Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of people who share their experience with alcoholism and recovery so that they may stay sober and help others recover from alcoholism.

A.A. is not a treatment program, counseling service, medical provider, religious organization, or government agency. It does not diagnose alcoholism, prescribe medication, provide detoxification, housing, employment, legal advice, or professional therapy.

A.A. members speak only from their own experience. We do not claim to have every answer, and we do not compete with treatment or professional care. Many members use both A.A. and outside professional services.

The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking. There are no dues or fees. A.A. is supported by the voluntary contributions of its members.

A.A.'s primary purpose is simple: to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety.

Anyone who believes they may have a drinking problem is welcome at an open A.A. meeting. A person does not need a diagnosis, a referral, money, insurance, or a particular religious belief.

At a closed A.A. meeting, attendance is limited to people who have a desire to stop drinking. Open meetings may also be attended by family members, professionals, students, or others who wish to learn about A.A.

No one has to speak. A newcomer may listen, ask questions, or simply observe. People are invited to introduce themselves, but no one should be pressured to publicly identify as an alcoholic.

Only the individual can decide whether they are an alcoholic and whether A.A. may be helpful.

A.A. meetings vary, but most include members sharing personal experience with drinking and recovery. Some meetings focus on a speaker, a recovery topic, one of the Twelve Steps, or a selection from A.A. literature.

A.A. meetings are not classes or group therapy. Members usually avoid interrupting, debating, diagnosing, or giving direct advice. Instead, each person speaks about what happened to them, what helped them, and how they live sober today.

A person may attend several different meetings before deciding which ones feel most useful. Meetings differ in size, style, age range, culture, language, accessibility, and format.

The best way to learn what A.A. is like is to attend, listen, and speak with members before or after the meeting.

A.A. and treatment centers often cooperate because both want people suffering from alcoholism to find help. They are nevertheless separate.

The treatment center provides professional care. A.A. provides a fellowship and a program of recovery based on one alcoholic helping another. A.A. does not supervise treatment, make clinical decisions, or tell anyone whether to take prescribed medication.

Some people first encounter A.A. while in treatment. Others arrive through family, courts, hospitals, workplaces, or on their own. The way a person arrives matters less than what they discover after they attend.

A.A. members who visit a treatment setting are guests. They follow facility rules while remaining responsible for presenting A.A. accurately.

Alcoholics Anonymous has no opinion on properly prescribed medication. A.A. members are not qualified to tell another person to begin, stop, reduce, or change medication.

Questions about medication belong between the individual and qualified medical professionals who understand the person's history, including alcoholism and other substance use.

Some A.A. members have personal opinions about medication, but personal opinions are not A.A. policy. No member speaks for A.A. as a whole.

Recovery from alcoholism and treatment for physical or mental health conditions can exist together. Honesty with medical professionals and honesty about one's recovery are often important parts of responsible care.

Anonymity is a spiritual and practical principle of A.A. It helps create a place where people can seek recovery without fear of public exposure.

Members are asked not to identify other A.A. members to people outside the Fellowship. They are also asked not to repeat another person's personal story.

In a treatment setting, facility rules and laws may affect confidentiality. A.A. members should never promise legal or clinical confidentiality they cannot guarantee. They can, however, treat every person's identity and story with respect.

A useful rule is: share your own story freely, but protect everyone else's.

A sponsor is an A.A. member who shares personal experience with the A.A. program and helps another member work toward sobriety.

A sponsor is not a therapist, doctor, case manager, banker, romantic partner, probation officer, or emergency service. A sponsor does not control another person's life.

Sponsorship is usually informal and voluntary. A newcomer may ask someone whose sobriety and way of living they respect. It is also acceptable to speak with several members before choosing.

A sponsorship relationship can change. The important thing is to build honest contact with sober people and avoid trying to recover alone.

Leaving treatment can bring freedom, hope, fear, and sudden exposure to familiar pressures. Connecting with A.A. before discharge can make the next step less lonely.

A practical plan may include finding nearby meetings, saving local A.A. contact information, arranging transportation, speaking with sober members, and attending a meeting soon after leaving.

Different meetings have different personalities. One uncomfortable meeting does not represent all of A.A. Trying several meetings may help a newcomer find useful connections.

A.A. is available one day at a time. The next meeting, the next phone call, and the next honest conversation can matter more than having a perfect long-term plan.

A.A. describes its program as spiritual, but it is not a religion. A.A. does not require membership in a church, acceptance of a creed, or belief in a particular description of God.

Members understand spiritual ideas in many different ways. Some follow a religion. Some do not. Some begin with uncertainty, anger, or no belief at all.

A.A. encourages each person to seek an understanding that is honest and workable for them. No member has the authority to impose personal religious beliefs on another.

The shared goal is sobriety, growth, and becoming able to help others.

A.A. does not charge admission, collect membership dues, or require payment for help.

A.A. groups pay their expenses through voluntary contributions from their own members. A newcomer is not required or expected to contribute.

A.A. does not accept responsibility for a person's medical bills, housing, transportation, legal expenses, or other personal costs. It also does not pay members for attending meetings or carrying the message.

The absence of dues helps keep membership open to anyone with a desire to stop drinking.

A.A. groups have one primary purpose: to carry the message of recovery to the alcoholic who still suffers.

That purpose helps A.A. remain focused. A.A. does not take positions on politics, religion, treatment methods, public controversies, or causes outside its own work.

Individual members may hold strong opinions and participate in many parts of community life. They do so as individuals, not as representatives of A.A.

A.A. cooperates with treatment centers, hospitals, courts, clergy, and other professionals without becoming affiliated with them. Cooperation allows the message to reach people while protecting A.A.'s independence.

A.A. does not provide detoxification, medical treatment, psychiatric care, medication management, professional counseling, housing, employment, food, transportation, legal representation, or financial assistance.

A.A. does not keep attendance records for its own membership, investigate members, or decide who is truly alcoholic.

A.A. members may sometimes know about community resources, but referrals and professional services remain the responsibility of qualified agencies and the individual.

What A.A. offers is fellowship, shared experience, regular meetings, a program of recovery, sponsorship, and the opportunity to help others.

You do not have to understand all of A.A. today. You do not have to promise the rest of your life, tell your whole story, or agree with every person you meet.

You may listen. You may ask questions. You may attend different meetings. You may take what is useful and continue learning.

A.A. members are not perfect examples of recovery. They are people trying to live without alcohol and help one another do the same.

The decision to return to drinking may feel urgent. Recovery can begin with a smaller decision: do not drink today, speak honestly with someone, and attend the next meeting.