The origins of the twelve steps of recovery revolved around the serendipitous life of Bill Wilson, one of the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). Bill’s life brought together the teaching and experience of a Christian group that was committed to living a life of honesty, purity, unselfishness, and love (The Oxford Group) with the spiritual wisdom of Carl Jung and the theory of human development of Eric Erickson. The twelve steps of AA were born out of this unlikely combination of the religious community, scholarship, and spirituality.
The original AA group started in Akron, Ohio, and initially developed a six-step process as a guide to the miraculous spiritual transformation they had experienced. The original six steps were:
A Complete deflation
Dependence on God
A Moral Inventory
Confession
Restitution
Continued work with others in need
The six steps were later expanded to twelve to add more detail and clarity to the process. These steps represent an easy-to-understand process that incorporates the wisdom of the perennial philosophy and the best of modern human development theory. The testament to its power is the millions of people who have transformed their lives of hopelessness and addiction to those of serenity, peace, and hope.