2009 Hong Kong Area of Narcotics Anonymous, Inc. All rights reserved

Narcotics Anonymous is a non-profit fellowship of men and women for whom

drugs had become a major problem - Recovering addicts who meet regularly

to help each other stay clean.

Narcotics Anonymous is a completely voluntary organisation. Membership is

open to anyone with a drug problem seeking help, regardless of what drug or

combination of drugs have been used, and irrespective of age, sex, religion,

race, creed or class. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop

using drugs.

No membership attendance records are kept. Anonymity is one of NA's most

important traditions.

There are no dues or fees for membership. Narcotics Anonymous is entirely self-supporting and accepts no

financial contributions from non-members. Most members regularly contribute small sums of money at group

meetings to help cover expenses such as rent, literature, tea and coffee but contributions are not mandatory.

The core of the Narcotics Anonymous programme is a series of twelve steps, adapted from the recovery

programme of Alcoholic Anonymous. These steps include admitting to a drug problem; seeking help; self-

appraisal; confidential self-disclosure; making amends when possible, where harm has been done; achieving a

spiritual awakening and supporting other drug addicts who want to recover.

Narcotics Anonymous is a non-religious fellowship, encouraging each member to cultivate an individual

understanding, religious or not, of a 'spiritual awakening'.

Narcotics Anonymous believes one of the cornerstones of its success is the therapeutic value of addicts working

with each other to achieve recovery. In meetings members regularly share their personal experiences with each

other, not as professionals but as ordinary people who have discovered that sharing brings about solutions to

their problems.

Narcotics Anonymous has no professional therapists, no residential facilities and no clinics. NA provides no

vocational, legal, financial, psychiatric or medical services. The closest thing to an NA counsellor is the sponsor,

someone who has been free from active drug use for a number of years who gives informal support and

assistance to newcomers and those with less experience of the programme.

The primary service provided by Narcotics Anonymous is the local weekly meeting. Each group is autonomous,

organising itself according to a series of 12 principles common to the entire organisation. Meetings, which take

place in rooms rented from public, religious or other organisations, may be 'open', meaning anyone can attend

or 'closed', meaning only for people who want to address their own drug problems. Meetings are facilitated by

NA members. Other members may take part by talking in turn about their experiences of addiction and the

recovery, strength and hope they've discovered through NA.

Narcotics Anonymous has no hierarchy or authority structure.

The Narcotics Anonymous programme uses a simple, experience-oriented concept of addiction by defining it as

a disease from which recovery is possible. Narcotics Anonymous does not qualify its use of the term 'disease' in

any medical or therapeutic sense, nor does NA attempt to persuade others of the correctness of its views or that

recovering addicts can be cured. The NA fellowship simply asserts that its members have found that an

acceptance of addiction as a disease is an effective way of helping them come to terms with their condition -

and finding recovery.

Narcotics Anonymous encourages its members to abstain completely from all drugs including alcohol because

NA members have discovered that complete and continuous abstinence provides the best foundation for

recovery and personal growth. Narcotics Anonymous however, takes no stand on the use of caffeine, nicotine,

or sugar. Similarly the use of prescribed medication for the treatment of specific medical or psychiatric

conditions is neither encouraged nor prohibited by NA. While recognising numerous questions in these areas,

Narcotics Anonymous feels they are matters of personal choice and encourages its members to consult their

own experience, the experience of other members, and the opinions of qualified health professionals to help

them make up their minds about these subjects.

Narcotics Anonymous also recognises it is one of many organisations addressing drug addiction and does not

claim its programme will work for all addicts under all circumstances or that its therapeutic views should be

universally adopted.