Are you leading an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting and wondering what topic to discuss? Whether you are leading your first meeting or your 100th, an open meeting or even a speaker meeting, here’s a quick guide to the Sober Speak Meeting Topics we like. Of course, there are many more; these are just a few we love to hear about.
Here’s a quick guide to the Alcoholics Anonymous Meeting Topics we like. Of course, there are many more; these are just a few we love to hear about.
Table of contents
- 1. Spiritual Awakening
- 2. Step
- 3. Slogans
- 4. Serenity Prayer
- 5. Willing to go to any lengths
- 6. Dealing with difficult people: Acceptance is the Key
- 7. Gratitude
- 8. Tradition 3
- 9. One Day at a Time
- 10. Humility
- 11. Serenity Prayer Full Version
- 12. The Promises
- 13. Step 9
- 14. Step 5
- 15. Too Busy for Meetings
- 16. Triggers
- 17. Tradition 11
- 18. Service
- 19. Online Meetings
- 20. Maintaining Sobriety
- 21. Identify, Don’t Compare
- 22. God of My Understanding
- 23. Step 10
- 24. The Still Suffering Alcoholic
- 25. Addictive Personality
- 26. Mental Illness
- 27. Sponsorship
- 28. A New Freedom and A New Happiness
- 29. Altered Attitudes
- 30. How It Works
- 31. Unity, Service, and Recovery
- 32. Physical Craving
- 33. Higher Power
- 34. Forgiving Others
- 35. Money
- Summing Up
1. Spiritual Awakening
It’s fun to hear about everyone’s experience with the personality change that brings about recovery from alcoholism in Alcoholics Anonymous. A spiritual awakening, or spiritual experience, is a powerful and profound shift in consciousness that opens up new ways of perceiving the world and one’s own self. There’s an explanation in the Alcoholics Anonymous Big Book Appendix II. Appendix II is where the famous quote by Herbert Spencer says, “There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all arguments and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance–that principle is contempt before investigation.”
There’s a deep spiritual part to AA meetings. It is not a church; keep that in mind. Each individual finds a Higher Power of their own understanding.
2. Step 1
Great for beginners meetings and open meetings, Step 1 is where we begin and for those of us that have been around a while, this step can bring us back to the beginning of recovery. The first step reads:
STEP 1: We admitted we were POWERLESS over alcohol, that our lives had become unmanageable.
Some AA meeting attendees may have been in a treatment center, others come from churches, or a friend told them about Alcoholics Anonymous. It’s always fun to hear stories about how members of Alcoholics Anonymous surrendered.
3. Slogans
- Live and Let Live
- Keep It Simple
- Easy Does It
- But for the Grace of God
- Think…Think…Think…
- Time Takes Time
These words are commonly spoken at AA meetings or displayed on the meeting room’s walls. If you’ve attended AA meetings, you’ve certainly used these terms or heard them spoken by long-time AA members. A good way to lead off with this topic is to ask how the slogans help you with sobriety and life.
4. Serenity Prayer
The Serenity Prayer is recited at most AA meetings, sometimes during the opening and sometimes during the closing.
GOD, GRANT ME THE SERENITY
TO ACCEPT THE THINGS I CANNOT CHANGE
THE COURAGE TO CHANGE THE THINGS I CAN
AND THE WISDOM TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE.
AMEN
This topic opens up the discussion of how this prayer helps each individual. AA members often have personal stories of reciting the prayer during stressful situations or when they lose hope. This can be another powerful discussion.
5. Willing to go to any lengths
Willing to go to any lengths comes directly from the AA Big Book in Chapter 5, How It Works:
IF YOU HAVE DECIDED YOU WANT WHAT WE HAVE AND ARE WILLING TO GO TO ANY LENGTH TO GET IT – THEN YOU ARE READY TO TAKE CERTAIN STEPS.
The meeting attendees can steer the discussion in a few different directions. Let me know if you need any further assistance. Some may discuss the steps and how we must be willing to do them. Or perhaps someone will bring up what lengths they went to get alcohol and how they probably used to do anything to get the next “fix”. In sobriety, we do the same thing, but instead, we do anything to stay sober.
6. Dealing with difficult people: Acceptance is the Key
This is fun, right? Well, it’s a fact of life. We will deal with difficult people. I know I have. This is a great topic to learn how others handle this challenge in life. The discussion can go a few ways such as the Serenity Prayer, we can only change ourselves. Or the slogan, live and let live. Again, we can only focus on our own recovery. There is a story in the back of the Big Book called Doctor, Alcoholic, Addict, and in it, this story says:
WHEN I AM DISTURBED, IT IS BECAUSE I FIND SOME PERSON, PLACE, THING OR SITUATION – SOME FACT OF LIFE – UNACCEPTABLE TO ME, AND I CAN FIND NO SERENITY UNTIL I ACCEPT THAT PERSON, PLACE, THING OR SITUATION AS BEING EXACTLY THE WAY IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE.
7. Gratitude
Gratitude is an old stand-by topic for AA meetings. An AA Grapevine article from November 1957 states that “gratitude and serenity are two sides of the coin of sobriety.” It is often said that a grateful alcoholic is a sober alcoholic.
Gratitude is typically discussed in an AA meeting during November because that month is considered “Gratitude Month” in AA circles, but the topic can be used at any time of the year.
8. Tradition 3
The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking.
Most alcoholics, including myself, feel very fortunate that the only requirement for AA membership is a desire to quit drinking. I’m so glad no one told me membership requires moral inventory and amends to those I’ve harmed. AA has no social or financial requirements. When or how did Tradition 3 resonate with you?
9. One Day at a Time
Are you heading up a beginner’s meeting or just interested in Getting Back to the Basics? One Day at a Time is always a fan favorite in Alcoholics Anonymous or any other recovery program. Many newcomers can feel overwhelmed considering life without alcohol. The idea of One Day at a Time is found in the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous on page 85. On this page, Wilson reminds us that, as individuals with addictions, we are not cured of our illness just because we have abstained for some time. Members of AA are sober each day based on a “spiritual reprieve” contingent of our spiritual fitness.
Dr. Bob and Bill W used the term when attempting to sober up Bill D (Alcoholic #3) because Bill D was overwhelmed with the thought of stopping drinking “forever.” Bill and Bob said to the man, “You can quit for 24 hours, can’t you?” Bill D is the “Man in the Bed” portrayed in a 1955 painting created for the Grapevine. Bill D remained sober until his death 19 years later.
10. Humility
Humility is closely tied to Step 6 as a topic in AA.
Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.
Examples of Humility Topics
- Is humility the same as being humble? What’s the difference?
- What does it mean to humbly ask?
- What are examples of humility you have witnessed both in AA and outside AA?
- How do you practice humility in recovery?
- How does humility relate to recovery?
- What does the Big Book say about humility?
- What does humility mean in regards to Step Six of Alcoholics Anonymous?
- That should get you started on discussing the subject of humility.
11. Serenity Prayer Full Version
Most of us only know the short version of this prayer. Here is the full version.
God, grant me the Serenity
To accept the things I cannot change...
Courage to change the things I can,
And Wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time,
Accepting hardship as the pathway to peace.
Taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is,
Not as I would have it.
Trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender to His will.
That I may be reasonably happy in this life,
And supremely happy with Him forever in the next.
AMEN
How does this version expand on how we see the prayer? Is it wise to only use the short version?
12. The Promises
We know these so well. We hear them at every meeting and might even know them by heart. New members and visitors may not know what they are or mean. So, this is a great topic for discussion meetings.
“If we are painstaking about this phase of our development we will be amazed before we are halfway through. We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness. We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace. No matter how far down the scale we have gone, we will see how our experience can benefit others. That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear. We will lose interest in selfish things and gain interest in our fellows. Self-seeking will slip away. Our whole attitude and outlook on life will change, fear of people and economic insecurity will leave us. We will intuitively know how to handle situations that used to baffle us. We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves. Are these unrealistic promises? We think not. They are being fulfilled among us sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly. They will materialize if we work for them.”
Have all of these promises become true for us, or only some? Remember that they will materialize if we work for them. There are conditions for these promises to be fulfilled. What are they?
13. Step 9
This was certainly the scariest step for me.
Step 9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.
For most of us, the fear of rejection and opening old wounds is terrifying. We may have apologized in the past only to let people down again. Understandably, the people we are trying to make amends to would be cynical. This applies even more so when you are dealing with family members. Merriam-Webster defines amends as “compensation for a loss or injury.” The other big question in this step is how we will decide if making amends will injure the person we want to make amends to or if it will hurt others. And, of course, are we just using that as an excuse to avoid conflict?
Examples of Questions for a Step 9 Meeting
- Do we have an unreasonable expectation of what can happen?
- Did we steal, and how will we offer to repay it?
- Are we just using that as an excuse to avoid conflict?
- If they say something, can we practice restraint of the tongue?
14. Step 5
The first Step 4 may be intimidating as we make a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves. Now in step 5, we have to admit it. This takes rigorous honesty.
Step 5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.
While step 9 is the scariest step, step 5 is the one where we face humiliation. The person we confess to will probably be our sponsor – how should they handle this? What if something you admit to offends them.
Given all of this, we have to ask why is this step necessary and what does it do to help us on road to sobriety.
15. Too Busy for Meetings
Sometimes we say we are too busy for Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. I have to say that I believe that when you least want to go to a meeting, you need to go.
What effect does this have on our sobriety?
Meetings are a place where we can share our own experiences and listen to the experiences of others.
When we feel too busy for support groups, then is our sobriety at risk?
16. Triggers
It is vital to know what triggers a desire to drink. When the triggers strike, what do we do? Phone calls are one of the first things we should think of. Should the next right thing be to look for a meeting because such a.a. meetings can help us refocus?
17. Tradition 11
Attraction is often how new members are drawn to their first A.A. meeting. The eleventh tradition reads:
Our public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion; we need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio, and films
The long version says more:
Our relations with the general public should be characterized by personal anonymity. We think A.A. ought to avoid sensational advertising. Our names and pictures as A.A. members ought not to be broadcast, filmed, or publicly printed. Our public relations should be guided by the principle of attraction rather than promotion. There is never a need to praise ourselves. We feel it better to let our friends recommend us.
18. Service
Service is at the heart of recovery. So, what service can we do? How does it help the recovery process?
19. Online Meetings
Many of these are open meetings. We used these more in the days of the COVID-19 pandemic, and for a long time, they have been possible for people who are far away from meeting places or have a physical disease.
Questions for an Online Meeting Topic Meeting
- How are they better than face-to-face meetings
- How are they worse?
- Does technology improve or weaken the meeting experience?
- Do you feel online meetings are valid now that the pandemic is over?
20. Maintaining Sobriety
The A.A. preamble states:
Our primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics to achieve sobriety.
How do we maintain sobriety, and how does the A.A. program help? How do we contribute to others overcoming their alcohol addiction? Consider Bill W’s visit to Doctor Bob while battling to avoid a drink.
21. Identify, Don’t Compare
We hear so many stories in our meetings; we are all different. This can be particularly confusing for new members. If we compare, we start to say we weren’t that bad or wonder at how “mild” someone’s alcohol abuse was, and that makes us question whether we need to attend A.A. groups at all.
22. God of My Understanding
What do we understand our Higher Power to be? We need to have an open mind when considering this topic. The various ideas of people’s higher powers are fascinating.
How do we understand God? Why is the idea of the God of My Understanding important?
23. Step 10
Recovery is a lifelong process.
Step 10. Continued to take personal inventory, and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.
If we are sober now, isn’t that enough? Explore why it needs to be an ongoing process and what might happen if we stop this constant review. How can we make it part of our daily reflection?
24. The Still Suffering Alcoholic
Why should we bother? The world teaches us to look after number one, but in A.A., the primary purpose is to help others achieve sobriety. Is there anything special we can do in a beginner’s meeting to ensure those with an alcohol abuse problem want to come back?
25. Addictive Personality
I think that alcoholics have, for the most part, addictive personalities. A large number engage in drug abuse and are also members of Narcotics Anonymous so they can deal with their drug addiction. Is the A.A. recovery program enough to help the addictive personality across a spectrum of possible addictions?
26. Mental Illness
A.A. acknowledges that some have mental illnesses and says:
There are those, too, who suffer from grave emotional and mental disorders, but many of them do recover if they have the capacity to be honest.
- How can we deal with people who may have depression, PTSD, or even schizophrenia?
- How can we reach out and bring them into a safe place?
More so when they are new members. Remember that it is very different from physical illness.
27. Sponsorship
This is the greatest service we can render the recovering alcoholic. What are the qualities of a good sponsor, and how should they go about being a sponsor? How long should a sponsor have been a member of A.A.?
28. A New Freedom and A New Happiness
We had a drinking problem. Now we can have fun sober. Bill W called this the fourth dimension of existence.
How dark it is before dawn! In reality that was the beginning of my last debauch. I was soon to be catapulted into what I like to call the fourth dimension of existence. I was to know happiness, peace, and usefulness, in a way of life that is incredibly more wonderful as time passes.
Is this how we feel? Are we filled with the joy of living? If we are, then why, and if not, why not?
29. Altered Attitudes
In comparison to our past, we have changed dramatically, and our attitudes have been altered. If we have become sober but our attitudes are unchanged, then we might be what is called a dry drunk. We need to achieve emotional sobriety as well.
- Have our attitudes altered or not?
- If not, why not and how can we ditch the emotional hangover?
- How does this affect our interactions in the real world?
30. How It Works
The steps of Alcoholics Anonymous were the first time that step recovery was used. It is now used for other types of substance abuse, but how does it all fit together?
- How does each step logically follow the previous one?
- Which are the most important steps or are they all equally important?
31. Unity, Service, and Recovery
These are the legacies of Alcoholics Anonymous. Unity is that we are a group of people who come together for a common purpose: to stay sober. Service is that we are here to serve other alcoholics and our communities. Recovery is that we continue to pursue recovery in whatever way we see fit. Basically, we continue to expand our spiritual lives. These three legacies are printed on some AA chips (coins).
32. Physical Craving
The AA Big Book reads:
…the body of the alcoholic is quite as abnormal as his mind. It did not satisfy us to be told we could not control our drinking just because we were maladjusted to life, that we were in full flight from reality, or were outright mental defectives. These things were true to some extent, in fact, to a considerable extent with some of us. But we are sure that our bodies are sickened as well. pg. xxiv
Here the Big Book begins to talk about our physical bodies being sickened by drinking too much alcohol. You can discuss how you were both mentally and physically addicted and ask others to share on this as well.
33. Higher Power
In step 2, we come to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. Discuss how we get to know that Power. What names do you call that Power? How do we get to know our Power better?
34. Forgiving Others
In step 5, we learn to forgive others and see our part in offenses. On page 58 of the Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, it is said that “often is it while working on this step (Step 5) with our sponsors or spiritual advisors that we first felt truly able to forgive others, no matter how deeply we felt they wronged us.“
35. Money
This “taboo” topic proves to be a highly spirited discussion. One of the promises says fear of economic insecurity will leave us. (AA Big Book pg. 84)
- How do you handle the fear of economic insecurity in your life?
Summing Up
These are just a few topic suggestions. Many others can help make any A.A. meeting a wonderful experience. The A.A. big book is a rich source of possibilities. For example, I mentioned only two of the twelve traditions, so there are another ten topics.
Note: All quotes are from the book Alcoholics Anonymous, also known as the Big Book.