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A Walk Through the 12 Steps: Step 7

© Cynthia Webber (Jausten)

Step 7 of any 12-Step Program says that we humbly ask our Higher Power to remove our shortcomings. In Step 6, we learned to accept our part in our relationship with our Higher Power, and we recognized that we are not all-powerful. Also, we discovered that there are limits to what we can achieve all by ourselves. Those of us with fibromyalgia know just how many limitations we deal with on a daily basis. This Step, however, is about spiritual growth rather than our physical limitations. With greater spiritual growth, we can learn to accept and live with our physical limitations with greater ease.

Humility is not the same as humiliation. Humiliation is a form of abuse and has no place in our spiritual growth. Humility is about self-acceptance. If we have worked through the first 6 Steps slowly and faithfully, then we will no longer be able to go back to the oblivion of denial. However, we need to become able to effectively eliminating those aspects of our personalities that cause us embarrassment or make our lives unmanageable. This means that we must accept ourselves as we are, with all of our limitations. This includes the limitations that fibromyalgia has placed upon our lives, along with our personality limitations. The most important aspect to remember is that we can not cure ourselves, and to believe that we can is a limitation unto itself. We can try to cure ourselves of our shortcomings by reading self-help books, going to therapy, or even using medications to make ourselves feel better, and although in some cases this may help, it isn't a cure.

The same applies for fibromyalgia. We can try to cure our fibromyalgia by reading the many books that are available to us, go into therapy to understand ourselves better, use medications and try the multitude of treatments that are suggested by physicians and well-meaning friends and family members, but without a cause for fibromyalgia, there is no cure.

By accepting that our Higher Power can do for us what we cannot do for ourselves is the beginning of achieving the humility that is necessary in order for change to take place. By taking Step 7, we put that acceptance to work. This is an action step.

However, even after we accept the fact that we need the assistance of a Higher Power, many of us try to figure out exactly what we need and give our Higher Power a list of tasks to fulfill. This is not humility. Rather, it is self-will, and relying on our own self-will won't help us. We need to let go of self-will and learn to rely upon our Higher Power, and this is what true humility is based upon. We must admit that our own resources have let us down and that we need the help of a Power greater than ourselves. Asking for help from a Higher Power whom we can not see is a huge leap of faith for each of us. We need to truly place ourselves, our futures, and our actions in the care of our Higher Power.

The copyright of the article A Walk Through the 12 Steps: Step 7 in Fibromyalgia is owned by Cynthia Webber (Jausten). Permission to republish A Walk Through the 12 Steps: Step 7 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.