You are an addict, a substance abuser, even an alcoholic, and are willing to give up then local helpline number 092177-06222 is just the life support you need to help you swim across the turbulent river. Narcotics Anonymous (you must have heard the name), an offshoot of the other worldwide non-profit fellowship or brotherhood, Alcoholics Anonymous, but operating independently since 1953, has announced publically that if anybody is willing, and needs their help, he or she can ring their bell.
‘Recovering Addicts’, as they call themselves even after having given up all forms of substance abuse for years, a group of them in a recent public interaction with media persons, under promise of their identities being kept anonymous because of the very principle of their fellowship, said theirs’ is a 12-step programme of spiritual self healing in the company of people whom addicts can relate with and together help each other ‘stay clean’. There are no medicines, just a process of realisation of self belief that they can stop using drugs, lose the desire to use and find a new way to live.
Photo By : Life In Chandigarh (Intentially Blurred)
Relating their personal experiences of transformation from aimless individuals lost to the world to responsible and productive members of society, the group of four, coming from varied backgrounds and places, said “Our intent is to share this message broadly so that those who might benefit from our programme of recovery can reach us. The primary purpose of NA is that no addict seeking recovery need ever suffer or die from the horrors of addiction without a chance to know that there is a way out; the NA way.”
Calling themselves by their first names, Amitabh, Gaurav, Vikas and Sushant, the NA volunteers said, “The primary service provided by NA is their group meetings. Each group runs itself based on principles common to the entire worldwide organisation, following a 12-step programme to help the addict. NA’s primary approach to recovery is its belief in the therapeutic value of one addict helping another. Anyone who wants to stop using drugs may become a member of NA.”
Elaborating the philosophy of NA further, they said “The basic premise of anonymity allows addicts to attend meetings without fear of legal or social repercussions. Anonymity also supports an atmosphere of equality in meetings. No attendance records are maintained to ensure the privacy of members. Funding is purely from voluntary contributions from members and sale of recovery literature, which is available in several languages, including Hindi and Punjabi. We also have kitty groups, where we contribute,” they informed.
Explaining why they called themselves ‘recovering addicts’, Amitabh said we firmly believe and acknowledge that addiction is a permanent disease, but can be kept under control. The treatment has to be life-long, so that there is no relapse, he added.
Sharing more insights into the functioning of NA in the states of Punjab, Haryana and UT Chandigarh, he said NA has held dozens of meeting in various towns and cities to spread its recovery from addiction message. As a result of these interactions, they have so far been able to help 1500-odd addicts across the region.
“I know the numbers are less, but now we are gearing up to scale up our operations, one of the reasons why we are seeking the help of the mass media to spread our message. We are working closely with the STF on drugs in Punjab. We have pasted our bills at police stations and are going around jails to distribute recovery literature in local languages. We are also trying that more women addicts come to our meetings. Their participation has improved from a mere 2 % to about 6 % lately and our effort is to raise that further,” he added.
Other than the helpline number, NA can be reached by visiting their website http://naindia.in or through email at rd@naindia.in.
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