Crystal Meth Anonymous

Crystal Meth Anonymous (CMA) is a California Non-Profit, Public Benefit Corporation working as a twelve-step fellowship of recovered and recovering crystal meth addicts. Participants in local groups of varying sizes meet in order to help others recover from methamphetamine addiction. CMA advocates complete abstinence from methamphetamine, alcohol, inhalants, and all other psychoactive drugs not taken as prescribed.

History and demographics

CMA was founded on September 16, 1994 in West Hollywood, California. The first group held its first meeting at the West Hollywood Alcohol and Drug Center, then located on Santa Monica Blvd.^[1] CMA now has a presence in over 100 metropolitan areas of the United States, as well as parts of Canada, and Australia.^[2] The first CMA World Service Conference was held in Park City, Utah from October 17 - 19, 2008.^[3] At that convention, the CMA Charter was adopted.^[4] While many members use Alcoholic's Anonymous' "Big Book" as a guide for their program, others use the "Basic Text" of Narcotics Anonymous or that of other 12-step fellowships. At the first General Service Conference, the delegates unanimously adopted the following statement; "The Fellowship of Crystal Meth Anonymous works a Twelve Step program of recovery. We have not felt the need to elaborate in great detail a specific CMA approach to the Twelve Steps: too many other excellent outlines already exist for following these spiritual principles. But our experience has shown that without the Steps we could not stay sober.^[5]

In 2002, the United States Department of Health and Human Services estimated 12 million people, age 12 and over, had used methamphetamine—600,000 of which were estimated to be current users—with a growth rate of approximately 300,000 new users per year.^[6] In 2005, a Los Angeles clinic estimated that one out of three gay or bisexual HIV-positive men admitted to using methamphetamine.^[6][7] Methamphetamine may lower inhibitions, increasing the likelihood of engaging in unprotected sex and sharing needles.^[8] In large metropolitan areas, such as Atlanta, Chicago, Miami and Washington, DC, many CMA groups are designated as "gay/lesbian" reflecting the use of methamphetamine in urban gay communities.^[9]

Effectiveness

See also: Twelve-step program: Effectiveness

A self-selected study limited to men who had sex with other men, used meth, and attended CMA,^[10] showed that, after three months of participation in CMA, members reported their number of sexual partners had dropped from seven to less than one and self-reports of unprotected anal intercourse when using methamphetamine dropped by two-thirds. In a six month follow up, 64% had remained abstinent from methamphetamine while an additional 20% had used only once.^[9][11]

Literature

• Alcoholics Anonymous (February 2002). Alcoholics Anonymous: The Story of how Many Thousands of Men and Women have Recovered from Alcoholism (4th ed.). Alcoholics Anonymous World Services. ISBN 1893007162. OCLC 2353981. http://www.aa.org/bigbookonline. 
• Alcoholics Anonymous (2002-02-10). Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions. Alcoholics Anonymous World Services. ISBN 0916856011. OCLC 13572433. 

See also

• Addiction recovery groups
• List of twelve-step groups

References

1. ^ "CMA History". http://www.crystalmeth.org/. Retrieved 2008-08-04. 
2. ^ "CMA Meeting Areas". http://www.crystalmeth.org. Retrieved 2007-06-11. 
3. ^ "CMA World Service Conference 2008". http://www.crystalmeth.org/. Retrieved 2008-08-04. 
4. ^ CMA World Services
5. ^ CMA General Service Conference, 2008
6. ^ ^{a b} Lee, Steven (Spring 2006). "Crystal Methamphetamine: Current Issues in Addiction and Treatment" (PDF). Paradigm. http://www.addictionrecov.org/paradigm/P_PR_SP06/paradigmSP06.pdf. Retrieved 2007-06-10. 
7. ^ Worth, Heather; Rawstorne, Patrick (October 2005). "Crystallizing the HIV epidemic: methamphetamine, unsafe sex, and gay diseases of the will". Archives of sexual behavior 34 (5): 483–486. doi:10.1007/s10508-005-6274-9. ISSN 1573-2800. PMID 16211470. 
8. ^ Sanello, Frank (2005). Tweakers: How Crystal Meth Is Ravaging Gay America. Los Angeles, California: Alyson Publishing. ISBN 1555838847. OCLC 56608054. 
9. ^ ^{a b} Lyons, Thomas; Chandra, Gopika; Goldstein, Jerome (October 2006). "Stimulant use and HIV Risk Behavior: The Influence of Peer Support Group Participation". AIDS Education and Prevention 18 (5): 461–473. doi:10.1521/aeap.2006.18.5.461. ISSN 0899-9546. PMID 17067256. 
10. ^ "Science to Services: Jane Addams Substance Abuse Research Collaboration (July 2007)" (PDF). University of Illinois at Chicago; Jane Adams School of Social Work. 2007. pp. 2 (6). http://uic.edu/jaddams/college/subabuse/newsletter/2007%20JASARC%20Brochure_7.pdf. , summarizing Lyons, Thomas; Chandra, Gopika; Goldstein, Jerome (October 2006). "Stimulant use and HIV Risk Behavior: The Influence of Peer Support Group Participation". AIDS Education and Prevention 18 (5): 461–473. doi:10.1521/aeap.2006.18.5.461. ISSN 0899-9546. PMID 17067256. 
11. ^ Lyons, Thomas M.; Chandra, Gopika; Goldstein, Jerome (2006-10-08). "APHA 134th Annual Meeting and Exposition". Conference Proceedings: APHA 134 Annual Meeting and Exposition. Public Health and Human Rights. Boston, Massachusetts. 141356. http://apha.confex.com/apha/134am/techprogram/paper_141356.htm. Retrieved 2007-06-10. 

Further reading

• Donovan, D. M., & Wells, E. A. (April 2007). "'Tweaking 12-Step': The potential role of 12-Step self-help group involvement in methamphetamine recovery". Addiction 102 (Suppl 1): 121–129. doi:10.1111/j.1360-0443.2007.01773.x. PMID 17493061. 
• Lewis, J. R., Boyle, D. P., Lewis, L. S., & Evans, M. (January 2000). "Reducing AIDS and substance abuse risk factors among homeless, HIV-infected, drug-using persons". Research on Social Work Practice 10 (1): 15–33. 
• Lewis, T. F., II. (2004). "Walking Down the Twelve Steps with Crystal Meth". Journal of Social Work Practice in the Addictions 4 (4): 127–130. doi:10.1300/J160v04n04_09. 

External links

• CMA World Service website