Rational Recovery is an alternative treatment approach to 12-step programs like AA that uses cognitive techniques rather than relying on concepts like addiction as a disease or a higher power. The document summarizes Rational Recovery's key principles and techniques, including its use of Rational Emotive Therapy to help people recognize and dispute irrational beliefs that could lead to substance use. A study found that among people who had been attending Rational Recovery groups for 3+ months, 73% had abstained from substances in the last month, showing the program can successfully engage people and promote abstinence.

1. Rational Recovery
An Alternative Treatment Approach

2. Social User or Abuser?
For some people, alcohol is a social
activity and there are no consequences
from its use. For many others, the
ramifications are staggering, ranging
from employment loss, family
disruptions, driving violations or DUI
with associated legal costs, and the
healthcare costs are astronomical.

3. Rational Recovery (RR)
“The Small Book”
No “Higher Power”
No regular meetings
No treatment facilities

4. Alcohol
Most commonly used recreational drug
of choice in the U.S.
National Institutes on Health (NIH)
Centers for Disease Control (CDC)

5. RR, An Alternative
Founded by Jack Trimpey, CA, 1986
Counterpoint to 12-Step — AA/NA
Based on Rational-Emotive Therapy by
Albert Ellis et al.

6. RR, An Alternative
Planned, permanent abstinence
Method: Addictive Voice Recognition
Technique (AVRT)
Any thinking that supports or suggests
possible future use of any substance
Any contradiction of a personal commitment
to permanent abstinence

7. AVRTⓇ
Rational-Emotive Therapy (RET) differs from
other major schools of psychotherapy
Current beliefs
Attitudes & self-statements
Emphasizes humans’ innate capacities to
change thinking to live productively

8. AVRTⓇ
(RET) developed ABC model that explains
how we behave emotionally in situations
Activating Event
Beliefs
Consequences—emotional & behavioral

9. RET Teaches
It’s not the activating event that’s the problem,
but how it’s thought about that informs one’s
reaction & approach to problem-solving
Depending on one’s beliefs & thoughts,
consequences may differ
Teaches one to think more rationally, feel
appropriately

10. Trimpey’s Decision
Jack used to drink
habitually, tried AA,
dissatisfied w/label of
alcoholism as a disease,
use of “The Big Book”,
use of a “Higher Power”,
ongoing meetings…

11. Trimpey’s Decision
Jack decided to stop drinking and said, “Quitting
for good was much easier than I thought”.
Resumed life as a person who simply does not
drink alcohol (or use substances)
First couple months difficult, yearning &
irritability

12. RR Compared to 12-
Steps
Ongoing
meetings
Recommended
along with / post-
treatment by
many Clinicians
Recovery rooted in
family values;
meetings may
enable relapse
Opposed to
addiction treatment;
AVRT incompatible

13. RR Compared to 12-
Steps
Alcoholism is a
disease
Supports “I’m an
alcoholic”
declaration for
life
Alcohol use is
voluntary
Gives addicted
people clear, direct
instructions resulting
in lifetime
abstinence

14. Therapeutic Treatment
NIH - National Institutes of Health regarding
AUDs in 2014:
Adults 18+: 16.3 million / 6.3% in U.S.
About 1.5 million adults received treatment for
an AUD at a specialized facility in 2014 (8.9
percent of adults who needed treatment).

15. Therapeutic Treatment
NIH - National Institutes of Health
regarding AUDs in 2014:
Youth ages 12-17, 679,000 in U.S.
About 2.7% had an AUD

16. Treatment Options
The Minnesota Model: Traditional Approach
— Many uncomfortable with commonly
available options:
Don’t like religious aspect
Don’t want to share in group
Don’t like total abstinence

17. Outcomes of Rational Recovery
Patients' abstinence status affects the benefits
of 12-step self-help group participation on
substance use disorder outcomes
by McKellar JD, Harris AH, Moos RH., yields the following
information:

18. Outcomes of Rational Recovery
Abstract from NIH
Study designed to examine the nature of RR and its impact on those who join:
• Self-help movement for substance abusers, with a cognitive
orientation.
• RR suggested as an alternative to Alcoholics Anonymous.
• A national sample of 433 substance-abusing people attending
63 established RR groups was evaluated, using codable self-
report questionnaires completed at RR meetings.
• Members were mostly men with college experience who had
previously attended AA.

19. Outcomes of RR
Study designed to examine the nature of RR and its impact on those who join:
• Among recruits who attended their first RR meeting in the last month, 38%
were abstinent in the last month.
• Among members who had joined 3 or more months before, 73% were
abstinent in the last month; they had attended an average of 4.1 RR meetings in
that month, and carried out exercises at home based on Rational Emotive
Therapy.
• Among those who joined 6 or more months before, 58% reported at least 6
months of abstinence.
• Among members with a history of heavy cocaine use, the portion reporting
abstinence in the last month was not significantly different from those who had
never used cocaine.
• The minority of members who were engaged for 3 months were still
drinking, though, and did so on an average of 9.9 days in the last month.

20. Conclusion
RR succeeded in engaging substance
abusers and promoting abstinence among
many of them while presenting a
cognitive orientation that is different from
the spiritual one of AA. Its utility in
substance abuse treatment warrants
further assessment”(Galanter M., et al. Am J., 1993).