, these people found they were not the only ones, and found a voice.

Answer 2

There are other types of alcohol recovery plans available, and while I have not heard statistics on failure rates, I do know that there is no absolutely effective cure.
I think there are several reasons why AA has remained so popular with so many people. First, there are success stories, and AA has seen to it that these are well publicized. Second, there is group support, which some programs do not emphasize. This helps the alcoholic to see that they are not alone. And there is something about being part of a group struggling for freedom that attracts other sufferers. Then there is the anonymity. A person can be a member for years (I worked with a 20 year member who stayed sober) and yet never really reveal anything too personal. People are only allowed to get so close, and this appeals to men especially. Men do not open up very much, and do not want others to get too close to them.
So, while AA is not completely effective, it does have some things that attract people. It may have to do until something better comes along for many thousands of members.

Answer 3

Alcohol is a physical addiction and, as such, I doubt a cure can be found as everyone is different. AA fails because the person fails. The alcoholic really doesn't want to quit or, at the first sign of stress, rushes back to the bottle for comfort. Those who do make it, make it because they really want to be dry...they want it so badly that they don't rush back to the bottle.

FYI, there is an easy "cure"...the alcoholic is sedated deeply and goes through withdrawal while unconscious...so no suffering is remembered or possibly even experienced. The problem is that it is SO easy, the alcoholic just goes back to drinking. (This is also used for drug addicts). Success is far more likely if the person has to go through withdrawal...the memories of the dt's sometimes help the person stay dry.

Answer 4

That is because it takes a person WANTING to get treatment. You can go to counseling, but it will cost you money. AA doesn't charge you anything and it works. The person who chooses this treatment, must make the commitment to themselves that they are powerless to their addiction and commit to go. I believe that anyone addicted to any drug/alcohol/etc. needs support from others who have been were they are and it helps to see others in recovery. It brings hope, where there was none. The 12-step program makes you accountable for yourself. No other program does this. That is why it is used in every rehab clinic. It works, if you work it!
Sounds to me like you don't understand it's concepts at all. The cure is abstinence. Addicts have to learn how to do this. There isn't a magic pill that can "cure" them. I doubt there ever will be.
I invite you to invent one!

Answer 5

If you're asking this question & citing the Orange Papers, I suspect you already know the answer to your question.

The reason why this ill-fated mythology persists is because of the evangelical rightwing element in the US today - ANYTHING that will bring us closer to Gawd> Well, hot damn, praise the lawd & pass the grits & the Beeg Book!

Answer 6

Okay, you're so smart, start up a program of your own and show us all how to do it.