One thing that is hard for many people about Alcoholics Anonymous is the necessity to admit that one is powerless in terms of alcohol abuse. We usually like to see ourselves as full of self-control, willful and agents in our own lives. But the admission of something is an important way to get to another level. It helps to develop one's spiritual sense of something beyond oneself that one can turn to and rely upon.

For those that can't connect to traditional religions, it still opens up one's mind to reflect upon the human condition and that we can't understand a lot in the universe, know the future and that we have limitations. Rather than making us feel worse, this can also help us to see that there may be something invisible that can be a spiritual connection giving one strength.

We tend to fall into blame of others but one of the stages of AA involves us to think about people whom we may have wronged and to look at this more deeply. It is relieving often to be able to ask for forgiveness and make amends to others. This helps to deepen one's awareness of unconscious tendencies and old habits that can injure others. Some of this may be unintentional.

Many of these steps are part of one's journey of life as a seeker for higher answers. These are useful for someone to gain insight and self-understanding. If there is a resistance to the process, try to change the language a bit to adapt it more to your own spiritual background or understanding. It is easy to resist something because we take things too literally. By expanding the steps of alcoholics anonymous to their true intention, this can make one more comfortable with the process.