The Principles of the 12 Step Recovery Programs refer to beneficial qualities or attitudes that we can find within ourselves in any circumstance and to which we can aspire, especially in difficult or even impossible situations.
There is no consensus about this but some people think that the Principles are the basic concepts that guide the Steps or, in other words, a brief version of them. That’s why they are twelve, like the Steps.
There are also small variations in the list of Principles according with the fellowship. The below list is the one that has worked for me:
- HONESTY.
- HOPE (which is very different, almost opposite, to expectations).
- FAITH (comparable to an open mind and opposite to the need to have certainty).
- COURAGE.
- INTEGRITY.
- WILLINGNESS.
- HUMILITY (which is the opposite of humiliation and means find the right size of my being).
- SELF-DISCIPLINE.
- LOVE.
- PERSEVERANCE.
- SPIRITUALITY (or Conscious Contact) and
- SERVICE.
As you can see, there is no principle that invites us, for example, to use control or domination, hatred, rejection, mockery, perfectionism, violence, judgment, superiority, cruelty, compliance, dishonesty or contempt towards others or ourselves. The best part is that practicing the Principles is a hands-on way to neutralize the suffering of anxiety and obsession.
Suffering is different from pain. Pain is part of the human experience while suffering is the unnecessary permanence of fear and misery. When I’m suffering I only need to question – with loving curiosity – what I am thinking. Any continued and relentless form of emotional or spiritual pain is the result of confusion and that’s why we practice the Steps. They help us to remove the confusion.
It is amazing to verify that the root of my suffering is always my thinking misaligned with the Principles. For example, I am practicing judgment instead of FAITH. I’m using self-protection through dishonesty instead of INTEGRITY. Or control instead of LOVE and PERSEVERANCE. I believe I can have certainty instead of connecting with my FAITH and WILLINGNESS and so on.
When you practice them, the Principles are a very practical and effective way to find serenity and freedom. They work, they really do!
(Thanks to my friend Madison and my husband Brad for the support editing this post)
