The Twelve Steps are the Cornerstone of Recovery

Although it’s possible to work the steps on your own, we highly encourage our members to work the steps in conjunction with a step study or sponsor.
The links below provide tools to help you successfully learn each step.

Meetings are a good place to discuss how you are progressing through each step and a place to receive guidance from experienced CoDA members. The remainder of this page discusses the benefits of a step study.

Why Participate in a Step Study?

A step study is a meeting specifically dedicated to learning the steps. Most step studies will use a workbook and dedicate a week or more to each step before progressing to the next. The format of the meetings is to gain maximum exposure to the steps as you progress. It’s important to remember that we’ve spent the better part of a lifetime learning codependent behaviors that no longer serve us. We need to be patient with ourselves as we learn AND practice healthy patterns of behavior that lead to better relationships with ourselves and others. Many members find that it helps to attend both a step study and our regular weekly CoDA meeting for maximum benefit.

If a step study is not available, talk to your sponsor and other CoDA members about initiating a study. You can even start your own! See the Guide titled, Working the Steps With a Group for more information.

Rewards CoDA members have received
from participating in a Step Study:

  • a feeling of satisfaction as you make progress through the Steps and Traditions
  • a pace to actually complete the steps. Without the pace of a step study, many people find it difficult and may never actually complete the steps on their own.
  • a framework for learning the steps
  • accountability – Knowing that other people are completing the steps with you provides motivation as well as inspiration.
  • a place to practice the group conscience process and Traditions
  • an opportunity to practice healthier behaviors in relationships
  • the ability to celebrate progress with others
  • a way to acquire notes, knowledge, and experience that we can use when we sponsor others
  • another opportunity to practice creating a safe environment.

Comments from Step Study Participants:

“Others’ shares opened up new avenues of self-discovery for me to explore.”

“Seeing others deal with the same issues I’m going through, I see others and myself in a new light; I got more points of view.

“No one else is doing this perfectly either.”

“For me, working the Steps in a committed group used my own codependence as a strategy for my growth; I was afraid to let down the group, so my fear drove my need to complete the Steps and not give up mid-way through.“

“Continuing my commitment while others dropped out and dealing with the disappointment of expectations helped me experience the grief of my dreams of these new relationships I didn’t even know I had, and to re-commit to my own recovery journey.”

“I got to celebrate the successful completion of our commitment to each other and ourselves with the remaining members.”

“ I also have my written margin notes and answers to all the questions to share so I can more easily say ‘yes’ when others have since asked me to sponsor them through the Steps and Traditions.”

“I am willing to show up for others much more readily than just for myself to do my homework, sometimes remembering my feelings of healthy shame when thinking of not doing it”

“I really appreciated the pacing of the group especially because I had bogged down and had not been able to complete my Step Four.”