The ACA Bill of Rights
Many of us come into ACA not knowing that we could give ourselves permission
to attend to our most basic needs. The journey of recovery in ACA can include learning to identify our needs, feelings, and rights, and to take responsibility for getting them met in a healthy fashion. At the same time, the rights we discover and determine for ourselves do not imply that others have the responsibility to fulfill those rights. With the help of these rights, we are able to develop healthier relationships, and with a power greater than ourselves of our own understanding,
we can begin to live life as our True Selves.
1) I have the right to say no.
2) I have the right to say, “I don’t know”.
3) I have the right to be wrong.
4) I have the right to make mistakes and learn from them.
5) I have the right to detach from anyone in whose company I feel humiliated or manipulated.
6) I have the right to make my own choices and decisions in my life.
7) I have the right to grieve any actual or perceived loss.
8) I have the right to all of my feelings.
9) I have the right to feel angry, including towards someone I love.
10) I have the right to change my mind at any time.
11) I have the right to a spiritually, physically, and emotionally healthier existence, though it may differ entirely or in part from my parents' way of life.
12) I have the right to forgive myself and to choose how and when I forgive others.
13) I have the right to take healthy risks and to experiment with new possibilities.
14) I have the right to be honest in my relationships and to seek the same from others.
15) I have the right to ask for what I want.
16) I have the right to determine and honor my own priorities and goals, and to allow others
to do the same.
17) I have the right to dream and to have hope.
18) I have the right to be my True Self.
19) I have the right to know and nurture my Inner Child.
20) I have the right to laugh, to play, to have fun, and the freedom to celebrate this life, right here, right now.
To submit feedback please visit: http://litreview.adultchildren.org
Reprinted with permission by ACA WSO, Inc.
www.adultchildren.org | info@acawso.org | +1(310) 534-1815
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