History of the Twelve Steps of Alcohol
Anonymous. In 1934 a
man named Bill
Wilson lost his Wall Street
career
because of
his alcohol problem.
Bill's drinking buddy
Eddy, shared his
idea of a Spiritual
cure with him.
Eddy was a member of a Christian
movement called the Oxford
Group.
Bill was treated at a hospital by
a
Dr. Silkworth. This doctor promoted
a disease
theory of alcoholism.
While in the hospital, Bill believed he
had a spiritual experience,
and through
this he became convinced
of the existence
of God,
and he was than able to stop
drinking.
On a 1935 business trip to Akron,
Ohio, Bill noticed
he still had the urge to
drink again and in
an effort to stay
sober, he
sought another alcoholic's
help. Wilson was
introduced to Dr. Bob
Smith, also a member of
the Oxford
Group. After
some work together, Bill
and Bob co-founded
AA. Bob's last drink
was on June 10,
1935 this is considered
to be the word of mouth
founding date
of AA.
In 1937, Bill and Bob
determined that
they had helped
40 alcoholics get sober,
and two years later,
with about 100
members, expanded
the program by
writing a book called
Alcoholics
Anonymous. This
is when the fellowship
adopted its official
name.
