Crystal Meth Anonymous
Encyclopedia
Crystal Meth Anonymous 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
, inhalant
s, and all other psychoactive drugs
not taken as prescribed
.
. The first group held its first meeting at the West Hollywood Alcohol and Drug Center, then located on Santa Monica Blvd. CMA now has a presence in over 100 metropolitan areas of the United States, as well as parts of Canada
, and Australia
. The first CMA World Service Conference was held in Park City, Utah from October 17 - 19, 2008. At that convention, the CMA Charter was adopted. 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.
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. In 2005, a Los Angeles clinic estimated that one out of three gay or bisexual HIV-positive men admitted to using methamphetamine. Methamphetamine
may lower inhibitions, increasing the likelihood of engaging in unprotected sex and sharing needles
. 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.
Twelve-step program
A Twelve-Step Program is a set of guiding principles outlining a course of action for recovery from addiction, compulsion, or other behavioral problems...
of recovered and recovering crystal meth
Methamphetamine
Methamphetamine is a psychostimulant of the phenethylamine and amphetamine class of psychoactive drugs...
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
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
, inhalant
Inhalant
Inhalants are a broad range of drugs whose volatile vapors are taken in via the nose and trachea. They are taken by volatilization, and do not include drugs that are inhaled after burning or heating...
s, and all other psychoactive drugs
Psychoactive drug
A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, or psychotropic is a chemical substance that crosses the blood–brain barrier and acts primarily upon the central nervous system where it affects brain function, resulting in changes in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition, and behavior...
not taken as prescribed
Medical prescription
A prescription is a health-care program implemented by a physician or other medical practitioner in the form of instructions that govern the plan of care for an individual patient. Prescriptions may include orders to be performed by a patient, caretaker, nurse, pharmacist or other therapist....
.
History and demographics
CMA was founded on September 16, 1994 in West Hollywood, CaliforniaWest Hollywood, California
West Hollywood, a city of Los Angeles County, California, was incorporated on November 29, 1984, with a population of 34,399 at the 2010 census. 41% of the city's population is made up of gay men according to a 2002 demographic analysis by Sara Kocher Consulting for the City of West Hollywood...
. The first group held its first meeting at the West Hollywood Alcohol and Drug Center, then located on Santa Monica Blvd. CMA now has a presence in over 100 metropolitan areas of the United States, as well as parts of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The first CMA World Service Conference was held in Park City, Utah from October 17 - 19, 2008. At that convention, the CMA Charter was adopted. 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.
In 2002, the United States Department of Health and Human Services
United States Department of Health and Human Services
The United States Department of Health and Human Services is a Cabinet department of the United States government with the goal of protecting the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. Its motto is "Improving the health, safety, and well-being of America"...
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. In 2005, a Los Angeles clinic estimated that one out of three gay or bisexual HIV-positive men admitted to using methamphetamine. Methamphetamine
Methamphetamine
Methamphetamine is a psychostimulant of the phenethylamine and amphetamine class of psychoactive drugs...
may lower inhibitions, increasing the likelihood of engaging in unprotected sex and sharing needles
Needle sharing
Needle sharing is the practice of intravenous drug-users by which a syringe is shared by multiple individuals to administer intravenous drugs, and is a primary vector for diseases which can be transmitted through blood ....
. In large metropolitan areas, such as Atlanta, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Miami and Washington, DC, many CMA groups are designated as "gay/lesbian" reflecting the use of methamphetamine in urban gay communities.