This paper presents a single case study of a young adult's early recovery from alcohol-use disorder whilst participating in 12-step fellowships. A longitudinal, qualitative study was carried out with semi-structured interviews taking place at intervals of three months. The transcripts were subjected to interpretative phenomenological analysis. During the participant's two months of recovery, a series of intrapersonal changes were reported concerning issues of self-care and emotional development. Following six months in recovery, the participant's recovery focus then centred on the interpersonal issues related to changes in his social network and ways of relating. By ten months, the participant's recovery emphasized aspects of self-actualization, including a sense of spirituality. The findings illustrate how issues of authenticity, emotional expression and identity transformation are intertwined in the participant's early recovery. This idiographic case study offers an in-depth examination into the early days of recovery of a young adult within the context of 12-step recovery fellowships in the UK.
This study explores young adult men's lived experience of addiction recovery through their involvement in Twelve Step fellowships' spirituality. Although there is a large body of research on Twelve Step's recovery model, few studies have examined young adult men's psychological and identity transformation in light of its spiritual principles. Ten men participating in Twelve Step fellowships in the UK were recruited and invited to write a topical autobiography of their recovery. Data were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Participants in early recovery (six months to two years in recovery) provided accounts mostly concerned with maintaining abstinence and incorporating the Twelve Step spiritual principles and practices into their lives. Participants in long-term recovery (five to ten years) portrayed "personal growth" narratives, reflecting on their involvement with the fellowships through their life-course. Values of belonging, authenticity, care and love were identified as significant themes in their narratives and continue to infuse their identities long after initial sobriety establishment. The findings suggest that participants' spirituality evolves into a loving and caring masculine identity, which is key to their psychological development into mature adulthood. It is suggested that amidst the variety of spiritual recovery experiences (religious, atheist or secular) within the Twelve Step programmes, members share life-enhancing values that support the transcendence of their addiction.
This article presents findings from a study that explored young adult men’s lived experience of addiction recovery whilst participating in Alcoholics Anonymous and Twelve Step fellowships in the UK. It argues that changes in self-narrative and temporality might be critical features of the experience of addiction recovery in young adults, facilitating the process of individuation. Examples from the participants’ accounts are provided to illustrate the changes in their sense of identity in light of their recovery trajectories. Participant recovery, as in the mythical hero’s journey, shows itself to be a quest through transformation and growth into a genuine and balanced selfhood, necessitating the difficult transcendence of an unwholesome selfhood that was manifested in their addiction. In mythical literature, the hero develops authenticity and a higher ethical conduct as the result of a process of individuation, and we can find evidence to suggest a similar occurrence in the participants’ journeys. Finally, I reflect on the limitations of the biomedical language of addiction and the potential implications of the hero’s journey myth in the delineation of a more humane and empathic discourse on young men’s recovery and selfchange.
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