Sobriety with a Clean Slate: Working Step Five
Step five is intimidating for a lot of people, and rightfully so because you’re sharing all your secrets with someone. When it was my turn, I was comfortable because my sponsor had shared things with me leading up to this point so I felt like it was a two-way effort. Many people are nervous going into it because you’re looking at everything you’ve done wrong on paper, but the irony for me was by the time I worked the fifth step, I didn’t care about the offenses or people who have wronged me – the burdens were lifted. That’s the power of the steps. That’s the power of writing things down to analyze and process them. The goal of working the steps is to remove the resentment and things that take up space in our head and heart.
On the other side of that, doing the fifth step with a sponsee is really special. Someone else is trusting me all the things weighing them down that they’ve kept hidden for so long. It’s a big deal to let it all out – I take it as a compliment when someone chooses me to hear those things. Finding that one person you share everything with really helps continue your sobriety with a clean slate. It’s a great bonding experience with someone who has been through it and builds the fellowship that comes with going through the 12 Step program.
