While going to college I have seen first hand how a twelve step campus can benefit an individual. I myself am not an addict to food, booze or drugs but I do have family and friends who fall into those labels. One of my closest friends began attending a twelve step programon campus 90 days ago and the results have been extraordinary. She has made a commitment to herself, and surrendered her pride to a higher power alongside a group of supporters. This has enabled her to curb her addiction one day at a time. The twelve step campus she is a member of gives her the courage to stand tall in difficult situations where her addiction could normally get the better of her. Within ninety days she has rebuilt her positive energy, her healthy habits and most of all, her happiness. She writes in her diary every evening after doing her homework and before going to bed, about the journey she accomplished that day. Every morning before class she calls her sponsor to talk about her plan for the day. The amount of dedication she has to this 12 step program is admirable and makes me question what I’m missing out on. I claim no uncontrollable vice of my own, but is that the truth?
Her newfound pattern of life has brought me to question my own decisions while living on campus. I wonder if I could be happier, healthier, more mentally and physically fit if I figured out what my vices were and found a 12 step program of my own. I decided to do some research. What I found surprised There is literally a anonymous group at my school for just about everything! From cluttering to overeating! And if there isn’t one, then surely it could be brought up with the campus administration and arranged. I have yet to figure out which program would be right for me. I think sometimes anger management may do me some good, or procrastinators anonymous. If there is a 12 step program for manic depressiveness, that would certainly be my group. It makes me wonder though, if all of these manic depressives gather twelve times a month in the same place, would their cycles align? I can see it now. One day everyone in the room is ready to lay down and die, and then next week we decide to throw a party with a banner that says, “WooHoo!!!” I don’t know. There are certainly things that I can improve on, and maybe I need some sort of intervention to find out what my main problem is. I suppose that if it’s a big enough problem, it will find me. But until then I continue to draw inspiration from watching this close and dear friend of mine change her life one day at a time.
But as well as making me question my own vices, her new ways have influenced me in the same beneficial manner as they have her. Because we are so close her lifestyle has a profound effect on my own and we tend to mimic each other’s habits. In this case, because her lifestyle has changed for the positive and I am entirely supportive, I no longer do anything that contradicts her program’s creed. All said and done, I have an enormous respect for my college for providing a twelve step campus to help people gain control over the things they do not have the strength to overcome alone. I have seen first hand the positive changes that are possible as a result.
