The truth is that the majority of people who seek traditional rehabilitation treatment and attend Alcoholics Anonymous do not succeed in long term sobriety. Yes, there is that handful of people who do, but they are the minority.

A lot of people who do manage to stay sober, do so with a great deal of struggle and suffering. They continue to fight cravings to drink constantly and endure many physical and emotional symptoms such as depression, mood swings and anxiety.

A lot of people feel uncomfortable with many aspects of AA and standard rehabilitation centers such as, the rigid ritualistic structure, the powerlessness concept, the punitive tone and the dogmatic religious aspect. It's just not a good fit for many.

However, since they are presented with no other options, they are either forced to go through with something that doesn't resonate for them and therefore will not be successful, or walk away and continue to drink.

Alcoholics Anonymous and rehabilitation centers like to blame the individual and say that they just haven't "hit their bottom" or they "didn't work the program." When the truth is that the real problem is that 12 step treatment programs are just not effective. A lot of people don't "hit bottom" even though everyone around them is wondering how they can go any lower and many people have worked the program to no avail.

The reason the success rate for sobriety is so low and alcohol addiction continues to be a very serious and rapidly growing problem in our society is because there is a flaw in the traditional treatment approach. They are missing a very big and important piece of the puzzle.

Scientific research tells us that alcoholism is not a spiritual disease, lack of will power, a personality disorder or a mental illness. Yes, it does impact an individual on the spiritual and psychological levels in a profound way, and alter the personality, but the root of alcoholism is in biochemistry.

The so called disease of the spirit is not the result of defect in character, but rather it is a deficiency or imbalance of neurotransmitters in the reward pathway of the brain caused by allergy, nutritional deficiencies, poor diet and other biochemical imbalances that can be corrected. You are not powerless over addiction and do not have to attend AA meetings the rest of your life.

You can achieve successful long term sobriety, eliminate cravings and avoid relapse by restoring and balancing the neurotransmitters in your brain through a holistic approach that addresses the biochemical, the psychological and the spiritual with a combination of diet, nutrition and changes in lifestyle.

I'm Cynthia Perkins, M.Ed., and I have 20 years of uninterrupted sobriety. I'm also a trained mental health professional. I have not attended an AA meeting in over 17 years.

I do not ever have cravings to drink or drug. I am no longer crippled by the anxiety, depression and mood swings that usually accompany recovery.

On this site I will share with you how I have achieved success and why traditional rehabilitation centers and AA are so ineffective. I'll present you with a proven and successful approach for what you need to get sober and stay sober without AA, the 12 steps or succumbing to the powerlessness concept.