Your First NA Meeting

Narcotics Anonymous writes a pamphlet for the hour you have not attended yet. The English literature list calls it IP #29, An Introduction to NA Meetings. The virtual meeting page points to that pamphlet when it explains what to expect. The pamphlet says the information is for someone new to NA or about to walk into a meeting for the first time. It says the words and the customs may feel unfamiliar, and it suggests showing up early, staying late, and asking questions before and after. It also says meetings are not the same from one city, one country, or even one night to the next. This page stays on those public pages. It does not paste the pamphlet, and it does not print a list of rooms.

If this is an overdose, a seizure, or trouble breathing, call 911. For a mental health crisis, call or text 988.

What the fellowship says it is, before the format label

NA's about page says the fellowship was founded in 1953 and that the Basic Text was published in 1983. It says members hold over 79,000 meetings weekly in 122 countries. It describes recovery through a twelve-step program and regular attendance at group meetings, with help from peers. The name, it says, is not meant to imply a focus on any particular drug. The approach makes no distinction between drugs, including alcohol. Membership is free. The same page says NA has no affiliation with governments, religions, law enforcement, or medical and psychiatric associations.

IP #29 points readers to the Basic Text for NA's own description of who the fellowship is. It says the purpose of each meeting is to give members a place to share recovery with other addicts, even though people attend for many reasons. It says applying the program is more than attending. For someone who is an addict, or who thinks they might have a drug problem, the pamphlet suggests a meeting every day for at least 90 days in order to get to know members and the program. That is the pamphlet's suggestion. It is not a medical order, and it is not a promise about outcome.

The literature list also names IP #16, For the Newcomer, and IP #22, Welcome to Narcotics Anonymous. This page does not summarize those two from titles alone. IP #11 is the sponsorship pamphlet. The how-to-find guide is how you get a local list. This page is the hour after you have one.

Open or closed, then discussion or speaker

The virtual meeting search uses two attendance marks. Closed to the public means only for addicts or for people who think they may have a drug problem. Open to the public means anyone is welcome. IP #29's glossary matches that split and tells a person who is not an addict to look for an open meeting. Alcoholics Anonymous uses open and closed too, on a different site, for a different fellowship. The first A.A. meeting guide is that other door. The comparison guide keeps the names apart.

Format is the next word, and it is not the same word. IP #29 says meetings are usually discussion meetings, where members take turns, or speaker meetings, where one or more members share for a longer stretch. An open meeting can be either. A closed meeting can be either. Read both labels on the local listing.

The pamphlet says NA is not concerned with types or amounts of drugs used. It says meetings are not classes and not group therapy. Members share personal experience. They do not teach lessons or provide counseling. It says meetings are often held in churches, treatment centers, or other buildings because those rooms are affordable or available, and that NA is not part of the place that lent the room.

Money, names, and the choice to listen

IP #29 says there are no membership fees or dues. It also says meetings cost money to hold, so members make voluntary contributions. Nonmembers are asked not to put money in, so NA can remain self-supporting. Most meetings, it says, offer informational pamphlets for free. Books are generally sold at the group's cost. Much of the literature can be read or ordered at na.org. That is a different checkout from a treatment bill.

The pamphlet says visitors and newcomers are usually asked to introduce themselves by their first name. Usually is the word it uses. It says a hug or a handshake and a welcome keytag are common welcomes, and later it says that if you do not want a hug, say so. Many members will understand. In many places the meeting ends in a circle with a short prayer or an NA reading. The pamphlet says you may hear prayers and that the program is spiritual, not religious.

On sharing, it says NA relies on one addict helping another. Nonmembers are asked not to share, aside from some groups that allow a brief word at a celebration. Members are usually asked to share once, and many meetings ask for about five minutes or less. Crosstalk, in the pamphlet's wording, means answering another person instead of speaking from your own experience. Newcomers are encouraged to listen, and they are also welcome to share when the meeting opens the floor. The request for anonymity is practical: do not talk about who was there or what they said.

Some groups sign attendance sheets or court cards. Some do not. IP #29 says to ask before the meeting how that group handles it. The virtual meeting page says the same thing in more detail for online meetings, and it points to NAWS Bulletin 31 for the longer discussion. This page does not reprint the bulletin. A signature, when a group agrees to one, is not treatment documentation from this website.

Finding the meeting is a different page

NA says it does not keep a database of in-person meetings. Find NA Near You returns area and region markers. Denver had one area inside 25 miles on October 1, 2026. New York had 22 markers. Neither page pastes a weekly grid. The virtual search is the online list. NA says there is no registration, sign-up, or permission required to join a meeting that posts a link. The online NA guide stays on that tool. The meetings page on this site searches public feeds. It does not verify a group.

NIDA lists Narcotics Anonymous among mutual-help groups, and it lists SMART Recovery as a different one. SMART Recovery is a separate peer program. SmarterRecovery, this site, is a referral helpline. The names look alike. They are not the same organization, and neither name is the group that will hand you a keytag.

When the meeting is the wrong door

NIDA says mutual-help groups are not led by healthcare professionals, so they are not the same as treatment. IP #29 says the program of recovery begins with abstinence from all drugs, including alcohol, and that people sometimes arrive while still using, while detoxing, or while on drug replacement therapy. It says you are welcome regardless of what you may be taking when you first come. It also says members are not professionals, NA has no opinions on medical matters, and questions about prescribed medication belong with NA literature, including the booklet In Times of Illness, and with members who will only share their own experience. A welcome at a meeting does not monitor withdrawal or dosing. If the danger is an overdose, a seizure, or trouble breathing, use emergency care.

Search FindTreatment.gov. SAMHSA's National Helpline is 1-800-662-HELP (4357). SmarterRecovery is a referral helpline, not NA World Services, and not the group at the meeting. The about page says calling is free to you because treatment providers pay for the referral service. Call or text (800) 653-9376 if you want help finding a program. If you want the meeting, use the local NA list, read whether it is open or closed, and confirm it.

Call 911 or 988 first when the situation is an emergency or a suicide crisis.

Additional Resources

Sources cited on this page:

• NA World Services: About the NA Program
• NA World Services: IP #29, An Introduction to NA Meetings
• NA World Services: Recovery Literature in English (USA)
• NA World Services: Find NA Near You
• NA World Services: Virtual Meeting Search
• NA World Services: Find NA
• A.A.: What to Expect at an A.A. Meeting
• NIDA: Treatment, including mutual-help groups
• SAMHSA FindTreatment.gov
• SAMHSA National Helpline
• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
• SmarterRecovery meetings page (public meeting search; listings are not verified by this site)
• SmarterRecovery about page (referral disclosure)

Common Questions