ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS Helpline: 0845 7697 555
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk

Alcoholics Anonymous works towards bringing more communication, understanding, respect and co-operation between AA and any professional person who works with alcoholics, so that more and more alcoholics may recover.

Alcoholics Anonymous is a worldwide fellowship of men and women who help each other to stay sober. They offer the same help to anyone who has a drinking problem and wants to do something about it. Since members are all alcoholics themselves they have a special understanding of each other. They know what the illness feels like - and they have learned how to recover from it in AA.

Like other illnesses, alcoholism strikes all sorts of people. So the men and women in AA are of all races and nationalities, all religions and no religion at all, they work at all occupations, are of any age.

AA was started in 1935 by a New York stockbroker and an Ohio surgeon, who had both been "hopeless" drunks. At first, most AA members also had been seriously ill: their drinking had sent them to hospitals, sanatoriums or jails. But more and more people began to hear about AA and soon many alcoholics found they did not have to let their illness do that much damage. They could recover in AA before their health had been totally wrecked and while they still had their jobs and families.

By keeping alcohol out of their systems, newcomers take care of one part of their illness - their bodies have a chance to get well. They begin to straighten out their confused thinking and unhappy feelings by following AA's suggested "Twelve Steps" to recovery. These Steps suggest ideas and actions that can guide alcoholics toward happy and useful lives. To stay in touch new members go to AA meetings regularly with other members and learn about the recovery programme.

Alcoholics Anonymous is made up of over 97,000 local groups, in over 150 countries. Surveys indicate that total AA membership is estimated at over 2,200,000 worldwide. In Great Britain and Continental European Region there are currently about 3,500 groups. The people in each group regularly get together to hold AA meetings.

"Closed meetings" are for alcoholics only. These are group discussions, and any members who want to speak up, ask questions and share their thoughts with fellow members.

At "open meetings", speakers tell how they drank, how they discovered AA, and how its programme has helped them. Members may bring relatives or friends, and usually anyone interested in AA is also welcome to attend "open meetings".

AA works in co-operation, without affiliation, with the professional and other sections of the community in playing its part in the circle of help needed around the alcoholic. The AA National Helpline telephone number will put those with a drink problem in direct contact with a local member of AA and we are also able to provide contact for those being released from prison, hospital or remand home etc. AA meetings take place within prisons, hospitals, and other institutions on the request of the appropriate authorities, and AA speakers attend groups of professionals including those in the fields of health, prisons and probation.

Alcoholics Anonymous accepts no outside funding, it is completely self supporting through the voluntary contributions of the members themselves.

(Extracted from the AA pamphlets A Brief Guide to Alcoholics Anonymous, If you are a Professional)

Further information is available on

www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk

The General Service Office of Alcoholics Anonymous
PO Box 1
Stonebow House
Stonebow
York, YO1 7NJ

Tel No: 01904 644026
Fax No: 01904 629091.

 

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