Nearly a century of helping alcoholics worldwide
Alcoholics Anonymous
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Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a worldwide fellowship of people who share a common purpose: to stay sober and help others recover from alcoholism. Founded in 1935 in Akron, Ohio, AA began when two men — Bill Wilson (“Bill W.”), a New York stockbroker, and Dr. Bob Smith (“Dr. Bob”), a surgeon from Akron — discovered that sharing their experiences and supporting one another helped them remain sober.
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At a time when alcoholism was often misunderstood and viewed as a moral failing rather than an illness, AA introduced a new approach centered on mutual support, personal accountability, spiritual growth, and one alcoholic helping another. Their message of hope spread quickly through word of mouth, meetings, and the publication of the book Alcoholics Anonymous in 1939, commonly known today as the “Big Book.” The book outlined the Twelve Steps, a spiritual program of recovery that remains the foundation of AA today.
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Over the decades, Alcoholics Anonymous has grown into a global fellowship with millions of members and meetings in more than 180 countries. Despite its growth, AA has remained true to its founding principles of anonymity, inclusiveness, and service. Membership is open to anyone with a desire to stop drinking, regardless of age, background, religion, or social status.
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AA is not affiliated with any religious denomination, political organization, or outside institution. The program is self-supporting through voluntary contributions and focuses solely on helping individuals achieve and maintain sobriety through fellowship, sponsorship, meetings, and the practice of the Twelve Steps.
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Today, Alcoholics Anonymous continues to offer hope and recovery to people and families affected by alcoholism, proving that lasting recovery is possible through shared experience, strength, and hope.
The "Big Book of AA"
Alcoholics Anonymous, commonly known as the “Big Book,” is the foundational text of Alcoholics Anonymous and serves as both a guide to recovery from alcoholism and a collection of personal recovery stories. First published in 1939, the book explains the principles and program that became the basis for AA’s Twelve Step approach.
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The Big Book begins by describing alcoholism as a physical, mental, and spiritual illness that cannot be overcome through willpower alone. Early chapters, including “Bill’s Story,” recount the experiences of AA co-founder Bill Wilson and the origins of the fellowship. The book emphasizes that recovery is possible through honesty, self-examination, spiritual growth, and mutual support among recovering alcoholics.
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At the heart of the book are the Twelve Steps — a series of actions designed to help individuals admit powerlessness over alcohol, seek help from a Higher Power as they understand it, examine past behaviors, make amends, and live a life of continued spiritual and personal growth. The program encourages humility, service to others, and ongoing self-reflection as essential parts of sobriety.​​
(Photo of Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous)
How it works
THE TWELVE STEPS OF ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS
1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.
4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.
5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.
7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.
Copyright  1952, 1953, 1981 by Alcoholics Anonymous Publishing (now known as Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.)
All rights reserved.
(Photo of the first meeting place of Dr. Bob Smith and Bill Wilson in Akron, Ohio.)