Reflection On Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting

The Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meeting at the Book Study Unity Club gave off a welcoming atmosphere. The environment was very family oriented and seemed to be a place of acceptance and redemption. Overall, the group process was extremely functional. There were a two leaders, one was the leader for the particular chapter the other was the leader of the particular meeting. In the beginning, the leaders both gave their background histories on how they were brought to AA. They continued to emphasize how the program has helped them remain sober throughout the years and furthermore the positive impact it has had on their life holistically.
Each group member respect the leaders immensely. When the leaders spoke, all eyes were on them and silence took

At first, walking into the meeting, I found that I felt as if I was intruding into each member’s life. The members showed great transparency throughout the group session. As the group progressed, I instantly felt a family connection. Everyone was non-judgmental and attentive of each person’s testimony. The faith based nature of the program was one that was not offensive due to the fact that Christianity is my religion. I found it refreshing that people took solitude in that aspect of program. The group would share prayers that would resonate with them, which again, was an aspect of the program that I could relate to. The only characteristic of the program that could make people feel reluctant about the program is the initiation of conversation. The leader would call on people to speak, which for those who aren’t completely comfortable with the process, could be intimidated. Nonetheless, seeing the supportive roles the leaders played in the member’s life was uplifting. Displayed in the Strauts 10th Edition Principles and Practice of Psychiatric Nursing, the working phase of a group can be compared with Tuchman’s performing stage of group development. During this stage, the group becomes a team, directing its energy mainly toward completing its task (pg. 623). This is shown in the meeting, as majority of the AA meeting was a group effort working towards helping their fellow members to achieve and maintain sobriety. What I experienced compared to what I thought I would have experienced was fairly similar. I was expecting for the group to be welcoming, but I was surprised with how blatant each member was with their stories and