How to Choose Between Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous

You might hear about Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous and wonder what the difference is between the two, for example. In this article, we’ll talk about some of those differences, but we’ll also discuss some of the similarities. First, let’s go over some basic background behind each of these addiction treatment programs. If you’re an alcoholic, you go to AA and if you’re addicted to other drugs you go to NA. Many in AA regarded drug addicts at meetings with disdain and many in NA were envious of AA’s resources but that’s no longer the case.

These are the principles that made our recovery possible. Most of us realised that in our addiction we were slowly committing suicide, but addiction is such a cunning enemy of life that we had lost the power to do anything about it. Many of us ended up in jail, or sought help through medicine, religion, and psychiatry. Our disease always resurfaced or continued to progress until in desperation, we sought help from each other in Narcotics Anonymous. The newcomer is the most important person at any meeting, because we can only keep what we have by giving it away.

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Instead, they may feel that the responsibility lies completely with them and that they need to, in a sense, get out of their own way if they’re ever going to be free from their addictions. For the NA member, once you’re able to accomplish that goal, there is room for the Higher Power (as you see it) 18 essential coping skills for addiction get 24 7 help to work in your life and help you work toward being clean. Another difference between AA and NA is the fact that one focuses on a legal substance (alcohol) and the other focuses on all substances, many of which are illegal. This difference tends to draw different types of people to each meeting.

1. If one AA meeting isn’t working, try attending a different meeting or group altogether.
2. Eventually, it becomes too late for them to realize that getting out of it is harder than ever.
3. “He was ordered into AA at least four different times,” recalled Jennifer Mertell, 41, who married Earle in 1994 and left him eight years later because of his escalating violence.

Members meet regularly to share their experiences and support each other to quit drugs. A few months later, John recalled, Karla arrived at Eden Ministries from her own rehab, a nearby facility that cost $42,000 for a month’s stay, according to records. “She showed up in what we call a ‘druggy buggy,’” he said. Earle cycled out of jail, mandated attendance at domestic violence counseling, and educational programs for those convicted of driving under the influence.

Both of these organizations have been instrumental in people’s lives. In fact, there are many people who feel they could never have recovered from their addictions without them. Even so, it’s important to recognize the fact that a solid drug or alcohol rehab program is necessary for recovery. That should be the very first step you take as you seek to heal from your addiction.

“Gradually, my drinking started squeezing all three of those out of my life,” Marlon says. We do not receive any commission or fee that is dependent upon which treatment provider a caller chooses. In addition to some differences in philosophy, both AA and NA each have their own literature. Research tells us that about 40% of AA members who reach one year of sobriety will remain sober. Continual participation is the key to the effectiveness of the program. You’ll get another one after 30 days to commemorate the work you’ve put in.

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Things are going to go all bad.” Earle responded with a string of obscenities, John said. “I know what punches sound like.” A few minutes later, Eric’s phone went dead. On breaks, John tried to reach both Earle and Karla, to no avail. She assured him mixing adderall and alcohol: a fatal combination that she was upstairs in the bedroom, that Earle was downstairs, and that it was going to stay that way. Late that evening, Earle called John, his former roommate from Eden Ministries, who was working the graveyard shift as an aerospace machinist.

Though the divide of alcoholic vs addict remains, AA and NA are now more open to different types of attendees and won’t shut the door to a drug addict at an AA meeting and vice versa. You’re more likely to see alcoholics in NA meetings compared to drug addicts in AA meetings but there are no official rules. If you are struggling with drug or alcohol addiction, it is common to struggle with feelings of loneliness and isolation. Groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) can provide a community of support as you work through recovery.

When he did manage to find jobs, he signed his checks over to Karla, documents show. Earle would sit next to Karla in a large room with chairs arranged in a large square, John recalled. “He was always around her, sitting next to her,” he said. In May 2008, Earle was arrested on 18 charges, including driving under the influence, reckless driving, and evading police officers. Court records say he was clocked driving at a speed exceeding 95 miles per hour. He was sentenced to nine months in state prison, and was released on 11 months of parole.

Mertell, the mother of two of Earle’s three children, estimates that he owes her nearly $100,000 in child support. AA, which is a nonprofit, considers each of the nearly 60,000 U.S. AA groups autonomous and responsible for supervising themselves. Board members argued that a group organized around anonymity could do nothing to monitor members without undercutting its basic principles. Unlike Karla, Earle was not attending AA meetings voluntarily.

Brief History of Alcoholics Anonymous

When people abuse both alcohol and narcotics, addiction counselors often suggest that they try both groups. In recent years, some critics have pressed AA to do more about the combustible mix of violent ex-felons and newcomers who assume that others “in the rooms” are there voluntarily. “It’s like letting a wolf into the sheep’s den,” said Dee-Dee Stout, an Emeryville, California alcohol and drug counselor who offers alternatives to traditional 12-step treatment. Twelve-step adherents accept the notion of alcohol dependency as a disease that can be remedied by abstinence and attending meetings with others who are trying to stop drinking. Stout has been an outspoken critic of what she views as the medical and judicial overreliance on AA and its offshoots.

AA vs NA: The Similarities and Differences

Eventually, it becomes too late for them to realize that getting out of it is harder than ever. Sometimes, Patterson notes, you may meet someone at a 12-step or SMART meeting who is simply attending these meetings and not getting professional treatment. Marlon stuck with AA and review and comparison went on to work in drug and alcohol treatment and recovery. He’s now a licensed alcohol and drug counselor and CEO of both the nonprofit Vegas Stronger and rehab CrossRoads of Southern Nevada. Long considered a key component of recovery, 12-step programs are as popular as ever.

Twelve Steps to Danger: How Alcoholics Anonymous Can Be a Playground for Violence-Prone Members

We’ll explore the differences, similarities, and subtleties of NA vs AA to help you pick the right one to stay on the path of lifelong recovery. You might feel more comfortable (and have more time) addressing these issues in an individual or smaller group setting, Patterson notes. But therapy costs money and requires insurance, which not everyone has. Patterson believes CBT can be a helpful tool when done in conjunction with a 12-step program or SMART Recovery, though plenty of people find CBT helpful on its own. AA uses a 12-step model that begins with a person admitting that they’re powerless over alcohol and that their lives had become unmanageable.