Steps 10, 11 and 12 – 2nd Annual Stay Sober for Keeps Workshop – Part 1 of 5 – 2012 – John K.

About This Speaker Tape

2nd Annual Stay Sober For Keeps Workshop - 2012

The 10th Step isn't a suggestion it's a survival mechanism. John K. breaks down the mechanics of the daily inventory moving from the wreckage of a blow-up with his brother Peter to the humility of calling his sponsor Cliff B. to 'show his belly.' He rejects the 'trigger list' approach of modern treatment arguing that the miracle of recovery is when the problem of alcohol simply ceases to exist. The narrative shifts to the 'intensive work' of the 12th Step illustrated by the transformation of Terry a brutalized man living in a pickup truck who became a traveling missionary of Big Book meetings across the country and a woman in the throes of a psychotic break who found her sanity by being forced to carry the message to others. For John K. the only way to avoid the 'subtle foe' of alcoholism is to stay in the trenches of service moving from a taker to a giver.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Opening discussion on Step 10 and the necessity of a continuous personal inventory.
• 3:15 Laughter: Story about blowing up at his brother Peter and the subsequent 10th step process.
• 6:40 Discussion on the relationship with his sponsor, Cliff B., and the importance of daily check-ins.
• 11:20 Analysis of the Big Book promises regarding the removal of the obsession to drink.
• 15:45 Story about a financial panic attack and the directive from Cliff B. to go help others.
• 21:10 Discussion on Step 11, prayer, and meditation as a 'working plan of action'.
• 26:30 Deep dive into Chapter 7 and the 'vital' necessity of working with other alcoholics.
• 32:15 The story of Terry: from living in a pickup truck to starting Big Book meetings across the US.
• 41:20 Story of a woman in a psychotic break who recovered by carrying the message to a treatment center.
• 48:10 Closing thoughts on the responsibility of sponsorship and staying connected.