Help others, help yourself?

A new study published in a special issue of Substance Abuse finds that recovering alcoholics who help others in 12-step programs stay sober longer, and attend more meetings.

These findings are from a 10-year investigation led by Maria Pagano, PhD, associate professor of psychiatry at Case Western Reserve University and are part of the “Helping Others” study. Dr. Pagano and colleagues evaluated the decade long of treatment outcomes using data from a single site. This study investigated the 10-year course and impact of programmatic activities in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) on long-term outcomes.

In their weekly conversation, WHYY’s Behavioral health reporter Maiken Scott an psychologist Dan Gottlieb discuss these findings.