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Recovering
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There
is a great need for 12-step recovery and a peer support group for sex
offenders. And we are such a group! Recovering Sex Offenders Anonymous of Greater
If you are a sex offender or fear that you are capable
of becoming one, whether you are in or out of the legal system, you are
most warmly urged to join us. Any sexual behavior hatt violates the laws of our land, is an offense against society. There are other sexual
behaviors that do not break the law, but do offend moral norms and invade the boundaries
of others. Some offenses have more serious consequences, not only for
the victim but for the perpetrator as well. Basically, our group is made
up of men and women whose sexual actions have offended another person.
Our behaviors include those that victimize another. Misdemeanors
such as: sexual harassment, exhibitionism, voyeurism, indecent phone calls,
and indecent liberties. Also, felonies such as: child molestation, incest,
seducing another from a position of trust, and rape. Sex offending may
also include so called “victimless crimes” such as prostitution and soliciting
prostitutes, where exploitation and victimization are often components.
We feel a responsibility to stop such behavior, to make
amends and restitution to our victims, to not run away from the punishment
for our debt to society, and to help others to stop offending. For most of us, our sex offending is a solitary choice.
We act alone, and we sit alone with our remorse after having done so.
So, it is understandable that on our own, we tried again and again
to stop but failed. Within this 12-Step group we find help from a Higher
Power embodied in others. We learn to seek spiritual help through surrender,
prayer and meditation. We finally learn how to stop. We are no longer
alone. Many of us as children were victims of physical, emotional
or sexual abuse. While this may be a contributor to our adult sexual behavior,
it is in no way viewed as an excuse. Our recovery involves dealing with
those childhood wounds as well as the wounds we have caused others. We
work through the Twelve Steps to clean up the wreckage of our past and
to establish a spiritual foundation for a life of sexual sobriety and
restraint. We feel responsible to serve those who also suffer from the
painful consequences of sexual compulsivity and committing sex offences.
We use a meeting format patterned after that of Alcoholics
Anonymous. Attendance typically numbers RSOA’s meetings include something that is not a part of other
recovery groups, due to the nature of our illegal behavior. It is this
clause: Recovering
Sex Offenders Anonymous |
Recovering
Sex Offenders Anonymous is a Twelve Step, Twelve Tradition oriented meeting
based on the model pioneered by Alcoholics Anonymous. RSOA is not a part
of any international fellowship, movement or cause, either religious or
secular. As a group, RSOA has no opinion on
outside issues and seeks no controversy. We are supported entirely through
contributions of our membership, yet our program is free to all who need
it. We are united in a common focus: dealing with our addictive
sexual and emotional behavior. We have a common denominator in our obsessive/compulsive
patterns which renders irrelevant any personal differences of sexual or
gender orientation. RSOA began on
The only qualification for RSOA
membership is a desire to stop committing sexual offenses. Many of us
have offended against children, but not all. Some have been in the legal
system and are currently on probation and in therapy. There are others
who have never been arrested but realize they have committed or are capable
of sexual offences and need a support group as a prevention.
RSOA is a warm, welcoming and caring group. We have an up-to-date
telephone list and encourage calling one another for support. We protect
with special care the anonymity of every RSOA
member.
RSOA cooperates with fifty-five other 12-step weekly meetings in
this state through an organization called the Colorado Service Group (CSG).
Most are local meetings of one of ten international fellowships that deal
with sex addiction problems. We are listed among the “Weekly Meetings”
on their website and their quarterly published list. We participate in
the twice-yearly CSG Spring and Fall Conferences
for persons in 12-step recovery.
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Our
basic text is Hope & Recovery—a
Twelve Step Guide for Healing from Compulsive Sexual Behavior (Hazelden
Publishers, 1987).
We
have met in a church, a hospital meeting room and currently (since March
1997) in another church which warmly welcomes various 12-step meetings.
Only rarely does this church have a Wednesday evening program involving
children. On such evenings we don’t meet, or we meet elsewhere. 
You
can email us at: