Narcotics Anonymous
Narcotics Anonymous (NA) is a global fellowship that emerged from Alcoholics Anonymous in the mid-twentieth century in Southern California, aimed at supporting individuals in overcoming addiction to various substances. The organization operates under a framework of twelve steps, adapted to encompass all forms of substance abuse. NA emphasizes a decentralized and democratic structure, with each group autonomous in its operations while contributing to the collective welfare of the community. Meetings typically last between sixty to ninety minutes and include readings from core literature, personal sharing, and discussions guided by a chairperson.
The primary mission of NA is to create a supportive environment where former substance abusers can assist one another in achieving abstinence and recovery. Members often engage in sponsorship, where experienced individuals guide newcomers through the recovery process, fostering mentorship and community. Although NA is non-professional and does not endorse any outside organizations, it has demonstrated effectiveness in addressing substance use disorders across diverse demographics. The organization has seen significant growth in membership and reach, with increasing global presence and participation.
Narcotics Anonymous
Definition: Narcotics Anonymous is a nonprofit group-support organization of recovering drug addicts with a global network of approximately 67,000 weekly meetings in 139 countries in 2016.
Date: Established in July 1953
Background
Narcotics Anonymous (NA) grew from the organization Alcoholics Anonymous during the mid-twentieth century in southern California. The twelve steps of NA are adaptations from those of its predecessor with only minor alterations, namely an expanded concept of addiction to include all substances of abuse. Many people were involved in the genesis of the society, including nonaddict participants in the medical, psychiatric, and religious communities. James P. Kinnon (Jimmy K.), who died in 1985, is usually regarded as having been most influential.
The organization of NA has changed significantly since 1953. Through 1966, only ten weekly meetings existed, and a basic text was not published until 1982. The 1970s saw the most rapid period of structural development, including the formation of a contemporary fellowship.
Tradition dictates that each NA group is officially autonomous, except when decisions bear on other groups or society as a whole. Participation is voluntary and groups are financially self-sufficient. Governance is based on a model of decentralized and democratic consensus. Local meetings often delegate members to serve as representatives in an area committee, which in turn delegates members to serve in a regional committee. An NA “world service” office, located in Van Nuys, California, ensures the common welfare of NA globally.
Although formats vary, a general outline can be found in the majority of meetings. A session might open with a call to order followed by a reading of some of the fellowship’s core literature. If the literature is read, then it is generally divided among a number of participants rather than monopolized by a single person. A speaker, who is selected by a chairperson, who is in turn elected on a rotating basis to coordinate the meeting, then shares for a specified time. Sharing is usually biographical in scope and oriented around a particular topic (for example spirituality). The speaker then either calls on participants to share or opens the meeting for discussion of the topic at hand.
Meetings are generally sixty to ninety minutes in duration. The gathering is adjourned after either a prayer, more reading from the literature, or both. Each group is free to format its meeting however it collectively agrees.
Mission and Goals
NA has one stated primary purpose: to develop a therapeutic environment in which former substance abusers can assist each other to abstain from using drugs and to recover. Part of this environment is the cultivation of sponsorship. Members who have “worked the steps” volunteer to help newcomers through the program. Sponsors provide mentorship and friendship and are regarded by the fellowship as indispensable to the recovery process.
Other instruments of the program include literature, social support networks, and service roles. These roles include chairing meetings and acting as treasurer for a group. Other functions are more simple and include brewing coffee and greeting members at the door.
Additional services are often delegated to service boards or committees at the intergroup level of the fellowship. Because NA is nonprofessional, groups often find it difficult to carry out certain types of service activities. Phone lines, public relations, and panels conducted at hospitals and institutions are examples. NA maintains a policy of neither affiliating with nor endorsing any cause or outside organization. Hence, although many treatment centers adopt a twelve-step orientation to their services, no institution is managed by nor bears the name of NA.
The best estimates of demographics are that, over time, membership approximates the ethnic, social class, and religious composition of the host country or region. The modal average length of abstinence is between one and five years. Evaluations of the program tend to support its effectiveness in treating substance use disorders across a broad range of populations. Recent years have witnessed a surge in the number of countries in which NA operates.
Bibliography
Anderson, Tammy L., and Lynn Bondi. “Exiting the Drug-Addict Role: Variations by Race and Gender.” Symbolic Interaction 21.2 (1998): 155–74. Print.
Crape, Byron L., et al. “The Effects of Sponsorship in 12-Step Treatment of Injection Drug Users.” Drug and Alcohol Dependence 65 (2002): 291–301. Print.
"Demographics & Other Facts About Narcotics Anonymous." Ark Behavioral Health, 2022, www.arkbh.com/levels-of-care/support-groups/12-step-programs/na/demographics/. Accessed 29 Nov. 2022.
Frois, Catarina. The Anonymous Society: Identity, Transformation, and Anonymity in 12 Step Associations. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars, 2009. Print.
Krentzman, A., et al. “How Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) Work: Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives.” Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly 29 (2011): 75–84. Print.
Narcotics Anonymous. Miracles Happen: The Birth of Narcotics Anonymous in Words and Pictures. Chatsworth: Narcotics Anonymous, 1998. Print.
Toumbourou, John W., et al. “Narcotics Anonymous Participation and Changes in Substance Use and Social Support.” Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment 23 (2002): 61–66. Print.