The Gamblers Anonymous Recovery Program is the foundation
upon which those in the Fellowship are able to rebuild their lives. The
Recovery Program is outlined in Twelve Steps and is a plan for a better way
of living.
For compulsive gamblers to be fully productive members of
society they must completely abstain from gambling. When a compulsive
gambler applies the Twelve Step Recovery Program in their life, his or her
disintegration stops and recovery begins.
By practicing the Twelve Steps of recovery, the
individual is freed to fulfill his or her potential. This program also
enables GA members to lead ethical lives and attain self-respect.
Since these steps are basically spiritual in their
concept, their practice can become a highly rewarding experience. These are
the steps that are a program of recovery:
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1. |
We admitted we were
powerless over gambling - that our lives had become unmanageable. |
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2. |
Came to believe that a
Power greater than ourselves could restore us to a normal way of
thinking and living. |
|
3. |
Made a decision to turn
our will and our lives over to the care of this Power of our own
understanding. |
|
4. |
Made a searching and
fearless moral and financial inventory of ourselves. |
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5. |
Admitted to ourselves and
to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. |
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6. |
Were entirely ready to
have these defects of character removed. |
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7. |
Humbly asked God (of our
understanding) to remove our shortcomings. |
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8. |
Made a list of all persons
we had harmed and became willing to make amends to them all. |
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9. |
Made direct amends to such
people, wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or
others. |
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10. |
Continued to take personal
inventory and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it. |
|
11. |
Sought through prayer and
meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood
Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to
carry that out. |
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12. |
Having made an effort to
practice these principles in all our affairs, we tried to carry this
message to other compulsive gamblers. |
No one claims these steps are in any way original with
Gamblers Anonymous. They reflect practical experience and application of
spiritual insights as recorded by thoughtful men in many ages.
Their greatest importance lies in the fact that they
work. They enable us and thousands of others to lead happy productive lives.
they represent the foundation upon which our society has been built. They
were given to us freely, for which we are grateful.