CMA Readings

It doesn’t matter what you call it. It doesn’t matter how you did it. It brought us to our knees, because without exception, that’s what it does.

Is speed a problem in your life? Are you an addict? Only you can answer those questions.

For most of us who have admitted defeat, the answer is very clear. Yes, we had a problem with speed, and no, we couldn’t fix the problem by ourselves. We had to admit defeat to win. Speed was our master.

We couldn’t control our drug use. What started out as weekend or occasional use became daily use, and we soon found ourselves beyond human aid. We truly suffered from a lack of power to fix our problem.

Some of us used speed as a tool to work harder and longer, but we couldn’t keep a job. Others picked at their faces and arms for hours and hours or pulled out their hair. Some of us had uncontrollable sexual desire. Others endlessly tinkered with projects, accomplishing nothing, but found ourselves so busy we couldn’t get to work on time.

We deluded ourselves into thinking that staying up for nights on end was OK, that our tweaking was under control, and that we could quit if we wanted to, or that we couldn’t afford to quit, or that our using didn’t affect our lives.

Maybe we saw a friend go to jail, or lose their apartment, or lose their job, or lose the trust of their family, or die, but our clouded minds wouldn’t admit we were next.

Most of us saw no way out, believing that we would use until the day we died.

Almost universally, if we had an honest moment, we found that our drug use made seemingly insurmountable problems in our lives.

The only way out was if we had the courage to admit that speed, our one time friend, was killing us.

It doesn’t matter how you got here. The courts sent some of us, others came for family or friends, and some of us came to CMA on our own. The question is, if you want help and are willing to go to any lengths to change your life.

I don’t have to relapse.

I never need to go back out there;

I can stay here—there is a solution.

I can stay here and stop running;

I can stay here and start saying yes to life.

I can find a Higher Power to rely on.

I can find some peace and find out who I really am.

I can make a decision and make some changes.

I can make some new friends—

And make amends to my old ones.

A lot of addicts will go back to using, but I don’t have to. Not if I get a sponsor and get to work.

Take a deep breath…

If I can accept the truth and put away my fantasy,

If I can ask for a little help,

If I can take these suggested steps,

One day at a time, I will be free.

(Groups may change this reading to the “We” version at their discretion)

We come to CMA because of our common problem. We stay because of our common solution. To find long-term freedom from the grip of addiction, we work the Twelve Steps of Crystal Meth Anonymous:

1. We admitted that we were powerless over crystal meth and our lives had become unmanageable.

2. Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of a God of our understanding.

4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

5. Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

7. Humbly asked God to remove our shortcomings.

8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed and became willing to make amends to them all.

9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.

10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.

11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with a God of our understanding praying only for the knowledge of God’s will for us, and the power to carry that out.

12. Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to crystal meth addicts, and to practice these principles in all of our affairs.

Crystal meth seemed like the answer to our problems. Not anymore. We realize our drug use was killing us. Once we started, we couldn’t stop. Today, to stay clean and sober, we don’t pick up—no matter what.

When we take action, we choose faith over fear and progress over perfection. As we work the Steps, we put spiritual principles into motion.

Surrender is an action...it brings freedom.

Humility is an action...it brings perspective.

Gratitude is an action...it brings contentment.

This is the gift of recovery: We awaken, our lives improve, and we

gradually move from self to service. We act as messengers to others

who are suffering—messengers of hope and healing, of connection,

compassion, and yes, even joy.

The Twelve Traditions guide the group just as the Twelve Steps guide the individual.

1. Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends on CMA unity.

2. For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority—a loving God as expressed in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.

3. The only requirement for CMA membership is a desire to stop using.

4. Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or CMA as a whole.

5. Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry the message to the addict who still suffers.

6. A CMA group ought never endorse, finance, or lend the CMA name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property, or prestige divert us from our primary purpose.

7. Every CMA group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions.

8. Crystal Meth Anonymous should remain forever nonprofessional, but our service centers may employ special workers.

9. CMA, as such, ought never be organized, but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve.

10. Crystal Meth Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues;

hence the CMA name ought never be drawn into public controversy.

11. Our public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion; we need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio, television, films, and other public media.

12. Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our traditions, ever reminding us to place principles before personalities.

When we came to CMA, we found other crystal meth addicts who recovered from a hopeless state of mind, body and spirit. They showed us how to live useful and rewarding lives by embracing a simple program of action.

Through the Steps, we let go of our denial and learned to be honest with ourselves. We developed a relationship with a Higher Power of our own conception. We opened up to another addict about our past and asked our Higher Power to remove our character defects.

We cleaned up the wreckage from the tornado of our old life and embarked upon a new course. We found freedom from fear; love replaced our selfishness.

The truth of our new lives is: We now handle difficulties that once compelled us to use crystal meth. We help others in ways we could never do for ourselves. By finding a spiritual basis

on which to live, we can become the miracle of recovery that is happening in the rooms of CMA. We lead incredible lives and give hope to the still suffering addict that recovery from crystal meth is truly possible.

Let’s not forget what we can do this day:

Today I Can...

Draw on the power of honesty. I embrace change and redefine myself. Word by word, deed by deed—I strive to reflect the truth.

Today I Can...

Put down my old habits. Selfishness and hardness give way to an instinct for service. Gratitude now is my rule.

Today I Can...

Appreciate the richness of life by welcoming, sharing and laughing with another addict. Turning Godward, I find progress and peace.

Today I Can...

Take in a new reality—that in this struggle I am not alone. Many have walked this path before, and I have fellows at my side.

Today...Together...We Can Live in Hope!

CMA has a simple message:

Recovery from meth addiction is possible.

You never have to use again.

And you don’t have to recover alone.

We are Crystal Meth Anonymous. Together we practice the Twelve Steps as a new way to live, free from crystal meth use.

The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop using. There are no dues or fees. We share our experience, strength, and hope to help each other stay clean and sober, one day at a time. Through our actions and service, we carry the message of recovery to the addict who still suffers.

Our Fellowship advocates complete abstinence from crystal meth and all other mind-altering substances, including alcohol, marijuana, inhalants, and any medication not taken as prescribed.

We suggest laying a solid foundation with:

• Meetings and fellowship

• Sponsorship and Step work

• Service and commitments

Remaining anonymous gives every member the same opportunity to recover. We are simply addicts helping other addicts.

If you think you have a problem with crystal meth, you’re in the right place. You always have a seat here.

Welcome home.

1. Final responsibility and ultimate authority for CMA world services should always reside in the collective conscience of the Fellowship of CMA as a whole.

2. The General Service Conference of CMA has become, for nearly every practical purpose, the active voice and the effective conscience of the Fellowship in its world affairs.

3. To create and insure effective leadership, we should endow each element of CMA with a traditional “RIGHT OF DECISION,” which allows our trusted servants to decide what matters can be disposed of by themselves and what matters require them to report, consult, or ask for direction.

4. At all responsible levels, we ought to maintain a traditional “RIGHT OF PARTICIPATION,” allowing our trusted servants voting representation in reasonable proportion to the responsibility that each must discharge.

5. Throughout our structure, a traditional “RIGHT OF APPEAL” and a “RIGHT OF PETITION” ought to prevail, thus assuring that minority opinions will be heard and personal grievances will be carefully considered.

6. Although the General Service Conference has the final decision respecting overall matters of general policy and finance, it recognizes that the chief initiative and active responsibility in most of these matters, especially the day-to-day functioning of CMA’s world services, should be exercised by the Trustees acting together as the Board.

7. The Bylaws of Crystal Meth Anonymous is a legal instrument that fully empowers the Board of Trustees to manage and conduct all of CMA’s world services. The Conference Charter itself is NOT a legal document; it relies instead upon the force of tradition and the power of the CMA treasury for its final effectiveness.

8. Our Board of Trustees is the principal planner and administrator of overall policy and finance, as decided by the General Service Conference. It also has custodial oversight of CMA’s separately incorporated service entities, which the Board exercises by its ability to select the executives of these entities.

9. Good service leadership at all levels is indispensable for our future functioning and safety. Primary world service leadership, once exercised by the founders of CMA and the General Service Committee, must necessarily be assumed by the Board of Trustees.

10. Every service responsibility should be matched by an equal service authority, with the scope of such authority well defined.

11. While the Trustees hold responsibility for the administration of CMA’s world services, they should always have the assistance of the best possible committees, staffs, consultants, and, if necessary, corporate executives who are not Trustees. Such individuals, whether volunteers or paid employees, should be chosen with care. Serious concern should be given as to how they are selected, what qualifications they possess, and what rights and duties they will have. 44 CMA Service Manual

12. The General Warranties of CMA’s General Service Conference: in all its proceedings, the General Service Conference shall observe the spirit of the CMA tradition, taking care that it never becomes the seat of perilous wealth or power; that sufficient operating funds and reserve be its prudent financial principle; that it place none of its members in a position of unqualified authority over any of the others; that it reach all important decisions by discussion, vote and, whenever possible, by substantial unanimity; that its actions never be personally punitive nor an incitement to public controversy; and although it may act for the Fellowship of CMA as a whole, it will never perform acts of government, and it will always remain democratic in thought and action like the Fellowship which it serves.