What Is SOS?

SOS is an alternative recovery method for those alcoholics or drug addicts who are uncomfortable with the spiritual content of widely available 12-Step programs. SOS takes a reasonable, secular approach to recovery and maintains that sobriety is a separate issue from religion or spirituality. SOS credits the individual for achieving and maintaining his or her own sobriety, without reliance on any "Higher Power." SOS respects recovery in any form regardless of the path by which it is achieved. It is not opposed to or in competition with any other recovery programs.

SOS supports healthy skepticism and encourages the use of the scientific method to understand alcoholism.

The SOS Groups
SOS is a non-profit network of autonomous, non-professional local groups dedicated solely to helping individuals achieve and maintain sobriety. There are groups meeting in many cities throughout the country.

All those who sincerely seek sobriety are welcome as members in any SOS Group. SOS is not a spin-off of any religious group. There is no hidden agenda, as SOS is concerned with sobriety, not religiosity. SOS seeks only to promote sobriety amongst those who suffer from alcoholism or other drug addictions. As a group, SOS has no opinion on outside matters and does not wish to become entangled in outside controversy.

Although sobriety is an individual responsibility, life does not have to be faced alone. The support of other alcoholics and addicts is a vital adjunct to recovery. In SOS, members share experiences, insights, information, strength, and encouragement in friendly, honest, anonymous, and supportive group meetings. To avoid unnecessary entanglements, each SOS group is self-supporting through contributions from its members and refuses outside support.

The Sobriety Priority
Sobriety is the number one priority in an alcoholic's or addict's life. As such, he or she must abstain from all drugs or alcohol. Honest, clear, and direct communication of feelings, thoughts, and knowledge aids in recovery and in choosing non-destructive, non-delusional, and rational approaches to living sober and rewarding lives. As knowledge of drinking or addiction might cause a person harm or embarrassment in the outside world, SOS guards the anonymity of its membership and the contents of its discussions from those not within the group.

SOS encourages the scientific study of alcoholism and addiction in all their aspects. SOS does not limit its outlook to one area of knowledge or theory of alcoholism and addiction. To break the cycle of denial and achieve sobriety, we first acknowledge that we are alcoholics or addicts. We reaffirm this truth daily and accept without reservation the fact that, as clean and sober individuals, we can not and do not drink or use, no matter what. Since drinking or using is not an option for us, we take whatever steps are necessary to continue our Sobriety Priority lifelong.

A quality of life - "the good life" - can be achieved. However, life is also filled with uncertainties. Therefore, we do not drink or use regardless of feelings, circumstances, or conflicts. We share in confidence with each other our thoughts and feelings as sober, clean individuals. Sobriety is our Priority, and we are each responsible for our lives and our sobriety.

In James Christopher's book, How to Stay Sober: Recovery Without Religion, Christopher, founder of SOS, describes his own "recovery without religion." He focuses on the practical aspects of his triumph over alcoholism and includes guidelines for the formation of secular support groups. In Unhooked: Staying Sober and Drug Free, Christopher recounts the evolution of SOS, invites the reader to sit in on a fictionalized SOS meeting and offers further strategies for achieving and maintaining sobriety and self-respect. In his most recent book, SOS Sobriety: The Proven Alternative To 12-Step Programs, James Christopher describes the proven methods of alcohol and drug abstention advocated by Secular Organizations for Sobriety (also known as "Save Our Selves"), the world's largest non-12-Step addiction recovery program.

The History Of SOS
The SOS movement began with an article in the Summer 1985 issue of Free Inquiry magazine, the leading secular humanist journal in the country. James Christopher, the son of an alcoholic and a sober alcoholic himself, wrote "Sobriety Without Superstition," an account of the path he took to sobriety. This path has led Christopher from seventeen years of a fearful and guilty alcoholism to a fearful and guilty sobriety with Alcoholics Anonymous. Christopher felt that there must be other alcoholics who wanted to achieve and maintain sobriety through personal responsibility and self-reliance. He also felt that turning one's life over to a "higher power" was not compatible with current research that indicated that addiction is the result of physiology, not psychology. As a result of the tremendous response to the article from alcoholics and addicts who wanted to maintain sobriety as a separate issue from religion, Jim Christopher founded the Secular Organizations for Sobriety.

Today there are SOS groups meeting in every state, as well as in other countries. SOS has gained recognition from rehabilitation professionals and the nation's court systems. In November of 1987, the California courts recognized SOS as an alternative to AA in sentencing offenders to mandatory participation in a rehabilitation program. Also, the Veterans Administration has adopted a policy which prohibits mandatory participation in programs of a religious nature.

The SOS International Newsletter
The SOS National Clearinghouse publishes a quarterly newsletter that is filled with items of interest to all recovering substance abusers, to professionals, and to the families and friends of alcoholics and addicts. The SOS International Newsletter serves as an information source for group convenors and as a forum for newsletter subscribers. Subscriptions are $18 per year.

SOS meetings in the Los Angeles Area
Contact Information
For information about a group in your area, information on book purchases or newsletter subscriptions, or if you would like to start a group, contact:

SOS National Clearinghouse
The Center for Inquiry - West
4773 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90027

Phone: (323) 666-4295

E-mail: sos@cfiwest.org
(Place "ATTN Clearinghouse" in the subject line.)

SOS is a subcommittee of the Council for Secular Humanism, a nonprofit corporation. Gifts to SOS are fully tax-deductible and should be made payable to "SOS/Council for Secular Humanism".

Thank You at CFI West for this web page. To see all of this web site go to

http://www.cfiwest.org/sos