Busting Addiction and Its Myths
The purpose of our podcast is to help families learn the truth about addiction and alcoholism so that they can take the right action to help the addict they love and to help themselves at this critical time in their lives. Exposing the truth about addiction and alcoholism also requires that we bust the myths surrounding both addiction/alcoholism and the recovery process.
Busting Addiction and Its Myths
Mini Series 6 - Myth: AA meetings are secret
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SafeHouse Rehab Thailand
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Season 106
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Episode 4
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In this podcast... we confront and smash the following myth:
Myth: AA meetings are secret.
- Some AA meetings are known as "closed" meetings which are private (not secret) affairs open to those who would prefer to keep their membership private.
- The second type of AA meeting is called an "open" meeting which is open to the public. This is where an AA member, and often an Al-Anon member, shares their stories as a way of educating the public on how they have recovered. Al-Anon was founded 70 years ago for the families and friends of alcoholics to give them the means to recover themselves.
- In fact, very little is not disclosed in the fellowship of AA. It is a 501C3 not-for-profit organisation that has its books open to the public for inspection and is obliged to file tax returns and provide a full accounting on an annual basis.
- The idea of secrecy stems from the days when there was a stigma associated with membership in AA, and there still is to an extent. We feel that every AA member has the right to privacy, and even though I can disclose my membership, I have no right to disclose yours.
Although the idea of AA being a "secret society" is a myth that still lingers, our responsibility as AA members to share the truth endures as well.