Personally, I've seen the effectiveness of 12 Step Programs, but that is just one man's experience. In my experience, the Higher Power (admittedly, often known as the Sponsor) hands the addict the tools to stay clean and teaches them how to use them. This program doesn't depend upon a Higher Power. It just gives you the tools. I like the theory.
On the other hand... I find the stats they give to be suspect. Was the participants' abstinent status confirmed independently? My experience with addicts is that they are all liars. They start with lying to themselves and just get better at it with practice. This program seems to promote truth, but questioning a fox about missing chickens is, well, dumb.
Do you have any personal experience with this program? I've never heard of it before and I am skeptical of second hand recommendations of anti-addiction theories. Almost all theories can be made to SOUND good, but I haven't heard anyone singing its praises - before this. (Actually, I'm not really clear if you ARE singing its praises... or, like me, just like the theory behind it.)
I am both impressed by the theory, and am currently using it (having read the no-cost mini online crash course) to modify certain maladaptive behaviors of mine (involving food & money-spending). It's about acknowledging the primitive drives, but then calling upon our intellectual knowledge, our logic, to apply structure & control over them. IMO, there's a comforting 'Let the grown-up (part of the brain) take the reigns as a change from that reptile primitive brain running mindlessly amuck' quality to this AVRT advice which is proving effective for me.
It's ingenius, really: it calls upon us to ask ourselves: 'Am I just a reptile brain stem, mindlessly seeking sensation? Or am I a whole, integrated brain, who know what works (ie, what's 'right'), and can enjoy things but not take sensation-seeking to that illogical (causes harm) extreme?
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From:
Thanks!
This program doesn't depend upon a Higher Power. It just gives you the tools. I like the theory.
On the other hand...
I find the stats they give to be suspect. Was the participants' abstinent status confirmed independently? My experience with addicts is that they are all liars. They start with lying to themselves and just get better at it with practice. This program seems to promote truth, but questioning a fox about missing chickens is, well, dumb.
Do you have any personal experience with this program? I've never heard of it before and I am skeptical of second hand recommendations of anti-addiction theories. Almost all theories can be made to SOUND good, but I haven't heard anyone singing its praises - before this. (Actually, I'm not really clear if you ARE singing its praises... or, like me, just like the theory behind it.)
From:
Re: Thanks!
It's ingenius, really: it calls upon us to ask ourselves: 'Am I just a reptile brain stem, mindlessly seeking sensation? Or am I a whole, integrated brain, who know what works (ie, what's 'right'), and can enjoy things but not take sensation-seeking to that illogical (causes harm) extreme?