Growth & recovery
At the heart of Grow are the 12 Steps of Personal Growth and Recovery — a gentle, practical path that has helped millions of people around the world rebuild their lives. After the first step, they can be explored in any order, at your own pace, alongside your group.
We admitted we had lost our way and needed help.
In my words: I take personal responsibility for my part in the problems of life I’m experiencing.
We firmly resolved to get well and co-operated with the help that we needed.
In my words: I’m committed to changing myself, and open to receiving the help I need from the Grow group.
We trusted the spiritual power of life, love and the world around us.
In my words: I have a sense of a power greater than myself — what some call a wise and loving God, and others understand as love and goodness, or nature, according to their own beliefs.
We acknowledged our gifts and our strengths.
In my words: With my group, I take stock of my strengths, and look to change the things I can.
We tackled our weaknesses and failures.
In my words: I look honestly at whether I’m using my gifts and talents for growth, or in ways that harm me.
We committed to the journey even through the tough times.
In my words: I’m in this process for the long haul.
We took care and control of our bodies.
In my words: This is a good place to start — I can change one small thing about myself that changes my whole life.
We learned to think by reason rather than by feelings and imagination.
In my words: I learn the difference between facts and feelings, so I can restore order in my life.
We developed will power to do the right thing in spite of our feelings.
In my words: I practise these new ways of thinking and acting consistently, until they become habit.
We took our responsible and caring place in society.
In my words: I learn how to live in the real world.
We grew daily closer to maturity.
In my words: I accept personal growth as an ongoing task for the rest of my life.
We carried Grow’s hopeful and healing message to others in need.
In my words: It’s through caring about others — as I have been cared for — that an entirely new order comes into my life.
A path you don’t walk alone
The steps aren’t a test to pass or a checklist to race through. They’re a shared language of recovery — explored together, week by week, in the warmth of a group of people who understand.
The Grow Journey Book (the “Blue Book”) draws these steps out in greater depth, and your group refers to it often. You’re welcome to take what helps, in whatever order suits you.
Begin where you are
You don’t need to understand all twelve steps to start. Just come along — the journey unfolds from there.