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Nar-Anon Northern California Region

Northern California

Starting a Nar-Anon Family Group in
the Northern California Region (NCR)

Updated 7/2/2021

In a Nar-Anon group, people meet for mutual support, each one a friend or relative of someone affected by addiction. Finding they face problems in common, they share in confidence their experience, strength and hope. Beyond this they have no other affiliation.

New Nar-Anon groups are usually started by experienced local Nar-Anon members, but even newcomers who qualify as members can start a group, when they find there is the need for a new group. Perhaps there are no Nar-Anon groups at all in a community, or the existing groups have grown so large that they could support more groups, or some members need a group at a different location or time. Starting a group takes some effort and patience, but can be rewarding. This page hopes to make it easier by suggesting some resources and procedures that can help.

Two publications, each available on the Nar-Anon World Service website, may be helpful in understanding and implementing the ideas discussed in this document. The first is the Starting a Group web page presenting four tasks and four tips to establish, connect, maintain and grow your group. The second is The Nar-Anon Guide to Local Services, especially sections 2 through 6, with information about the local structure of Nar-Anon beyond the group level.

For consideration when forming new groups in the NCR*

  1. Support provided by the NCR. When the NCR is notified that a new group is joining the region, besides listing the group on the website, the region can also provide some one-time seed money to help with the initial purchase of literature. Some areas may also provide additional seed money.
  2. Register the meeting when the starting date has been determined. Use the New Group page on the World Service website so that it will be listed on the Find a Meeting page. This will also provide a group ID that may be used for ordering literature and other contact with the World Service Office (WSO), region, and area. If the founders wish the group to be listed on the NCR website, contact the webmaster at . If the group wishes to be part of an area, they may also contact the area as well so it can be listed on the area's meeting list, and website (if any).
  3. Reach out for local support. If the group determines by means of the group conscience process to become formally associated with the NCR, the founders may contact the region to give notice of the group's formation and find help or support from the region. The region can help the group identify and reach out to a local area or to nearby groups and members for support. Nearby groups can also be located on the World Service website's Find a Meeting page.
  4. Do not be discouraged when many newcomers fail to return. People attend for their own reasons. Nar-Anon is for those who want it. There could be many reasons why a person chooses to return, or not. However, when groups adhere to the Twelve Traditions, follow the suggestions in "Healthy Meetings" (in the Nar-Anon Blue Booklet) and have experienced members sharing their recovery, not just complaining about their difficulties, those groups are more likely to attract more members. If many newcomers indicate that the location or time is not favorable, it might help to choose another location or time. You will probably need a lot of patience. It could take several months and a few outreach efforts for the group to grow large enough to sustain itself.

Resources for new meetings:

* The term Nar-Anon "region" describes a formalized affiliation of local Nar-Anon groups. Note that, while not a suggested condition, some Nar-Anon groups may register with the World Service but choose to operate without formal area or region affiliations.