Defeating drugs one day at a time

Defeating drugs one day at a time
By Dan Hilborn, Burnaby Now assistant editor
Published May 17, 2003

'David' knew that he had a problem with drugs and that his life was out of control long before he ever walked through the doors of his first Narcotics Anonymous meeting.
"I had to hit bottom," he said of that fateful day when he walked into a room full of recovering addicts.
He remembers being nervous before somebody asked him to talk. Taking his cue from the previous speakers, he introduced himself in the usual way: "Hi, my name is David and I am an addict." And the instant he spoke those words, he felt a huge weight lifted off his back.
"I started talking about the things I'd done, and people were nodding their heads in recognition. It felt comfortable. I was where I was supposed to be."
Today, four years after that first meeting, David is still clean and sober, and willing to do what it takes to stay off drugs. For him, that means spreading the word to others that there is a safe, reliable and free method for getting out of the cycle of drug abuse.
"I knew that that bottom had come when I had pretty much alienated my family, my friends and my own child," he said in a recent interview with the Burnaby NOW. "Sure I still had a job, but things were getting shaky, and people were probably starting to suspect. ...
"No, I knew I had a problem, and everyone else knew, too," he admits after just one moment's reflection.
David is a member of the public information committee of Narcotics Anonymous, which is one of the largest self-help associations in the world. First started in California during the late 1960s, the group works on the principle of one addict helping another.
And it teaches some very simple procedures for staying clean and sober. "You don't try to stay clean forever - you just worry about today," David said. "That's because staying clean forever is an awfully big task. But 'just for today' is something we can manage."
Newcomers to the program are encouraged to find themselves a sponsor - someone with a little more experience in the program whom they can turn to for help, guidance or, sometimes, just an ear to listen.
Once a newcomer is a little more comfortable in their sobriety, the program then encourages its members to begin the process of looking at their past and rebuilding their life using the 12 steps.
"The steps give us the opportunity to make amends and repair the things we did in our addiction, so we can move forward and become acceptable, responsible and productive members of society," David said.
Finding NA is not difficult. Meetings are held every night of the week in almost every community in the Lower Mainland. The most recent directory shows 145 meetings per week in the region stretching from Squamish to Hope, many of which are 'open meetings' that anyone - addict or non-addict - is welcome to attend.
Open meetings are often attended by people who think they might have a problem, but aren't quite willing to completely admit that their lives have become unmanageable.
"There are no guarantees, but you can get all your misery back if it doesn't work," Dave says, with only a hint of humour in his voice. "But we are there to help if you are willing to do what you need to do."
To find the Narcotics Anonymous meeting nearest to you, contact NA's Lower Mainland information line at 604-873-1018.