What is NA, or Narcotics Anonymous??
The only requirement for NA membership is a desire to stop using drugs.
Narcotics Anonymous was founded by Jimmy K in Los Angeles in the early 1950s. At the time, Alcoholics Anonymous had been in existence for almost 20 years; however, AA focused only on alcohol use and not drug use. Jimmy K recognized the benefits of the AA 12 Step program and how a 12 Step model could also help those with drug use problems.
Founding members, most of whom were from AA, debated and established the 12 Traditions of the NA fellowship, and in 1953 Alcoholics Anonymous authorized NA to use the AA 12 Steps and Traditions on the condition that they stop using the AA name, at which time the organization began to call itself Narcotics Anonymous.
The first meetings of Narcotics Anonymous were held in the basements of churches. At that time a law prohibiting convicted felons from congregating was still in effect, so churches offered their basements as a sanctuary. There were also "rabbit meetings" being held in people's homes, named so because of how often they would jump around from place to place.
The first NA phone line started in 1960, and the first "H&I" group was formed in 1963 (H&I stands for Hospitals and Institutions, a sub-committee of Narcotics Anonymous that carries the message into hospitals and institutions where people cannot get to an outside meeting).
In 1970, there were only 20 regular weekly NA meetings, all of them in the United States. Within two years there were 70, including meetings in Germany, Australia, and Bermuda. By 1981, there were 1,100 different meetings all over the world, and today it is estimated there are over 70,000 weekly meetings in over 144 countries.
Locally in the Brazos Valley, the first meetings of Narcotics Anonymous began in the mid to late 1980s, meeting in places like soup kitchens and garages.
Today there are meetings in Caldwell, Somerville, Brenham, Bryan, and College Station. To find a meeting near you visit www.bvana.org
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