Can MMT patients participate in 12-Step programs?
Through many decades, 12-Step programs following the basic principles of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) have helped millions of persons in recovery from addiction. Yet, at one time, the notion of someone on methadone maintenance attending 12-Step meetings was unthinkable. There are perhaps as many myths and misunderstandings surrounding 12-Step programs as there are MMT. The continuing use of methadone was unacceptable among many AA members, because the person was considered as continuing to take an addictive drug. For the same reason, some Narcotics Anonymous (NA) groups shunned persons on methadone. They did not understand, or care to acknowledge, the use of methadone as a legitimately prescribed medication and they failed to observe the unwritten tradition that, “No AA (or NA) member should play doctor.” Some old-time AA/NA members discourage the use of any medications for mental problems, including antidepressants or other drugs acting on brain chemistry. Part of the problem might have
Through many decades, 12-Step programs following the basic principles of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) have helped millions of persons in recovery from addiction. Yet, at one time, the notion of someone on methadone maintenance attending 12-Step meetings was unthinkable. There are perhaps as many myths and misunderstandings surrounding 12-Step programs as there are methadone maintenance treatment (MMT). The continuing use of methadone is sometimes unacceptable among many AA members, because the person is erroneously considered as continuing to take an “addictive drug.” For the same reason, some Narcotics Anonymous (NA) groups have shunned persons on methadone. They do not understand, or care to acknowledge, the use of methadone as a legitimately prescribed medication and they fail to observe the unwritten tradition that, “No AA (or NA) member should play doctor.” Part of the problem might have come from an insistence by MMT patients on openly acknowledging their taking methadone and expect
