It appears to be only through complete ego deflation. For instance, not drinking, not lying, not being resentful or in self pity but instead helping others would be good evidence of a spiritual awakening. He wrote of the eight stages of healthy ego development, with each stage, beginning. Alcoholics anonymous also known as the big book in recovery circles sets forth cornerstone concepts of recovery from alcoholism and tells the stories of men and women who have overcome the disease.
The next day ebby brought bill a copy of william james book the varieties of religious experience. The first, he stated, contains the feeling of life on a deep, instinctual level. Dying to self, or ego deflation practice these principles. Apart from the logical fallacies contained in bills thinking, and argument in the big book, and the utter failure of any arguments for the existence of god, either classical or modern, there is another matter that is often overlooked, and which, perhaps one that is all to in the face in aa meetings. Jul 12, 2017 anything else such as my work is often seen as a departure from prevailing thought. When it comes to ego deflation, few steps are harder to take. Bob has published numerous articles in a broad crosssection of respected professional reference books, journals, and. Jung s words had struck him at great depth, producing an immense deflation of his ego. Our response to aas attack on our supposed big egos is to try to salvage that little bitty sense of self we may still have, a little flickering flame. There were times which brought the fellowship close to collapse.
Ego deflation at depth in recovery addiction recovery. Ego is an addiction in and of itself, and it is harmful to recovery. The jung story is also found in chapter 2 of the book alcoholics anonymous pdf, aka the big book, originally published in 1939. These meetings cover a wide range of topics related to willingness to grow along spiritual lines and maintenance of our spiritual condition aa big book, pp.
Dying to self, or ego deflation posted april 10, 20 some seven summers ago i was playing a game of cards with a dearly loved relative when i saw a side of me i didnt even know existed. We attempt to carry the message in the way that was passed on by the founders and pioneers of alcoholics anonymous. They have learned that a single surrender is not enough. He tries to talk to anyone who comes his way, especially policemen, and he tells all sorts. That phrase was apparently used by bill wilson in a talk he gave before the new york city medical society on alcoholism in 1958 and he was referring, specifically, to the initial approach to the stilldrinking alcoholic. Freud divided mental life into three major subdivisions. Complete deflation thats what it took guess thats what. Nov 18, 2018 you have the same big ego, only you feel special because you think youre worse than everyone else. Before anyone can answer a question he intervenes, generally with anything that comes into his head. The twelve steps are a process designed to bring about ego deflation at depth.
The big book itself explains how alcoholics create their own self belief systems and these must be broken down equally. Sorting and rendering passages in the proprietary format of the 164 and more concordance does not in any way imply affiliation with or endorsement by either alcoholics. Destruction of ego, the false self seems to be paramount for the transformational type of recovery that the big book talks about. Of course, for the alcoholic addict the requisite stimulus that beings about the mental rearrangements that are requisite to experience this new state of consciousness and being in reality is ego deflation at depth. Ego is written throughout this section of bills story, and it is ego that bill later discovers must be deflated in order to find lasting sobriety. The following article is condensed from a transcript of a march 6, 2008 training meeting of the upstate group. Surrender in the program involves ego deflation at depth, but it is never demeaning to the real person. Tearing down the ego in alcoholics anonymous stinkin. Big book study groups, big book meetings, back to basics groups, and the like further cement this view. Alcoholics anonymous and the deflation of the ego by dr. The back to basics book has been rewritten specifically for treatment centers, aftercare facilities, halfway houses, recovery homes, correctional facilities, and twelvestep programs. Your ego, simply put, is what makes you who you are. And often, we find our ego is the biggest force between what we think we can do, and what we can actually do. Afterwards your ego will just selfinflate again, but thats what egos do.
A relative of mine has a somewhat wounded outlook on the world combined with an ego as big as the outdoors, and he interacts with others primarily via intellectual machismo and testing the. Drymalski jungian psychology psychological inflation. When it comes to ego deflation, few steps are harder to take than five. The find option on most screens brings up the find. Popularly, ego is seen as pride or a sense of self esteem, but in recovery and recovery. Apr 10, 20 dying to self, or ego deflation posted april 10, 20 some seven summers ago i was playing a game of cards with a dearly loved relative when i saw a side of me i didnt even know existed. A wise man explained that a person will have no need of nor be capable of feeling a need for a higher power until their own power has been exhausted ego deflated and a higher octane power is needed. Mar 06, 2016 ego depletion seemed to be a real and reliable phenomenon. The ego is an energetic form or structure within our. It became ever more apparent that in everyones psyche there existed an unconquerable ego which bitterly opposed any thought of defeat. The fourth edition includes twentyfour new stories that provide contemporary sharing for newcomers seeking recovery from alcoholism in a. In aa they focus on deflating the ego of the alcoholic.
In it, dr pat allen explores the roles of the masculine and the feminine in relationship. Defined according to the big book, an awareness of a power greater than ourselves is the essence of awakening. William james, bill wilson, and the development of. We claim spiritual progress rather than spiritual perfection. Above everything we alcoholics must be rid of this selfishness. Until that ego was somehow reduced or rendered ineffective, no likelihood of. May 11, 2004 inspire a love of reading with prime book box for kids discover delightful childrens books with prime book box, a subscription that delivers new books every 1, 2, or 3 months new customers receive 15% off your first box. Harry tiebout, the 12 steps as ego deflating devices. We refer to people with a detrimental amount of narcism as having big egos.
Ego in big book alcoholics anonymous, 12 steps and 12. Reflections in recovery this page continues to explore the themes and principles introduced in the book practice these principles, building on them and bringing further insights from experience, study, and reflection. Psychological inflation occurs when an individuals conscious identity ego and the persona becomes merged with an archetype of the unconscious. When guests are in the house he puts himself with a big webster in the middle of the scene. The 164 and more book, ebook, and web site are all concordances which display passages from the big book alcoholics anonymous, the twelve steps and twelve traditions, and the a. Ego is egotism, an inordinately large sense of selfimportance. Of the many drinking types described in the big book by no means comprehensively, the big book suggests its 12 step spiritual program of action will work for only one. The 12 steps as ego deflating devices soberrecovery. Deflation at depth is today a cornerstone principle of aa. We need to get away from the ego deflation idea, the petitionable, interventionist higher power, and the big book worship. Step five admitted to god, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. Unfortunately, that ego will return unless the individual learns to accept a disciplined way of life, which means the tendency toward ego comeback, is permanently checked. How it works big book study introduction how it works.
It appears to be only through complete egodeflation, the convincement that of our own selfconscious thinking we have no solution to our addiction, that the alcoholic addict may open himself to the same conversion or spiritual awakening that can, if acted upon. Certainly, we need to try to bring this program into the new century. Online alcoholics anonymous alcoholics anonymous the big book audios 4th edition on cd audiobook. Our big book has further grounded us in both the strong, familybased social ethic in the chapters to. This paragraph can apply to a multitude of situations in recovery. That archetype could be the self, or god, as was the case with king midas, or any of a number of other positive archetypes such as. Ego in big book alcoholics anonymous, 12 steps and 12 traditions. This triggers shame responses so that we arent listening anymore or we get defensive. I think the secular aa movement has a lot to offer here. Taking responsibility for ones behaviors, living consistently with ones values and core needs, while getting and staying honest, begins the process for the restoration of selfesteem. Today, i am thinking about my ego and how it likes to puff itself up at meetings. Rather, ego as a sense of pride or self esteem is seen as one of the individuals defects of character and is discussed in depth as such in the step seven essay in the twelve steps and twelve traditions, where it is examined as the first of the seven deadly sins. How it works 63 when we sincerely took such a position, all sorts of remarkable things followed. Its good to know we have ego issues, but of course self knowlege availed us nothing.
Ego depletion, an influential theory in psychology, may have. Apr 12, 20 alcoholics anonymous and the deflation of the ego by dr. Listening to other peoples opinions on the recovery process, i judge and become annoyed. You have the same big ego, only you feel special because you think youre worse than everyone else. Tearing down the ego in alcoholics anonymous stinkin thinkin.
A desire to stop drinking is the only requirement for aa membership. Id been winning game after game night after night and hadnt thought anything of it. The how it works group interprets the big book through the group conscience. You deflate an overinflated ego by learning and practicing meditation. I have always had issues with the ego deflation theory.
Established on such a footing we became less and less interested in ourselves, our little plans and designs. It is common knowledge that a return of the fullfledged ego. The material has been modified for all addictive and. The jung story is also found in chapter 2 of the book alcoholics anonymous pdf, aka the big book, originally published in. It was soon found that the big book alone was not enough to sustain an alcoholics ego deflation in many cases, or to sustain unity in the fellowship. Bill felt that being able to do, feel and believe things we couldnt previously do on self will, is evidence of a spiritual awakening. Pride in big book alcoholics anonymous, 12 steps and 12. The resentful person may say to themselves, oh, it doesnt matter that my partner is getting their way again, its no big deal, ego deflation when in actuality, resentment grows into a. Our eyes begin to open to the immense values which have come straight out of painful egopuncturing. Aa history the 12 steps as ego deflating devices barefoots world. Egodeflation and a new state of consciousness and being. Ego deflation at depth in recovery addiction recovery blog. Until that ego was somehow reduced or rendered ineffective, no likelihood of surrender could be anticipated.
In the big book, the offical book of aa, it says that all alcholics are selfish, egotistical, and need egodeflation. Aa, still very much in its infancy, was celebrating a third or fourth anniversary of one of the groups. Silkworth confirmed that he was not crazy but that he had had just the sort of spiritual experience that sometimes cures alcoholics. The concept of ego reduction is predicated on the use of sigmund freuds concept of the ego to describe the conscious adult self. Being all powerful, he provided what we needed, if we kept close to him and performed his work well.
To my way of thinking, its not really the discussion of a transforming experience, a conversion experience thats doing the work here. Everyone is an armchair psychologist, no science behind the absolutes i hear dozens of times every day. Jun 01, 2014 behind the mask beneath the ego maskenin ard. When it comes to ego defl ation, few steps are harder to take than five. Selected as one of the best business books of the year by library journal, deflation provides tools for investors to protect their assets and invest profitably in deflationary times.
I have a friend thats an alcoholic and he drinks because he feels worthless and depressed. The incident showed that two people, one approaching the matter clinically and the other relying on his own intuitive report of what had happened to him, both came up with exactly the same observation. In 2011, baumeister and john tierney of the new york times published a sciencecumselfhelp book based around this research. But scarcely any step is more necessary to longtime sobri. Ego inflation and ego deflation 61 papers and big dictionaries. Of necessity, most of the writings here will be of a more personal nature than those found elsewhere on this site.
Jun 03, 2009 tearing down the ego in alcoholics anonymous. Therefore, to make sense of why we think about the ego the way we do when it comes to alcohol addiction, we must look at the source of why which is primarily the big book of alcoholics anonymous, and the twelve steps and twelve traditions. Ego deflation is imperative for healthy sobriety, even if it is not the. I believe the big book reminds us that we probably arent the best judge of our own progress, quite often friends of the newcomer are aware of the difference long before he is himself. Back to the basics of recovery is a 2016 version of the 1946 beginners meetings described in a best selling recovery book titled, back to basics. It would lend legitimacy to all the core bs that would unquestioningly remain the god stuff, the ego deflation, etc. You can search for a word and browse all passages containing that word. William james, bill wilson, and the development of alcoholics. Our big book has further grounded us in both the strong. The continued practice of the steps has substantially accomplished this and eliminated the old. Washington for showing the world what life can be like when one swings from the branch of ego, crashes to earth, and ultimately comes up a better, healthy and more honored human being. But scarcely any step is more necessary to longtime sobriety and peace of mind than this one. It is no accident that aa and a sponsor have a lot to gain by ego deflation.
Better keep it exactly as it is, and write something new. Concomitant to this is that whatever one does is ok, even though it may violate anothers obviously less important space. Aas believe that alcoholism is a result of a spiritual weakness, which is a result of character flaws, which are largely the result of ego and self absorption and working the steps will rid us of these character weaknesses, one of which is alcoholism. That archetype could be the self, or god, as was the case with king midas, or any of a number of other positive archetypes such as the hero, sage, savior, healer, divine child, etc. Deflating the ego and embracing selfesteem and responsibility. May 27, 2008 in the big book, the offical book of aa, it says that all alcholics are selfish, egotistical, and need ego deflation. It does work to a large degree for the egomaniacs it was made for it just makes it. Acknowledging ones flaws, admitting ones wrongs and paying amends to others in truly penitent fashion require ego deflation.
Needed is selfdiscipline in honesty, patience and responsibility towards the recovery process and acceptance of their disease. Although the book title, getting to i do, suggests it is for getting to marriage, the subtitle, the secret to doing relationships right is a better reflection of the insight contained. Home read the big book and twelve steps and twelve traditions alcoholics anonymous alcoholics anonymous this is the fourth edition of the big book, the basic text for alcoholics anonymous. We cant really work on getting the ego in line, what we do is work the steps which helps us get into unselfishness and humility and in doing so, out of ego. Why we need to do away with egodeflation and humility in. Bob has published numerous articles in a broad crosssection of respected professional reference books, journals, and edited. Hear recovered addict and big book mucker, cameron f. I know the big book mentions the term egocentric but i cant remember where. It is common knowledge that a return of the fullfledged ego can happen at any time.
Aug 12, 2014 ego is an addiction in and of itself, and it is harmful to recovery. Why do they have such black and white thinking, claiming that all. Hazelden published the book, and created a cottage industry out of. This may account for much of the criminal and unethical conduct we observe in addicts.