The Nar-Anon Family Groups are a worldwide fellowship for those affected by someone else’s addiction.
As a twelve step program, we offer our help by sharing our experience, strength, and hope.
We carry the message of hope by letting others know that they are not alone, by practicing the Twelve Steps of Nar-Anon, and by changing our own attitudes.
We will respect your anonymity.
Our program is not a religious one, but a spiritual way of life.
2008 Nar-Anon Family Group Headquarters, “Preamble” from The Nar-Anon Blue Booklet
Newcomer’s Welcome
The Nar-Anon Family Group is primarily for you who know or have known a feeling of desperation concerning the addiction problem of someone very near to you. We have traveled that unhappy road too and found the answer with serenity and peace of mind.
When you come into the family group, you are no longer alone but among true friends who understand your problem as few others could. We will respect your confidence and anonymity, as we know you will respect ours. We hope to give you the assurance that no situation is too difficult, and no unhappiness is too great to be overcome.
Our program, which is not a religious one, but a spiritual way of life, is based on the twelve suggested steps of Nar-Anon. We have found that the working of these steps will bring the solution to practically any problem. We urge you to take this program and its twelve steps seriously. It has been as helpful to us as the Narcotics Anonymous program is to the addict. We only ask for the wisdom and courage to see ourselves as we really are, to do something about ourselves with the help of a Higher Power, as we understand this, and for the grace to release our addicts with love and cease trying to change them.
Keep an open mind and attend as many meetings as possible. Feel free to share during the meeting. You may ask questions after the meeting. You will soon make new friends and will feel very much a part of the group.
With the understanding that addiction is a disease, and the realization that we are powerless over it as well as over other people’s lives, we are ready to do something useful and constructive with our own. Then, and only then, can we be of any help to others.
2014 Nar-Anon Family Group Headquarters, from The Nar-Anon Blue Booklet
How can Nar-Anon help me?
Nar-Anon is intended for parents, spouses, children, siblings, and friends of addicts. Nar-Anon can provide new insights to help with our attitudes, behaviours, and emotions. We can regain our own sanity and well-being. We learn addiction is a family disease, and we need a recovery program too. In Nar-Anon, we learn we are not responsible for another person’s addiction. Addicts need help and so do we. It can be a great relief to learn more effective ways of coping while gaining hope and peace of mind.
2014 Nar-Anon Family Group Headquarters, from Nar-Anon Offers Hope
What will I find at Nar-Anon?
You will find love, understanding, and hope in the Nar-Anon Family Group. People in the group may be experiencing, in varying degrees, the same hurt, anger, and anxieties you may be feeling. We come to Nar-Anon because we are burdened with responsibilities and feel we are alone. We come here to change the behaviour of the addict but soon find that it is our own thinking and attitude that must be changed if we are to have relief. We find people in Nar-Anon who understand what we are going through and are ready to share their experience, strength, and hope to help us. In Nar-Anon, we learn how to live one day at a time; we stop projecting. We learn how to deal with our feelings of fear, guilt, obsession, anxiety, and denial. We look at ourselves and put our energy where we do have some power over the choices in our own lives. We can gain support and understanding by listening and speaking with others at Nar-Anon meetings.
2014 Nar-Anon Family Group Headquarters, from “Nar-Anon Offers Hope”
How Do I Join Nar-Anon?
Joining is easy – just attend a meeting. There are no dues or fees. The only requirement for membership is that there be a problem of addiction in a relative or friend. We’re never affiliated with any other organization or outside entity.
Nar-Anon Family Group Headquarters, from the Nar-Anon World Service website
What Does It Cost?
Nar-Anon has no dues or fees. Each group is self-supporting and collects donations that are used for local expenses such as room rent and supplies. Group and member donations support the Nar-Anon World Service Office.
Nar-Anon Family Group Headquarters, from the Nar-Anon World Service website
More information
For more information about Nar-Anon Family Groups see:
www.nar-anon.org/what-is-nar-anon
Links to Literature and other Resources /links-and-resources