The Second Step

I have heard, many, many, many times, that the first step in recovery from addiction is to admit that you have a problem.  In other words, you need to be honest with yourself.

But I don't know that I've ever heard what the 2nd step is.  Why is that?  Why do we never hear about the second step?

Is it because the first step is too hard?  We never get to the second step because we never actually make it past the first?  Is it because we don't care?  Is it because we don't want to go there?  I don't know, but I thought it was time to correct this glaring oversight, because we can admit that we have a problem until we're blue in the face, but we still have a problem.  The first step is just that, the first step.  In order to move forward, we have to take more than one step.

The Alcoholics Anonymous second step, which many other addiction recovery groups have adopted, is this: 

We came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

In other words, the second step is hope.  We must have hope that we can be delivered from the prison of our addiction.

I love this graphic (click for free printable), that shows the 12 steps of recovery, boiled down to its essence.

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