Your First AA Meeting

You can walk into a room where you know nobody and still not have to explain yourself. Alcoholics Anonymous says a meeting is members talking about what drinking did to their lives, their relationships, and their personalities, what they did to help themselves, and how they live now. The purpose is to share experience, strength, and hope. You can go once and only listen.

If this is a seizure, severe confusion, trouble breathing, or a collapse, call 911. For a mental health crisis, call or text 988. Do not wait in a meeting room for emergency care.

Who is in the room

Meetings are usually marked open or closed. An open meeting is a group meeting any community member may attend, alcoholic or not. Nonalcoholics attend as observers. Attendees do not disclose members' names outside the meeting. Speakers are generally members talking about their own experience. Those views are the speaker's. Members speak only for themselves, so a share is not a medical instruction and not the fellowship's official position.

A closed meeting is for A.A. members, or for people who have a drinking problem and a desire to stop drinking. These meetings are often informal. They can be useful when a newcomer wants to ask questions of people who have been sober for a while. Tradition Three says the only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. There is no formal application. You are a member of A.A. if you say you are, and a member of a group if you say you are.

The newcomer page says you are welcome regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, income, or profession. There are no dues or fees. The fellowship is supported through member contributions. If a basket goes around, that is self-support. It is not a charge for a seat. There is no national dollar amount for that basket.

How the hour usually goes

Formats vary, and each meeting takes on the feel of its local area. A.A. describes discussion, speaker, beginners, and step, tradition, or book studies.

In a discussion meeting, a chair opens with that group's format and picks a topic, often from A.A. literature. In a speaker meeting, one or more members tell what they were like, what happened, and what they are like now. Some groups prefer that speakers have a minimum period of continuous sobriety. That preference belongs to the group. It is not a national number. Speaker meetings are often open. Beginners meetings are usually led by a member who has been sober awhile. They may use a discussion format or focus on the first three steps. Step or book meetings rotate through the steps, the traditions, or the Big Book. Many groups read a short passage. Those texts stay in the room.

The chair usually opens with the preamble and a few remarks. Some meetings use a moment of silence or the Serenity Prayer. The chair often asks whether anyone new wants to introduce themselves. Identifying yourself is not mandatory, though it might help. Many meetings read an anonymity statement. Many close with a moment of silence and a prayer, or with the Responsibility Statement or another short text. You are not required to say the prayer. Sitting quietly is a way to be in the room.

At both open and closed meetings, discussion may be asked to stay on recovery from alcoholism. The group is run by members, who set the format. There is no professional facilitator in the chair.

Afterward, and if someone sent you

People often talk afterward. Someone may offer help. Staying for that is up to you. You can leave. You do not owe anyone a phone number.

Meetings welcome people referred by a court or a treatment facility. A.A. says the strength of the program, in its view, lies in voluntary membership, and that many members first came because of pressure. A.A. cannot predict who will recover, and it has no authority to decide how recovery should be sought. If someone wants proof you attended, groups cooperate in different ways and there is no set procedure. Some groups, with the person's consent, have a member acknowledge attendance on a slip or digitally. The referred person returns the proof. Proof of attendance is not part of A.A.'s procedure. The group chooses. A referral line does not hold the slip.

Family members looking for their own support do not have to sit in a closed meeting. Al-Anon is a separate fellowship, and the family guide explains it. Observing an open A.A. meeting is allowed. That hour is not Al-Anon.

Where medical care fits

NIDA says mutual-help groups are peer-led and are not professionally led treatment. They can sit beside clinical care. They do not choose a medicine or manage withdrawal. NIAAA's core resource says a sudden stop after chronic heavy drinking can be life-threatening. If that risk fits, get a medical assessment before you stop. Symptoms are on the withdrawal guide. The split between 12-step groups and other mutual help is the pathway comparison. SMART Recovery is a separate mutual-help program.

To find a meeting, start with how to find one and the meetings search. Confirm the listing, then walk in or click the link and listen. Clinical programs are listed on FindTreatment.gov.

Call or text (800) 653-9376 if you want help finding treatment rather than a meeting.

Additional Resources

Sources cited on this page:

• A.A.: What to Expect at an A.A. Meeting
• A.A.: What happens at an A.A. meeting?
• A.A.: What is an open meeting?
• A.A.: What is a closed meeting?
• A.A.: Need help with a drinking problem?
• A.A.: How do you become an A.A. group member?
• A.A.: The Twelve Traditions (short form)
• NIDA: Treatment, including mutual-help groups
• NIAAA Core Resource: Alcohol Use Disorder, From Risk to Diagnosis to Recovery
• SAMHSA FindTreatment.gov
• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
• SmarterRecovery meetings page (public meeting search; listings are not verified)

Common Questions