Alcoholics Anonymous Facts & Videos

Alcoholics Anonymous also known as AA, is an international mutual aid movement with primary purpose being to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. 

12 Steps & 12 Traditions of Alcohol Anonymous

Below are some more important facts about the Alcoholics Anonymous:

• Alcoholics Anonymous was founded in 1935 by Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob Smith in Akron, Ohio. 
• With other early members, Wilson and Smith developed  Alcoholics Anonymous's Twelve Step program of spiritual and character development. 
• Alcoholics Anonymous's Twelve Traditions were introduced in 1946 to help AA stabilize and grow. 
• Alcoholics Anonymous recommend that members and groups remain anonymous in public media, altruistically help other alcoholics and include all who wish to stop drinking. 
• Alcoholics Anonymous also recommend that  Alcoholics Anonymous members acting on behalf of the fellowship steer clear of dogma, governing hierarchies and involvement in public issues. 
• Subsequent fellowships such as Narcotics Anonymous have adopted and adapted the Twelve Steps and the Twelve Traditions to their respective primary purposes.
• Alcoholics Anonymous generally avoids discussing the medical nature of alcoholism; nonetheless AA is regarded as a proponent and popularizer of the disease theory of alcoholism.
• The American Psychiatric Association has recommended sustained treatment in conjunction with AA's program, or similar community resources, for chronic alcoholics unresponsive to brief treatment.
• Alcoholics Anonymous's data states that 64% drop out of  Alcoholics Anonymous in their first year, but its program is credited with helping many alcoholics achieve and maintain sobriety.
• The first female member Florence Rankin joined  Alcoholics Anonymous in March of 1937
• The first non-Protestant member of Alcoholics Anonymous, a Roman Catholic, joined in 1939.
• Alcoholics Anonymous has more than 2 million members.
• Alcoholics Anonymous's name derived from its first book, informally called "The Big Book", originally titled Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of How More Than One Hundred Men Have Recovered