one of the biggest reasons that people stay out of 12-step programs like
Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous is because of the whole
religious overtone of things but can you be an atheist I am what is up everybody
this is Chris from the rewired soul where we talk about the problem but
focus on the solution and welcome back to another video where we're talking
about addiction recovery but focusing more on 12-step programs please do me a
favor and share this video because there are so many people who don't go into
12-step programs because of the whole god thing and there's this huge myth
that these programs are religious I am saving this for another video about
spirituality but today I want to talk about atheists and agnostics in 12-step
programs so please share this video because you might know somebody who is
struggling with alcoholism or addiction and not going to a 12-step program
because they think that it requires some kind of religion or belief in God also a
real quick disclaimer that I always have to toss in I am not affiliated with any
other 12-step program I'm not a spokesperson I am merely sharing my
experience so much like everybody else coming into the program I thought it was
very religious I didn't think this was something that I was gonna be into it's
something that I couldn't do like I mentioned in my last video about why I
decided to work a 12-step program my first instinct when the meeting was
at a church was a this is religious they're gonna try to chef God down my
throat now real quick just so you all know the reason why I meetings are in
churches most of the time is because churches went out and meeting spaces for
dirt cheap I used to secretary a meeting and I think we're paying like 30 or 40
dollars a month that's why they're there it has nothing to do with the actual
church most of the time so anyways this is like the biggest hurdle I thought I
was gonna have to get over like even though I was sitting around in these
meetings and stuff like that and like wondering like how am I gonna make this
work for me I don't even think I believe in God like what's going on like but I
knew I had to do something all I was gonna die so one of the first people I
met in the program yeah about five or six years clean and he was
an atheist like I met this guy and I just felt like this sigh of relief am i
oh wow like you're an atheist and he worked this program like this is a guy
who worked the steps multiple times but he was an atheist not only was an
atheist but he actually went and spoke at different conferences about being an
atheist in the program meeting this guy it was like okay cool so even if I don't
believe in some kind of higher power you still work this program and it might
work for me and this was great great great news
so yes you actually can be an atheist and work a 12-step program I often tell
my clients something that Gary Vaynerchuk says all the time I'm here to
suffocate excuses just suffocate it so when people like oh I don't do the whole
god thing I'm an atheist it's like okay that's cool you could still work the
program now some of you out there you're wondering like well how do you do it
well let me tell you about this little group called the free thinkers group of
Alcoholics Anonymous I will say that there are less of them
so like usually they're in major cities so here in Las Vegas I think we have
three or four meetings a week that are for the free thinkers group and what the
free thinkers group is is atheists and agnostics in a a and typically the
people I've met who worked that program they they go into it they go to whatever
meetings they can and then they go to regular meetings but they just don't do
the whole god thing it's not that hard like some of you were thinking like book
Chris but Chris they pray they pray they pray who cares like I mentioned I grew
up in Las Vegas around a ton of Mormons and I wasn't religious at all I went
over to their house for dinner and they prayed it's not a big deal people make
huge issues of the Dharma stuff and like the reason I'm so passionate about this
is like addiction is a life-or-death situation and for you to say oh my god
they pray in there and you're about to die get over it okay so if you're an
atheist or agnostic and you want to save your life and work a free
program go into a 12-step meeting and I'm also going to link down below a
great speaker from the free thinkers group so please if you're somebody
struggling with the spirituality aspect of it please listen to this speaker and
get a better understanding of how you can work this 12-step program without
the whole God Fang okay now that's the end of my rant I am going to do some
other videos about my own personal spirituality and how that developed like
just so you all know I'm a very spiritual person not religious at all
I'm going to link up in the info card a book by Sam Harris called waking up if
any of you have heard of sam harris he is one of the most popular atheists out
there but he's extremely spiritual now and I an atheist or agnostic I'm not
gonna tell you yet so you better be subscribe and stay tuned for that video
again again please do me a favor and share this video there's such a
misconception and a myth about 12-step programs that can potentially save
people's lives so by sharing this video out there on social media you might
actually help somebody who desperately needs to get clean and sober okay but if
you like this video please give it a thumbs up and if you are new here not
only do I make videos about addiction but I always make videos about mental
health click that little round subscribe button and be sure to check out my
entire ask an addict playlist right there okay so thanks so much for
watching get educated about 12-step programs and I will see you next time