About Marijuana Anonymous
Who is a Marijuana Addict?
We who are marijuana addicts know the answer to this question. Marijuana controls our lives! We lose interest in all else; our dreams go up in smoke. Ours is a progressive illness often leading us to addictions to other drugs, including alcohol. Our lives, our thinking, and our desires center around marijuana – scoring it, dealing it, and finding ways to stay high. As stated in our third tradition, the only requirement for membership in Marijuana Anonymous is a desire to stop using marijuana. This is to adhere to the “singleness of purpose” concept, but many of us have found that the only way that we can keep our sobriety is to abstain from all mind and mood altering chemicals, including alcohol.
Who are MA Members?
Members of MA range from addicts who did nothing but marijuana, to addicts who did everything possible and could get off everything else but not cannabis. They needed special meetings aimed at coping with marijuana addiction. Now they have a refuge among people who know that cannabis addiction is nothing to joke about. Our members represent a wide cross section of society.
Where did MA start?
Marijuana Anonymous started in a number of places at almost the same time. It is a programme whose time had come. Some of the original meetings weren’t even called Marijuana Anonymous. There was a Marijuana Smokers Anonymous in Orange County, California, a Marijuana Addicts Anonymous in the San Francisco Bay Area, and two groups called Marijuana Anonymous, one in Los Angeles, and the other in Seattle, Washington. They all came into being around 1986 and 1987 and amalgamated in to one fellowship in 1989.
When did MA start in Ireland?
Meetings of Marijuana Anonymous Ireland began in April 2014.
Public Information
The primary purpose of Marijuana Anonymous is to help the addict who still suffers. Therefore, public outreach, in the form of education, information, and awareness is an important aspect of our programme. In addition to serving addicts, we welcome interest and inquiries from service providers in all areas including medical, the courts, schools, educators, social workers, counselors – as well as from the general public.
MA is often able to provide speaker panels, comprised of members in recovery. We are not “experts” who lecture on scientific aspects of drug use, nor do we have opinions on controversial issues such as legalisation. Our members speak from personal experience about what it was like in the throes of active addiction, what happened, and what it’s like now that they are in recovery.