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AWG Secular 12 Step Self-Esteem Group 🚀


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Zoom access and meeting times Meeting description Workbook Readings
Zoom access and meeting times

Meetings are every Tuesday from 11 am to 12 pm Eastern US Time. See Meeting Time in a Different Time Zone (normal calendar)

ALERT: The US time change on March 8 means meeting times may temporarily differ for members outside the US. Double check your time zone here!


* Zoom link not working? Search the meeting ID below in the Zoom meeting database and then use the code to sign in: 

Meeting ID: 824 1142 4876
Code: 781927


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Meeting description

This is a secular 12 Step meeting focused on self-esteem recovery for late-identified autistic women and members of all other marginalized genders (nonbinary, gender fluid, MTF/FTM trans, agender, autigender, and more). 

We meet each Tuesday on Zoom, practice the AWG 12 Steps using the AWG 12 Step Workbook, share in response to weekly readings, and participate in the optional co-mentorship program if we so desire. 

It is not mandatory to turn on your mic or camera. Coming to listen is totally fine. By taking part, we hold space for others, and ourselves, to participate in a way that is manageable for us as we exist right now.

It is not necessary to actively be doing the AWG 12 Steps in order to be a full participant. Any contact with the group and its resources can be beneficial as long as it’s sustainable for each of us as individuals. Many of us participate simply by attending meetings.

As we participate in this meeting over time, we might find ourselves seeking to…

  • Find our own concept of self-esteem and grow toward it
  • Come to discover a more realistic sense of our place in the world
  • Reassess our relationships, especially in terms of our responsibilities towards ourselves and others
  • Come to understand personal boundaries, their roles in our lives, and how to develop and maintain healthy boundaries
  • Understand the concept of nonviolent detachment and how and when to enact it
  • Develop more manageable lifestyles
  • Develop a sense of self that leads to more health, well being, and manageability in our lives
  • Release others from the responsibility of defining or reinforcing our sense of self-esteem
  • Form personal goals about self-esteem and self-concept based on our own understanding of our own needs, as they exist today

AWG 12 Step Self-Esteem Readings

Self-esteem and manageability

Tuesday, March 31, 2026

In my pre-identification days, extra-low self-esteem brought unmanageability into my life. But that doesn't mean I'm bad if my self-esteem isn't high all the time.

My perfectionism and black-and-white thinking sometimes tell me that if my self-esteem isn't super high all the time, something is wrong. But the 12 Step concept of manageability reminds me that self-esteem can be healthy when it's somewhere between high an low, giving me a mix of "positive" and "negative" thoughts about myself over the course of any given day.

Having self-esteem somewhere in the middle has benefits. For example...

  • My self-esteem keeps me on an even keel. I don't feel intrinsically better or worse than other people in general.
  • When making plans, my self-esteem allows me to make realistic predictions about how they'll turn out. I don't have over-the-top expectations of success or failure.
  • When I'm feeling low, my self-esteem helps pick me back up by reminding me of my dignity, intrinsic worth, and humanity. When I'm feeling especially proud of myself, my self-esteem keeps me from causing myself trouble through overconfidence.

In my pre-identification days, extra-low self-esteem caused my life to be unmanageable. But that doesn't mean I'm bad if my self-esteem isn't high all the time. Extra-high self-esteem can make life less manageable, too. Maybe the right level for my self-esteem is the level that makes my life most manageable. How is it for you?

Share questions:

  • Has extra-high or extra-low self-esteem ever brought unmanageability into your life? What happened? 
  • Is there a "sweet spot" level for your self-esteem that adds manageability to your life? What is it like? 
  • Has your self-esteem ever pulled you back up from feeling low, or kept you from going too far while feeling especially confident? 
  • Do you ever self-blame for not having universally high self-esteem? Are there any circumstances in which that self-blame is especially likely to occur?
  • Any tools, resources, or strategies that helped you with this topic? 
  • Anything else to add?

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AWG 12 Step Self-Esteem Workbook

Step 1

We admitted that despite our efforts, many of the factors affecting our sense of self and self-esteem seemed out of control, leading to increased unmanageability in our lives.

Step 2

Coming Soon

Step 3

Coming Soon

Step 4

Coming Soon
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