Twelve Steps and Traditions

The Twelve Steps are an important part of our treatment for the mental condition of addiction. The GAA fellowship places a high value on respect for all of the many various spiritual, philosophical and religious beliefs and have worded our steps in a general way that can be used by anyone seeking recovery from compulsive gaming.

For those whose attempts to effectively moderate their gaming have failed, we have a suggested program of recovery involving spiritual principles for a new way of living. Many of us have tried to recover without following these suggestions, without success. Those of us who have tried this approach have consistently found remarkable progress toward the people we were meant to be.

Some of these steps sound difficult, perhaps impossible, at this point. All we needed to start work in this program was some honesty, open-mindedness and willingness. If you have these, you will be able to begin, one step at a time. We strongly suggest seeking the help of an experienced sponsor. None of us has been able to live perfectly by the principles set forth here. We seek progress, not perfection, one day at a time.

GAA is an international fellowship of people of many different worldviews, spiritual beliefs, and religions. We carefully word for inclusiveness our steps, traditions, and literature and are careful not to imply an affiliation with or opinion on any religion or spiritual worldview. When referring to the power outside ourselves sought in the twelve steps, our literature simply calls it “power greater than ourselves” or “higher power” to include all possible concepts (including God) and not to exclude any concept.

In GAA meetings, Muslims, Christians, atheists, Buddhists, Jews, Humanists, Hindus, New Agers, Taoists, and people of other philosophies and spiritual beliefs should all feel free to mention their beliefs and religious affiliation or lack of it. When we do so, we are careful not to imply that as a group we all share the same belief or that working our program requires that belief.

Because we were unable to moderate gaming or stop on our own strength and understandings, we seek additional strength and guidance from outside ourselves. Each GAA member makes use of one or more forms of strength and guidance, such as support groups, friends, counselors, principles, recovery programs, spiritual practices, religious sources, or the universe, collectively referred to as “power greater than ourselves” or sometimes “higher power.”

One source of strength and guidance for many recovering gaming addicts is their religious or spiritual beliefs. GAA does not advocate any religious beliefs or specific spiritual concepts of higher power. When you hear people talk about God or other religious beliefs, they are talking about their own personal beliefs. There is no expectation that anyone adopt anyone else’s beliefs or deny their own. Please do not give up on GAA if you hear someone say or imply anything to the contrary. If you want the support and camaraderie of GAA, it’s very important that you stay, get the support you need, and add your experience to that of the group.

 

The Twelve Steps of GAA

Here are the steps we have taken, which are suggested in our program of recovery:

  1. We admitted that we were powerless over gaming addiction, and that our lives had become unmanageable.
  2. We came to believe that power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
  3. We made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of such power.
  4. We made a searching and fearless personal inventory of ourselves.
  5. We admitted to ourselves, another human being, and power greater than ourselves the exact nature of our problematic behavior and attitudes.
  6. We were entirely ready to have power greater than ourselves completely free us of all these defects of character.
  7. We humbly sought from higher power the removal of our shortcomings.
  8. We made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
  9. We made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
  10. We continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.
  11. We sought through practices such as meditation and prayer to improve our conscious contact with power greater than ourselves, seeking only knowledge of what to do and the strength to do so.
  12. Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to gaming addicts, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

The Twelve Traditions of GAA

While G.A.A. has no rules, we do have Twelve Traditions that guide our fellowship toward unity. The Traditions keep us focused on our single purpose and guide us away from controversies and power struggles that would tear our fellowship apart.

  1. Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon GAA unity.
  2. For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority—our group conscience as guided by power greater than ourselves. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.
  3. The only requirement for GAA membership is a desire to stop computer/video gaming.
  4. Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or GAA as a whole.
  5. Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry its message to the gaming addict who still suffers.
  6. An GAA group ought never endorse, finance or lend the GAA name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property and prestige divert us from our primary purpose.
  7. Every GAA group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions.
  8. Gaming Addicts Anonymous should remain forever nonprofessional, but our service centers may employ special workers.
  9. GAA, as such, ought never be organized; but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve.
  10. Gaming Addicts Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues; hence the GAA name ought never be drawn into public controversy.
  11. Our public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion; we need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio, films and internet.
  12. Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our Traditions, ever reminding us to place principles before personalities.