The international addiction assistance program SMART Recovery is set to offer additional weekly support groups in Chicago starting Dec. 4.
Founded in 1994, SMART Recovery is a non-religious not-for-profit that uses cognitive and behavioral tools to identify addiction triggers and change harmful behavior. Peer-to-peer programming addresses myriad addiction types, ranging from substance abuse and overeating to gambling and Internet pornography.
There are currently five weekly SMART meetings in the Chicagoland area: two in the suburbs ( Naperville, Carol Stream ) ; two in Ravenswood; and one in Boystown at the Howard Brown Health Center.
The new session will take place Sunday nights at 6 p.m. at Swedish Covenant Hospital, 5145 N. California Ave. Regional Coordinator Patrick Garnett said it couldn't come at a better time.
"The need is great, and our meetings keep growing," he said. "We've got a bottleneck."
Garnett, a volunteer who facilitates two weekly meetings, first got involved with SMART Recovery 18 months ago while working on his own crystal meth addiction. He had tried numerous support groups and 12-step programs, but couldn't permanently kick the habit.
"I was never able to make it stick until I found SMART Recovery," Garnett said. "If a person finds a support group that aligns with their values and beliefs, they're apt to have better [ results ] . The tools and the way it's set up really worked for me."
SMART—which stands for Self-Management and Recovery Training—is based on individualized goal setting. Each participant is encouraged to create his or her own unique goal and work toward it with the help of free, confidential meetings and a SMART Recovery workbook ( $9 to cover printing costs ) .
"We say: This behavior is blocking you from doing things that you want to do, but what are the things that you want to do to have a great life?," Garnett said. "Whether it's go back to school, volunteer, start a family or spend more time with your family, SMART is really focused on helping someone create this great life."
Workbooks include a variety of cognitive exercises that help members manage addictive behavior. Examples include: addiction logs, which identify triggers that can be avoided or better handled; 4-Points sheets, which organize lists of pros and cons to help prioritize goals; and 'stop' exercises that can help people overcome addictive urges.
Weekly 75-minute meetings are highly interactive, as members share stories, ideas, successes and struggles. Garnett said the community atmosphere has been a popular draw; he's seen many people begin supplementing 12-Step or other meetings with SMART sessions.
"Substance abuse has affected our [ LGBT ] community really strongly," Garnett said. "Because there's such an impact, it's nice to have another option for people."
While a dearth of studies related to LGBT healthcare has made it impossible to offer concrete statistics, both the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration ( SAMHSA ) and the local Chicago Task Force on LGBT Substance Use and Abuse agree the LGBT community experiences higher rates of substance use.
In 2005, the Chicago Task Force released a report that detailed the need for LGBT-friendly substance-abuse programs. The report, which took three years to compile, said stigma, homophobia, heterosexism, HIV/AIDS and a lack of alternative social activities contribute to increased use among LGBT people.
" [ It ] is an issue within our community, and we haven't addressed it in the way we should," Jim Pickett, the AIDS Foundation of Chicago's director of prevention advocacy and gay men's health, told the Chicago Tribune at the time. "You can compare it to a family that has an alcoholic, and no one talks about it."
SAMHSA reports that LGBT people are not only more likely to use alcohol and drugs, but they're also more likely to continue heavy drinking later in life. Also, a 2008 University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Study suggests that LGBT teenagers are nearly 200 percent more likely than straight teens to use illicit substances.
Although the group's confidentiality clause prohibits a precise count, Garnett said Chicago's SMART Recovery meetings ( especially those held at Howard Brown ) have drawn a large number of LGBT participants. He credits the group's nonjudgmental tone with its popularity.
"We don't use labels like alcoholic or addict, which can be can be refining for someone," Garnett said. "I like to use this example: I used to live in Denver, where I used to ski every weekend. But I haven't skied in 16 years, so if you ask me today if I'm a skier, I would say no, even though 16 years ago I was."
Change is at the heart of SMART Recovery's mission.
"It's not a lifelong process," Garnett said. "You come to SMART to help you learn tools to remain sober, but also to work on building this great life you want to build. Hopefully you get to a point where you're self-empowered, you're handling any urges you may have, and meetings are getting in the way… It's like going to therapy. You go into therapy to work on a problem, and at some point, you move on."
SMART Recovery meetings are held Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7 p.m. at the Bethany Retirement Center, 4950 N. Ashland Ave., and Saturdays at 9:30 a.m. at Howard Brown Health Center, 4025 N. Sheridan Rd. Additional Swedish Covenant meetings will begin Dec. 4. There are 19 weekly online meetings for those with holiday travel plans or other scheduling conflicts.
To learn more, visit www.smartrecovery.org .
