Welcome to Narcotics Anonymous

What is our message? The message is that an addict, any addict, can stop using drugs, lose the desire to use, and find a new way to live. Our message is hope and the promise is freedom.

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“When new members come to meetings, our sole interest is in their desire for freedom from active addiction and how we can be of help.”

It Works: How and Why, “Third Tradition”

Is NA for me?

This is a question every potential member must answer for themselves. Here are some recommended resources that may be helpful:

Need help for family or a friend?

NA meetings are run by and for addicts. If you’re looking for help for a loved one, you can contact Narcotics Anonymous near you. 

Never before have so many clean addicts, of their own choice and in free society, been able to meet where they please, to maintain their recovery in complete creative freedom.

Basic Text, “We Do Recover”

Narcotics Anonymous sprang from the Alcoholics Anonymous Program of the late 1940s, with meetings first emerging in the Los Angeles area of California, USA, in the early Fifties. The NA program started as a small US movement that has grown into one of the world’s oldest and largest organizations of its type.

Today, Narcotics Anonymous is well established throughout much of the Americas, Western Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. Newly formed groups and NA communities are now scattered throughout the Indian subcontinent, Africa, East Asia, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe. Narcotics Anonymous books and information pamphlets are currently available in 49 languages.

Daily Meditations

Just for Today

December 03, 2024

Vision without limits

Page 353

Perhaps for the first time, we see a vision of our new life.

Basic Text, p. 35

In our addiction, our vision of ourselves was very limited. Each day, we went through the same routine: getting, using, and finding ways and means to get more. And that’s all we could reasonably expect for the duration of our lives. Our potential was limited.

Today, our prospects are changed. Recovery has given us a new vision of ourselves and our lives. We are no longer trapped in the endlessly gray routine of addiction. We are free to stretch ourselves in new ways, trying out new ideas and new activities. In doing so, we come to see ourselves in a new way. Our potential is limited only by the strength of the Higher Power that cares for us–and that strength has no limits.

In recovery, life and everything in it appears open to us. Guided by our spiritual principles, driven by the power given us by the God of our understanding, our horizons are limitless.

Just for Today: I will open my eyes to the possibilities before me. My potential is as limitless and as powerful as the God of my understanding. Today, I will act on that potential.

A Spiritual Principle a Day

December 03, 2024

The Discipline to (Sometimes) Say No

Page 349

Discipline is not a practice that comes naturally to most addicts, and the need to say ‘no’ to ourselves can be quite a challenge.

Guiding Principles, Tradition Seven,

The freedom we find when we stop using drugs is incredible. We regain so much in terms of the time, energy, and other resources that were previously devoted to sustaining our addiction. Saying \”no\” to our disease frees us up to say \”yes\” to things we\’d been missing out on. As we revel in our newfound ability to say \”yes\” to ourselves, some of us find ourselves looking for relief from other behaviors. \”Getting clean saved my life, but I gained so much weight my first year clean that I got stretch marks!\” Another member shared, \”The money I\’d been spending on drugs was diverted to buying crap I didn\’t need. I tried to fix myself with retail therapy–but I was still unhappy.\” Discipline can sometimes feel like a punishment–like we\’re denying ourselves things we really enjoy. If we\’re free, why do we have to say \”no\” to ourselves? Our freedom has its limits, as do our resources. Discipline helps us shift our thinking. Instead of focusing on what we deny ourselves–that extra piece of cake or the quick fix of an online purchase–we think about what we gain by using our resources wisely and keep our eyes on the financial security and peace of mind we\’re striving for. Discipline is the willingness to say \”no\” to things that feel good in the moment but cost us later. We do so as a Fellowship when we say \”no\” to money from outside NA–and \”yes\” to our ability to make our own choices as a Fellowship, remaining free from the influence of outside entities. In our personal recovery, we say \”no\” to momentary impulses for the sake of our longer-term peace of mind. Would we rather have a little bit of fleeting comfort right now or a deeper, lasting sense of comfort and security over time? The choice is ours.

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I can\’t say \”yes\” to everything–I will reserve my \”yes\” for what\’s truly important to me today.

Do you need help with a drug problem?

“If you’re new to NA or planning to go to a Narcotics Anonymous meeting for the first time, it might be nice to know a little bit about what happens in our meetings. The information here is meant to give you an understanding of what we do when we come together to share recovery…” 

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