12-Step Reflection

I attended an AA meeting that had five group members. Since there were so few members, we had the opportunity to directly interact with the members before the meeting began. Immediately, we were greeted with hugs, introductions, and questions about our situation. We disclosed to them that we were students and asked permission to be there. Since this was such a small group, I made sure to reiterate that if our presence was unsettling to anyone, we would leave. 

 For this 12-step meeting, each member alternates weeks in which they are the leader. On this particular day, the assigned leader did not show up, so another group member took on the advisory role. His main task was to choose the topic then started the conversation. What I found to be interesting about this leader was that he made sure we knew everything that was going on. He would stop and explain to us why he was doing something a particular way before moving on. I think this helped the other members become comfortable with our presence. There was an outline that they followed for every group, where they read the rules, objectives, and purpose of the 12-steps. A few group members came in late to the meeting and he made a point to let them know that we were students. I think this showed very good leadership skills and I appreciated this because I did not want my presence to make any members uncomfortable. 

 Since we were there, the facilitator choose a topic allowed each member to share their story to us. One of the foundational skills of AA is to admit that they are an alcoholic, so this is what he asked members to do. It gave them enough room to share as much or as little as they wanted. When the members spoke, they spoke directly to us. Two other members came in late, so they were not part of our initial interaction before the meeting began. They did not seem as comfortable with our presence at first, but once they saw how open the other members were to us, they followed along. 

 Our presence during this meeting greatly impacted the environment and structure of the meeting, but at the end, I think it was beneficial for them. Each member followed the lead of the facilitator and took on a teaching role to explain what their disease actually meant. They understood that we were students and I think they wanted to give us the opportunity to learn through them so we could to help other people. For this reason, I think this was a therapeutic group session. By having the opportunity to teach college students about their disease, they were able to give back to the community in some way. They each reiterated the bad that they have done in their lives and the regret they have for that. I think this is a self-help group, because each member had to make the decision to participate and get something out of the group.  

 For me, the most significant aspect of this experience resulted from the fact that the members decided to share directly to us, rather than to each other. Initially, I felt uncomfortable and wrong for being in that meeting. Since this was such an intimate setting, I felt as though I was stepping over a boundary that I should not have. Alternatively, my presence in that meeting added new component that I believe ultimately was beneficial for the members. This is because the leader made the decision to incorporate us and mindfully chose a topic that we could all benefit from. This reveals the importance of the group dynamic. The leader had no education or training in this role, yet he knew what topic would be best for the members.

 Having experienced this, I now see a greater value in OT for recovering addicts. There were things that were said that were so beneficial and I think could have been expanded on greatly. One common theme was relationships and money management. Having an OT presence in a group like that could really help members learn coping mechanisms and carry this over into their daily life. More importantly, I have learned how valuable it is to have the members lead the group and have the opportunity to teach others. This understanding is useful to me as a learner because I have a newfound realization that I could lead a group, without actually leading it.

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