last time it wrote i was anticipating my attendance at a not so local survivors of incest anonymous meeting. i made the 1+ hour drive to uniontown and attended the meeting. it was a small meeting, but it felt so right to be there. i remember that in my early recovery days, i actually went to a couple of incest survivors meetings in the mid 80's but that was before they changed the name from Incest Survivors Anonymous to Survivors of Incest Anonymous [circa 1988].
after 23 years of recovery programs i know the drill at this point. but i have to say that this organization is truly one that feels like 'home' to me. the literature is set up like aa's but it does not have the same tone to it; it feels less judgmental somehow. here they are:
ADAPTED 12 STEPS of SIA
1. We admitted we were powerless over the abuse, the effects of the abuse and that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. Came to believe that a loving Higher Power, greater than ourselves, could restore hope, healing and sanity.
3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of a loving Higher Power, as we understood Her/Him.
4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves, the abuse, and its effects on our lives. We have no more secrets.
5. Admitted to a loving Higher Power, to ourselves, and to another human being our strengths and weaknesses.
6. Were entirely ready to have a loving Higher Power help us remove all the debilitating consequences of the abuse and became willing to treat ourselves with respect, compassion and acceptance.
7. Humbly and honestly asked a loving Higher Power to remove the unhealthy and self-defeating consequences stemming from the abuse.
8. Made a list of all the people we may have harmed (of our own free will), especially ourselves and our inner child, and became willing to make amends to them all.
9. Made amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would result in physical, mental, emotional or spiritual harm to ourselves or others.
10. Continued to take responsibility for our own recovery and when we found ourselves behaving in patterns still dictated by the abuse, promptly admitted it. When we succeed, we promptly enjoy it.
11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with ourselves and a loving Higher Power as we understood Her/Him, asking only for knowledge of Her/ His will for us and the power and courage to carry that out.
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to other survivors and practice these principles in all our endeavors.
i met some really cool people there, and it was awesome to hear them share their stories. the group was excited to have a new 'brother' in their family. wow, that seemed just right for them to put it that way. we also discussed the possibility of my starting a meeting in the pittsburgh area, which i definitely am interested in doing. i want to get my feet wet in the program first.
one of the gals who has been involved at the intergroup level made some very cool ceramic purple hearts which she gave me, and i put it on my keyring.
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