Step Two
Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
Please share your experience, strength, and hope as it relates to Step 2. The opinions expressed here are strictly those of the person who gave them. Take what you liked and leave the rest. Member sharing on the Member Blog may be used in future Al‑Anon publications.
I have been focusing on Step One for a few weeks now – accepting “powerless”. I’m not sure when you are ready to move on to the next Step. I consider myself a person of faith and spirituality and Step Two makes sense. I’ve been looking to faith for a long time especially when I knew I had a problem with my husband’s alcoholism. Sometimes I feel like my prayers are not answered and then I blame myself. I’ve been praying for so long, asking for peace in my life. I’ve also just recently been attending Al-Anon on a regular… Read more »
I have had a very flexible and fluid idea of “God” long before coming to this program. The same way I believe a “day” in the creation of the earth could be a million years, I also believe my Higher Power can be a traditional God but can also be many powers that are outside of me: the Al-Anon program, the AA program, the universe, the world of science. So having multiple ideas of a Higher Power makes it easy to feel that in any given circumstance, one of those powers could restore me to sanity. The Step doesn’t say… Read more »
The controlling patterns of my spouse recently came to the surface of my awareness just a few months ago and I reached out to friend who provided affirmation and assurance to me that the way I had been living was no longer tolerable, especially on an emotional level. Through this friendship I began to see how much more support I needed, beyond the friendship. Another person alone wasn’t enough to help me continue on in this journey of needing even more affirmation and assurance. I needed to reestablish my relationship with my Higher Power on a deeper level. To cry… Read more »
A big turning point for me in Step Two was when I realized I had been waiting for my Higher Power to restore all the OTHER people in my life to sanity. My job is to turn them over and focus on me!
Step Two seemed pretty unattractive to me when I first came to the program, as I had lost faith in God and even in human beings. To believe is to feel sure that something exists and I had serious doubts about the existence of this Higher Power. Furthermore, when I read that this Power greater than myself could restore me to sanity, I had serious questions about my insanity. Also, considering that I thought myself an authority in many areas of my life and of yours and that I could make decisions for myself and for you that concept of… Read more »
“I am powerless… and I am free”
I found these simple words in the midst of an hour’s worth of reading this blog. The fewest words, that spoke the most to me. I exhaled. I cried. I understood.
This step is an exercise in relaxing control. So often, I feel hyper-responsible for the feelings of everyone around me. Right now, I’m in a tense situation at work with a co-worker who has suddenly turned cold and will hardly look at me. I don’t know what happened to make this change. Me before Al-Anon would have been in agony all day about what happened and how I can fix this. Me in Al-Anon is going through waves of discomfort, sometimes pain, and sometimes peace. I’m slowly learning that I am not responsible for how others are behaving. I’m only… Read more »
I often forget that Step Two says “could” restore me to sanity, not “would.”
For me, that means Step Two is asking me to believe in possibilities. I can do that. I can believe in possibilities.
Step two has helped me think and act in a more positive way. I learned if I want my life to be different, I have to change. Insanity was putting my life on hold until other family members changed. I missed so much by doing this. I ask my HP daily to guide me to do his will. I am happy most of the time. I have hobbies, friends and opportunities for growth keep popping up.
I was raised to believe that the power greater than myself would punish me whenever I did something wrong. Because I was constantly being told that I was doing something wrong, I felt like I was doomed. I related everything bad that happened to me as a punishment and I was certain that I deserved it. Because of this I grew up feeling worthless and hating myself. I am so grateful that I was wrong; that those who raised me were wrong. When I discovered my real higher power, I understood that I had been mis-led. When I came to… Read more »
Step Two is written in a way that opened my mind to it, when I first came to the program. “Came to» told me that I became more conscious of something. “Believe” made me feel sure that something was true. Being conscious that something was true, made me trust and consider what came afterward. The ” Higher Power greater than ourselves” concept was not easy to accept. I had thought for years that I was the authority and that I had the right command of my life, so let go of that was not done easily. However, I had to… Read more »
I’m trying too hard…again. I see the words and forget to allow them to have meaning. Isn’t that what this step, and all of them are about…allowance? HP is always there. It is up to me to allow the mystery to unfold, or whatever happens. The process of letting go, but when I think of putting into words what I experience it all suddenly changes. I guess that’s the program at work. Changing my perspective. Giving me more…maybe more than I can handle. I see shares on various platforms of Al-Anon. I relate, and sometimes the words come easy. Other… Read more »
Me insane?!? It took me awhile to wrap my head around that one… didn’t everyone break full bottles of beer over the kitchen sink in retaliation for their alcoholic having a few too many? Or didn’t everyone leave a suitcase packed at the foot of their bed for those times when life was too much? I had religion but not a true spirituality, now as I look back I was even sicker than the drinkers in my life. God has restored me to sanity, and Serenity!!! With the help of Al-Anon! What a friendship I have now with God, and… Read more »
When I first came to Al-Anon many years ago, I attempted to do the Steps on my own. I did what I called the 1, 2, 3 shuffle. It was not until I got a sponsor that working the Steps began to make sense to me. I needed direction and the guidance of someone who had done them before me. When it came to Step 2, I truly believe first I came (to meetings), then I came to (became aware that I needed help) and then Came to believe. I didn’t need to find a Power Greater than myself, I… Read more »
Step 2 is about hope, it helps me to know that I am no longer alone, when I was at the end of my rope with the Alcoholic in my life I felt so scared and isolated. I thought that what I was going through no one else could ever relate to. I was so full of guilt and shame, shame for the behavior that my loved one acted like, falling down, stumbling over his own words, and smelling like a brewery. Guilt for my part of this disease of relationships, yelling at him, hiding his beer, allowing myself and… Read more »
Step Two talks to me about hope. This Step tells me that I am not alone anymore. I also tells me that if I come to believe in a Power greater than myself, I can come to act in a sane manner, even in the most trying situations. Losing my sane reasoning was my everyday «reality» before coming to Al-Anon. I was always ready to jump at any action or situation regarding the alcoholic or any other people, for that matter. The use of alcohol always became a provoking and irritating occasion and brought about unreasonable behaviour, words or actions.… Read more »
Step Two saved my life. Once I admitted that my life had become unmanageable I thought I was at the end of my journey; but not in a good way. I felt like a failure for not being able to fix everything and for having to admit it. I feared there was nowhere to go from there. But then Step Two came along. When I understood that someone could help me. When I understood that it wasn’t going to be someone telling me how to fix things. When I understood that I DIDN’T HAVE TO FIX THINGS! When I understood… Read more »
I had very little problem with the Came to believe part of this step. I consider myself Christian- a follower of Jesus. Though I do not always behave that way I do believe that my relationship with God is the center of my recovery. But now, about being restored to sanity; Somehow my idea of being restored to sanity was ” God is going to snap His fingers once I read all the Al-Anon and AA readings on Step 2 and bang I am restored to sanity….LOL In reality, being restored to sanity means that I had to take a… Read more »
Need this step today!
I owe my sanity, peace of mind, and inner joy to my heavenly Father. He is my daddy, spiritually. He has never left me nor forsaken me. So many times over the years I have cried and talked to him. I received peace afterwards. I have found encouragement and consolation in the words of the holy scriptures. He is my everything. And everyone to me.