Narcotics Anonymous is a nonprofit organization that works for the recovery of drug addicts. It trails a twelve step program and it is group-oriented. It explains itself as a fellowship of men and women for whom drugs had become a disturbing problem.
The longing to discontinue the use of drugs is the only prerequisite necessary for on to join Narcotics Anonymous. There is a customary meeting for members to lend a hand to each other stay clean, clean meaning a complete abstinence form all mood and mind altering substances. There are no fees necessary when one joins a nonprofit organization.
Narcotics Anonymous provides a place for drug addicts to recover aside from rehabilitation centers. Typically, addicts first join narcotics anonymous after reaching a “bottom” in their life, a point at which life feels completely uncontrollable, characterized by “unemployability, dereliction and destruction” and centered around the getting and using and finding ways and means to get more drugs. There are different bottoms for every Narcotics Anonymous member. This is when an addict can be anywhere he chooses to stop using substances. In practice, it is drug use and the extreme consequences linked with its abuse that convey most addicts to their bottom many of them sliding along ‘this bottom’ for many years often cannot find their way out.
The fundamental unit of Narcotics Anonymous is their customary meetings. Gatherings are held in a array of places such as church meeting rooms, libraries, hospitals, community centers, parks, or any other place that can accommodate a meeting. “Open” and “closed” meetings are the two basic types of meetings practiced in Narcotics Anonymous.In open meetings, everybody is welcome while in closed meetings, addicts and individuals who think they have drug problems are the people who can only attend.
Meeting formats differ, but usually include time devoted to the reading aloud of Narcotics Anonymous literature regarding the issues involved in living life clean which is in print by and for members of Narcotics Anonymous. Many meetings also include an “open sharing” part, where anyone attending has the opportunity to share. There is usually no direct feedback during the ‘share’, thus only one person ever speaks at any given time during this portion of the meeting.
Each group has only one primary purpose that is to carry the message to the addict who still suffers. As a result, the newcomer is considered to be the most important person in any meeting. The message of Narcotics Anonymous is hope, that there is another way to live. The basic promise of narcotics anonymous is that an addict, any addict, can discontinue using drugs, lose the desire to use, and learn a new way of life. Through the twelve step program and the twelve traditions, the members are given hope for a new life worth living and fighting for.
Life should not be put to waste because a man has much potential. He or she may fail, as in becoming enslaved by worldly things such as drugs, but an individual is also capable of standing up from the fall and looking forward once again. Thus, the Narcotics Anonymous, focusing on people who are victims of drug addiction, speaks to these people of how wonderful life still is and that addiction does not mean the end, it is just a middle stage for a new and better life.
Narcotics Anonymous are now based in different areas in the world. The organization is trying to make a difference. These organizations have but one message to get across, that in times of darkness, such as falling into the pit of drug addiction, you are not alone in this battle. The Narcotics Anonymous is there to support you and help you stand up and fight for your life.
