Sexual Recovery Anonymous

What is Sexual Recovery Anonymous?

Sexual Recovery Anonymous, usually called SRA, is a free fellowship of people who help each other recover from compulsive sexual behavior. It’s built on the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous, and it works the same way. People meet, share what they’re going through, and support one another in getting better. There are no dues, no paperwork, and no one in charge handing out judgment. The fellowship started in 1990 and has stayed small, with meetings in a handful of U.S. states and a few other countries, plus phone and online meetings anyone can join.

What makes SRA its own thing is how it talks about getting better. Some sex-recovery fellowships hand you one strict rulebook. Others tell you to write your own from scratch. SRA lands in the middle. It offers a shared definition of what recovery looks like, then lets you work toward it at your own pace with people who’ve been there.

How Sexual Recovery Anonymous works

SRA gives people a structure and a community for changing behavior that has felt impossible to change on your own. A few parts do most of the work.

How SRA defines sexual sobriety

This is the piece that sets SRA apart. The program describes sexual sobriety as freedom from all compulsive and destructive sexual behavior. SRA also names a specific bottom line: its members generally understand sobriety to include freedom from masturbation and from sex outside a mutually committed relationship.

That’s a real definition, not a blank page, and not a single rigid rule tied to one kind of relationship either. It gives newcomers something concrete to aim for while leaving room for the relationship and life they’re building. If you’ve ever felt lost about where the line even is, having a shared starting point can be a relief.

The 12 steps of SRA

The 12 steps are the backbone of the program, the same set of steps AA has used for decades, applied to compulsive sexual behavior. In plain terms, they walk a person from admitting the behavior has become unmanageable, through taking a clear-eyed look at the patterns and harm behind it, toward making repairs and building a new way of living. People work the steps at their own pace, usually with a sponsor guiding them, one step at a time.

Sponsorship in SRA

A sponsor is a member with more time in recovery who agrees to guide you through the steps and be there when things get hard. It’s not therapy and it’s not authority. It’s one person who has walked the path helping another, often through the things that feel too raw to say in a group. Most people find that having a sponsor, and eventually becoming one, is where a lot of the change actually happens.

Meetings and anonymity

Meetings are where the fellowship lives. They’re free, they run in person, by phone, and online, and people share openly about what they’re struggling with and what’s helping. Anonymity is taken seriously. What’s said in a meeting stays in the meeting, and members protect each other’s identities, which is what makes it safe to open up in the first place.

How SRA compares to SA and SAA

SRA sits in a family of 12-step fellowships for compulsive sexual behavior, and the main way they differ is how each one defines being sober. Knowing that difference makes it much easier to find the room that fits.

Sexaholics Anonymous (SA) uses one strict definition for everyone, tying sexual sobriety to a single kind of relationship. Sex Addicts Anonymous (SAA) goes the other way and asks each member to define their own bottom line, using a personal tool to name which behaviors to stop. SRA lands between the two. It offers a shared definition of recovery, including its bottom line around masturbation and sex outside a committed relationship, while still leaving room for the life you’re building.

None of these is “the right one.” They’re different doors into the same kind of help. If SRA’s approach doesn’t feel like a fit, it’s worth looking at the more individualized path that Sex Addicts Anonymous offers →. Many people try more than one and stay with whichever room feels right.

Does Sexual Recovery Anonymous work?

SRA doesn’t run formal outcome studies on itself, so there’s no single number to point to, and its small size and strong anonymity make that kind of research hard by design. What we can say is grounded in how this kind of program has been studied more broadly.

The 12-step, peer-support model that SRA is built on has solid evidence behind it. Research on Alcoholics Anonymous and similar 12-step programs found them at least as effective as professional treatments such as cognitive behavioral therapy for keeping people in recovery, with benefits that held up over time ^[1]. That evidence is strongest for alcohol, and compulsive sexual behavior is its own condition, so the research doesn’t transfer one-to-one. What carries over is the engine: peer support, structure, sponsorship, and a shared framework, which is exactly what SRA puts to work.

In practice, the people most likely to benefit are the ones who keep showing up, get a sponsor, and work the steps rather than just attending. For many, pairing SRA with a therapist who treats compulsive sexual behavior works better than either one alone.

How to find an SRA meeting and get started

Getting started is simpler than it feels from the outside. The official SRA website lists meetings you can search, and it runs phone and online meetings you can join from anywhere. Because SRA is a smaller fellowship, you may not find an in-person meeting nearby, and that’s fine. Many people start with an online or phone meeting just to listen, with no pressure to speak. You don’t have to introduce yourself, share, or commit to anything. You can simply show up.

If you’d like a professional in your corner too, that’s a strong combination, and the right therapist can work alongside the fellowship.

Find treatment and recovery support that fit →

If you’re in crisis or having thoughts of self-harm, call or text 988 now. For free, confidential help finding treatment near you, call SAMHSA at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) any time.

Written by

Jessica Miller

Editorial Director

Jessica Miller is the Editorial Director of Addiction Help. Jessica graduated from the University of South Florida (USF) with an English degree and combines her writing expertise and passion for helping others to deliver reliable information to those impacted by addiction. Informed by her personal journey to recovery and support of loved ones in sobriety, Jessica's empathetic and authentic approach resonates deeply with the Addiction Help community.

Reviewed by

• Fact-Checked
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Kent S. Hoffman, D.O.

Co-Founder & Chief Medical Officer

Kent S. Hoffman, D.O. has been an expert in addiction medicine for more than 15 years. In addition to managing a successful family medical practice, Dr. Hoffman is board certified in addiction medicine by the American Osteopathic Academy of Addiction Medicine (AOAAM). Dr. Hoffman has successfully treated hundreds of patients battling addiction. Dr. Hoffman is the Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of AddictionHelp.com and ensures the website’s medical content and messaging quality.