I'm
reading In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters With Addiction by Gabor Maté, a well-referenced treatise on many types
of addiction, which keeps the reader interested with personal stories and
vignettes. His approach is compassionate. It is fascinating, if a bit wordy, although he’s got a lot to say,
so trudging through the pages has a definite payoff. He focuses on trauma as the reason that people turn to addictive
behaviors to relieve pain.
Dr. Gabor Maté's image from his website
I
found an interesting recent interview of him that brought up his impression of 12-step
programs. I hope you’ll take 11 minutes out of your day and listen to it. I’ve
been thoughtfully chewing on his responses. Personally, I believe the study of
the 12 steps can help anyone who has an intractable behavior problem that they
want to change. Really, I’m all about the 12 steps, my friend.
Maté said
that practice of 12-step programs can be helpful, but described the following
problems: 1) 12-step programs completely ignore trauma, even though Bill Wilson
was traumatized as a child, 2) people are often forced into 12-step
participation, even though coercion is counterproductive, and 3) 12-step
language of God is a fundamentalist relic of a punishing God that people may
not want to embrace.
Alcoholics Anonymous
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While I
fully agree with his first two 12-step program criticisms, the third response
made me wonder what kind of 12-step groups he has been exposed to. I understand
his concern in that area. The AA third step is, “Made a decision to turn our
will and our lives over to the care of God, as
we understood Him.” Even though the “as
we understood Him” addendum was inserted, italicized in the Big Book and on
placards that hang in AA halls to stress its importance, and cited as an
example of the spiritual, not religious, nature of AA, Maté’s impression of
AA’s God is not unique.
So
those are my thoughts on Maté’s interview. What did you think?
So those are my thoughts on Maté’s interview. What did you think?
The AA group I sobered up in had a business meeting a number of years ago and voted to always close every meeting with The Lord’s Prayer. As a result I let me feet vote and no longer go to that group. I think their approach can lead to the kind of reaction Maté had, although there are many other possible reasons for his impression.
ReplyDeleteIt seems ingenuine (yes, yes, I know ingenuine is not yet a word, but I think it should be so I’m going to use it often and hope you support my ingenuine cause as well) at best for a program that professes to be open to atheists and all religions to close the meeting by standing, holding hands, and reciting a Christian prayer. What is the Muslim or Jew to think on their first visit to such a group? How about the atheist or agnostic who has been happily getting through life using “love” as their god of sorts? I’ve known many people who have such a spiritual approach that has left them demonstrating a much less self-serving life than many of the, “Jesus is my personal savior,” pronouncing people I’ve known. Are you wondering what religion I profess and practice? Well, I suppose I am a Christian pantheist with strong Buddhist leanings if that makes any difference.