Step 2. Came to believe…

Step 2 reads, ‘Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.’  This is a conclusion based on the admission of our powerlessness over alcohol. We all, near the end of our drinking careers have tried numerous times to do something to control our drinking and failed with every attempt. Someone or something greater than ourselves would need to be relied upon for help; we could not do it on our own!

The body’s allergy to alcohol condemned us to continue drinking once we started because of the physical craving. If the physical allergy and craving were the only problem; the solution would be not to start drinking. The problem with us alcoholics is that we also have an obsession of the mind. The obsession of the mind tells us: I’m not alcoholic; I may drink too much but, its’s not a problem; one drink won’t hurt; this time it will be different; if you had my problems, you’d drink too; I’m only having one; just a couple, no more; just need something to settle my nerves; and many others.

There are different types of obsessions, some seem to appear from out of nowhere, others recur often throughout the day, they always seem to appear when we are most vulnerable. We often give into the obsession without a fight; but the problem is the longer an alcoholic goes without alcohol the worse they feel. Usually sooner, rather than later, us alcoholics seek relief-‘just one drink;’ and off we go again!

So we alcoholics have an obsession of the mind, but, are we insane? Sanity is defined as wholeness of mind, the ability to see the truth. As alcoholics we sadly lacked the ability to see the truth. One maxim in AA is that, ‘insanity is repeating the same behavior and expecting different results.’ Another way to consider it is to think of a jar of marbles containing 100 marbles. Next to it is another jar with 97 marbles. They look identical, but one is missing 3 marbles. Insanity does not mean we’ve lost all our marble, just that all our marbles are not there.

As alcoholics we are unable to see the truth about alcohol and our drinking and its affect on our lives. We are unable to see the truth even after it has been repeatedly been shown to us, time and again. Until the obsession is removed we will deny any serious problem with drinking or even the unmanageability it causes us, we are in denial of reality where alcohol and our drinking is concerned.

“I know, if I have an obsession that cause me to drink, I’ll just use my ‘willpower!'” Nice try! But ‘willpower’ won’t work against an obsession. An ‘obsession’ is an insane idea that overcomes all other ideas; even when there is plenty of evidence to the contrary. The obsession that someday, somehow an alcoholic will control his drinking is an insane idea. The alcoholic will believe the insane idea, that controlled drinking  is possible, sometimes to death. When it comes to overpowering the insane idea with a sane idea, the willpower of the individual is useless.

If we are to be helped this Power greater than ourselves must be able and willing to remove our obsession and restore our minds to sanity, at least as it relates to alcohol and our alcoholism. With the obsession removed, the desire to drink will be gone!