1983 Living Clean (Original)

110 Pages·2015·26.34 MB·English

PRELlHINARY (THIRD) VERS!ON
Living Clean
The New Hember's Guide to the Fellowship
of Narcotics Anonymous
Living Clean
Copyright 198.3
WORLD SERVICE C.ONEEREN.CE
----------OF---------------
NARCOTICS A·NONYMOtJS
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- tot00m &l•HI November 15, 1983
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_::::::_::!:._ I 2. .!.,.a.,., . ~-.c-rnlnet To The Fellowship of Narcotics Anonymous:
........... ""'°". Cftaitpct"AOh
-~•r<a$ ct.a t tl05 We, the WSC-Literature subcommittee, feel the Third
---..~ Ed-it.ion of Living Clean is ready for review by the
--nlnotMtg V~a11rnal\ fellowship.
-"~""-d'-=:6·:=·-2:.-..&co·. C A $.tHO.
IOU ... _ .. mtt The following is additional input that we feel
-_-_--_-.• .._ ,1,.,1.0_1 C41.> N1l>rmI 1Gn -t should be addressed by your comrni ttees: Do Cha.pte·r s
-=----~-3 4( 15, and 29 violate our 10th Tradition? At this
~ ... v.c ... e>..•ttman time, the world Service Board of Trustees finds no
,-.=._.._:.._:";"1"~1"1'·1 r "6l !1~HtI tradit.ion viQla.t.ians; however, maybe these chapters
-~· could be improved. Also, we would like your input on
~ 1. ~'"'°"'""n•~ quotations fro~ other sources. For ex-ample, page 27,
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St. Francis, page 29, William James, page 33, the bible.
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_~v,",°," ."c'.r~ci1.. rA1DIn 34 n Yours in loving service,
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-1 _II, _._. . ,+ -~t3~-.f FL )l3)4 The WSC-Literature subcommittee
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Contents
l
lntroduc..tion; :·how-t~o ~u=s-=e~t..:,:h..::i:...:.s_b_o·c.).k :._.: __ ___________ 3
2 Are you _an ·addict?- 8
3 'What .. are ·your chances? r I
4
Do I need .:a rehabil itati"on · .cent:~i? 1'-
5 ~hat is Narcotics Anonymou /3
6 Henings
7 'F.eople, places and things: the Game I'/
8 ·Giving up roles: the ·toughest kid on .the ·blo'ck ~i
9 Taking car.e of yourself Q-8:
10 One day n a time 30
11 What to do about the cravin· 33
12 Sponsorship ~'f
13 Pray.er : It's a .spiritual progra '-/;l
14 Doing everything overnigh1!r----------~~-~
15 Methadone maintenance 115
16 :Being assertive
17 'Alcohol vs. addic-i;io !~
18 I• 11 never sleep again SI
19 Drugs, doctors, and pai S'f
20 Telephone therapy 55
21 Getting activ si
22 Loneliness ~3
23 Dry h~ghs and using dreams ~
24 :Sex ,:and relationships .- ------ ---------
5
25
26 ~Ang eT ·and resentments 7~7 .
27 Self-p~y 91
28
.Other adi:ii.ctions : work, gambling., ·compuls.ive sex 81.{
29 .Getting :into ~therapy 87_
30 Di&t ami .exerci ·se 88
31
Change-s CJ o
32
Getting into ·~he Sups 'U
1 WORLD LITERATIJRE COMMI'ITEE
0
3 LIVING CLEAN
4
5 WORK IN PROGRESS DRAFT
6
7
8
9
10 1. Introduction: how to use this book
11
12 This book is intended primarily for the newcomer in the Fellowship of Narcotics
1. 3 Anonymous, although we hope that the information in it will be useful to all of our
14 members.
Our drug using was the center of our lives. Around our drug use there developed a
0
1. 6 system of attirudes, of ways of dealing or not dealing with our environment, that take us
1. 7 years of staying clean to sort out. To recover, we had to change and to learn to
18 differentiate between recovery-oriented and drug-oriented behavior. We feel it is
19 impossible for newcomers to do this and to avoid the many pitfalls recovery holds without
20 relying heavily on the experience of those in the Fellowship of Narcotics Anonymous who
21 have traveled the path before them. This book is a summary of our experiences, selected
22 from our many collective years of recovery. For instance, should a recovering addict drink
23 alcohol or take a medically prescribed narcotic? How can the addict combat the craving
24 for a drug? These are among the many topics discussed in this book.
25 However, this book is not exhaustive. Nearly any member of Narcotics Anonymous
26 has additional good ideas. Nor is this book to be interpreted in any sense as the Narcotics
Anonymous program. That consistS of the Twelve Steps and the Twelve Traditions of
Non-Confumce·Approved
Living Clean· Work in Progress - DRAFT Page 2
2 a ~arcotics Anonymous, and one addict helping another. R4ther, this book should be
2 9 considered a handbook of practical suggestions that can enable_t he newcomer to cope
3 o more effectively with a drug-free life on a day-to-day basis and to utilize better all aspects
31 of recovery offered by the Narcotics Anonymous program.
3 2 This book contains our experience we have gained in the recovery process dealing
3 3 with many situations and we hope this experience will be useful to you.
3 4 In consulting this book you should try to keep an open mind and to exercise your own
3 s discrimination. Any principle, no matter how valid, can be pervened. For instance, one of
J 6 the suggestions we give about combating the craving for a drug by eating a nutritious snack
3 7 can easily be rationalized into a scheme for compulsive eating. And sometimes a
J a chronically unemployed member justifies his situation by deferring to the slogan. Easy does
39 i!!
4 o. Above all, try to be open.minded about the spiritual matters discussed here. Although
4 1 many of us entered the fellowship violently opposed to ideas such as God and religion, our
4 2 collective experience has taught us that nothing will defeat us as surely as indifference to
4 3 our spiritual growth. What exactly that expression means differs from one person to the
4 4 next, but it usually has little to do with any of our preconceived ideas about God or
4 5 religion.
4 6 One sometimes hears that the program is like a cafeteria. One ta1ces the food one
4 7 wants and leaves the rest· behind, presumably to be taken by someone else or even the
4 s same member later on in recovery. However, as no one can fare well on a diet consisting
4 9 solely of starches and desserts, so we need a balance of ideas in our lives. If you object to
5 o or fail to understand something you read here, make a mental note to look at it sometime
51 later in your recovery. You may find your appetite for it has changed.
5 2 Our discussion of the Steps here is brie( and we can give no more than an overview
53 of how we apply these·vitaly imponant principles to our lives. After reading our discussion o
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N on-Confermce·Appruved