Find 12 Step and Recovery Meetings

The COVID-19 pandemic has altered meeting schedules, meeting places and meeting formats. The number of live meetings has been significantly reduced, while online Zoom meetings have become a foundation of many 12 step programs.  If you are looking for a 12-step or non 12-step meeting, use the links below to find meetings of the program you wish to attend. The links offers online Zoom meetings and live meetings in your area. Our comprehensive and growing directory of meetings includes AA, NA, Al-Anon, CoDA, OA, CA, CMA, SA, SLAA, HA, MA, SMART Recovery and other 12-step and non 12-step addiction recovery meetings.

General 12 Step Meeting Information

With 100,000’s of many meetings being held around the world every day, it’s easy for you to find local live meetings and online meetings with people from your local community in attendance. If you are in a treatment center, they will have meetings and may also provide transportation to and from meetings. Many meetings have childcare, to ensure mothers and fathers can attend meetings also.

Meetings for 12-step programs, non 12-step programs, and other Recovery Programs are most often held in public places like churches, community centers, club houses and parks. During the COVID pandemic, many of your local meetings are still being held on the same day and time as before, but have transitioned to the online Zoom platform. While 12-step groups do not affiliate themselves with any particular religion, they are spiritual in nature, with a goal of taking the 12 steps, being relieved of your active addiction and having a spiritual awakening as a result of taking the 12 steps. The 12 steps include admitting powerlessness over your addiction (drugs, alcohol, etc.) and your unmanageable life, asking for help, calming yourself through meditation and other techniques, reviewing your personal inventory, identifying your character defects and seeking to diminish them, making amends to people you have harmed (when possible), helping others along the way, in an effort to rid yourself of your problematic behavior and heal your spiritual awakening, so you can them share your experience with others who may be suffering as you had been.

Types of 12-Step Meetings

As a general rule, there are two standard types of 12-step meetings: open meetings and closed meetings. An open meeting is open to anyone who wishes to attend, including people suffering from the particular ailment the meeting is focused on, friends, family members, students, members of the community, observers, first responders, treatment providers and more. Closed meetings are for individuals who identify as members of each particular group exclusively. The meetings are specifically intended to be a place for people to share their personal experiences, circumstances they may be in, and hardships related to their personal behavior, which are expected to remain confidential within the group. Twelve-Step and non 12-step meetings provide mental, emotion and spiritual support from the other individuals attending, who have been through similar situations. The members of the group offer newer members support and guidance based on their own personal experience in an effort to give the new members hope that they can turn their lives around in a similar fashion. Additionally, newer members help the longer term members by helping them feel that they are doing good by giving back and helping others in similar situations.

Among open and closed meetings, 12-Step meetings often follow various formats including:

• Discussion meetings: Possibly the most common meeting format, the chairperson or leader of the meeting will choose a topic to discuss during the meeting. These meetings may be open or closed.
• Beginner meetings: These meetings are led by a veteran member who has been in the particular program for a long period of time and may follow a variety of formats (discussion, topic, book, literature, step, etc.), while focusing on the first three of the 12 Steps, or it may be more of a question-and-answer type format.
• Speaker meetings: Members who have been sober for a minimum period of time may be chosen beforehand to share their past experiences and how working through “The Program,” as AA’s 12 Steps and Traditions may be referred to, has helped them get to where they are today. These meetings are often open to the public, many are recorded, so you can listen to your favorite Recovery Speakers any time you want.
• Book, Step, Tradition or Literature meetings: A reading from one of the programs texts is shared and worked through during the meeting. These meetings are usually held in a rotation as the Steps. Traditions, Book or Literature are worked through. Individuals may use workbooks and texts during the meeting or for homework assignments.
• Service meetings: These may be information meetings about service opportunities within the group or reports on service activities the group has performed.
• Group inventory meetings: Members work to determine if the group is fulfilling its purpose and functioning effectively.
• Business meetings: Generally, these meetings are for the members involved in the business aspects of the group. They may also include the group in electing officers or other group business needs.

People can attend as many meetings as the want and are often encouraged to attend a number of meetings until you find a meeting or set of meetings you like and that have people attending who you can relate to. People are encouraged to find a home group which they attend regularly. This is usually a meeting you relate to, that has people who are benefiting from the meeting and program. They generally take a commitment at their home group and hold themselves and others accountable for attending.

How Is a 12-Step Meeting Conducted?

Most 12-Step programs are modeled on the format of Alcoholics Anonymous, or AA, which is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. Other programs are fellowships of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from other addictive disorders (drugs, gambling, food, sex, etc.). Twelve step programs are nonprofessional, nondenominational groups, and are not affiliated with any political organization. They do not have any affiliation with any other organization and their main purpose is to help induvial members overcome their problems. These groups are free to join and have no dues or fees. Groups are self-sustaining and do not receive any outside funding.

Membership is open to anyone with the particular problem of the program and who want help to get better. People do not have to do anything prior to attending a meeting; they can just show up. Attendance is kept confidential, and individuals are welcome to attend as many different group meetings as they desire. Meetings are typically an hour, but there are also longer meetings.

Typical 12-Step Meeting Format

Individual groups may differ slightly in the way they run meetings, but in general, a typical format for a 12-Step meeting is as follows:

• Welcome and opening
• Moment of silence and recitation of the Serenity Prayer
• Explanation of 12-Step values, expectation of confidentiality, and reiteration of openness to all and no cost for membership
• Reading from the Recovery Literature of that particular program
• Introductions around the room (first name only, though no one is required to speak)
• Introduction of the speaker or facilitator of the meeting
• Discussion
• Announcements
• Passing of the collection plate, donations are not required although this is how the group sustains itself
• Closing, most likely with a prayer

As 12-Step meetings are meant to be a fellowship, there is also often coffee and refreshments at some point either before, during, or after the meeting for networking and socializing. Members may choose to volunteer at 12-Step meetings as coffee servers, greeters, or collection plate passers, or they can get more involved volunteering as the group’s secretary, treasurer, chairperson, etc.

Those who have been in recovery for a long period of time may become a “sponsor” for newer members. A sponsor is a more veteran member of the group, who has gone through the same difficulty you may be facing, has taken the steps of the program, knows the book and will guide you through the steps to help with your success. Sponsors also offer encouragement around the clock, helping to provide in-the-moment support and guidance when needed, and introduce you to other Recovery Resources. Sponsors are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, usually by phone, to help sponsees get through potentially difficult situations, temptations, or triggering events. Sponsors may meet or check-in with their sponsees regularly, and lifelong relationships may be formed.

Twelve-Step groups are safe environments free from drugs and alcohol where individuals are surrounded by others with the same goal of sustained recovery and abstinence. These meetings can provide individuals with a network of sober peers who can understand and empathize with each other in ways that others who are not in recovery may not be able to as easily.