TRUSTING OTHERS

Trusting others is at the heart of the recovery journey. In Chapter 6, we read that when we made a searching and fearless moral inventory, we then "admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs." [Page 72] This fifth step requires a deep trust in another person—someone who will listen without judgment. Many of us struggled with trust because we had been dishonest or betrayed, but the Big Book promises that as we work the steps, this fear begins to lift. On page 83, we find the promise that "we will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us"—and part of that intuition is learning to trust the right people. Trusting others is not blind faith; it's a spiritual experiment. We start by trusting God, then a sponsor, then the fellowship, and gradually our capacity for trust grows. The book reminds us that "we have to depend upon the help and guidance of a Higher Power and the fellowship of A.A." [Page 85] Without trust, we remain isolated and powerless. With it, we find a new freedom and a new sense of belonging.