Congress 60, a nongovernmental organization (NGO) in Iran was created in response to the increasing needs of individuals with substance use disorders (SUD) and works to reduce substance use and to support recovery in several ways.
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The average individual with SUD in Iran is 25 years old, male, married, with limited education but who is employed, and who is supported by their family.
Following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, the government closed detoxification and treatment centers, banned poppy cultivation (the plant that opium comes from), and introduced harsh anti-drug fines, incarceration, or even death. However, the period since 1990 has seen increased public health rather than legal response, in association with recognition of addiction and injection drug use as well as concerns about AIDS and HIV among injection drug users. This recognition was characterized by an increase in use of pharmacotherapy, expanded detoxification and treatment resources, and prison clinics.
There has been a growth in non-governmental organization (NGO) involvement including the 12-step mutual-help group, Narcotics Anonymous (NA). In fact, 26% of all NA meetings worldwide take place in Iran, the availability of which is second only to the United States.
In fact, 26% of all Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meetings worldwide take place in Iran, the availability of which is second only to the U.S.
Congress 60 is primarily funded by donations and all positions are voluntary. Congress 60 involves fellow users (called travelers) and family members and friends (called companions), and includes both physical activity and other activities to create a recovery community. Each meeting features a speaker and small group discussions are held three times a week after work.
Like Alcoholics Anonymous and NA, Congress 60 uses two books to educate members about the challenges of addiction and encourages a “renovation of the individual’s beliefs and views of himself, family, society and the universe.”
Congress 60 views the journey to recovery as a three-step journey:
*All steps are used to reconstruct personal identity, relationships and daily lifestyle.
However, unlike AA and other MHOs, Congress 60 involves medication and physical activity, therefore, creating a more comprehensive and multimodal recovery community.
Congress 60 has successfully created a recovery community that integrates many individuals with SUD and offers a broad spectrum of services that can create a more comprehensive recovery environment and culture.
Through additional research on Congress 60, other MHOs may be able to help expand their recovery communities to better serve their populations. Congress 60’s combination of abstinence-based and medication assisted therapy may inform opioid treatment in the United States where these treatments are often exclusive; combining both approaches at different stages may help assist long-term recovery, but awaits further study.
Learn more about Congress 60 on their website or through a paper written by William L. White.
l
The average individual with SUD in Iran is 25 years old, male, married, with limited education but who is employed, and who is supported by their family.
Following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, the government closed detoxification and treatment centers, banned poppy cultivation (the plant that opium comes from), and introduced harsh anti-drug fines, incarceration, or even death. However, the period since 1990 has seen increased public health rather than legal response, in association with recognition of addiction and injection drug use as well as concerns about AIDS and HIV among injection drug users. This recognition was characterized by an increase in use of pharmacotherapy, expanded detoxification and treatment resources, and prison clinics.
There has been a growth in non-governmental organization (NGO) involvement including the 12-step mutual-help group, Narcotics Anonymous (NA). In fact, 26% of all NA meetings worldwide take place in Iran, the availability of which is second only to the United States.
In fact, 26% of all Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meetings worldwide take place in Iran, the availability of which is second only to the U.S.
Congress 60 is primarily funded by donations and all positions are voluntary. Congress 60 involves fellow users (called travelers) and family members and friends (called companions), and includes both physical activity and other activities to create a recovery community. Each meeting features a speaker and small group discussions are held three times a week after work.
Like Alcoholics Anonymous and NA, Congress 60 uses two books to educate members about the challenges of addiction and encourages a “renovation of the individual’s beliefs and views of himself, family, society and the universe.”
Congress 60 views the journey to recovery as a three-step journey:
*All steps are used to reconstruct personal identity, relationships and daily lifestyle.
However, unlike AA and other MHOs, Congress 60 involves medication and physical activity, therefore, creating a more comprehensive and multimodal recovery community.
Congress 60 has successfully created a recovery community that integrates many individuals with SUD and offers a broad spectrum of services that can create a more comprehensive recovery environment and culture.
Through additional research on Congress 60, other MHOs may be able to help expand their recovery communities to better serve their populations. Congress 60’s combination of abstinence-based and medication assisted therapy may inform opioid treatment in the United States where these treatments are often exclusive; combining both approaches at different stages may help assist long-term recovery, but awaits further study.
Learn more about Congress 60 on their website or through a paper written by William L. White.
l
The average individual with SUD in Iran is 25 years old, male, married, with limited education but who is employed, and who is supported by their family.
Following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, the government closed detoxification and treatment centers, banned poppy cultivation (the plant that opium comes from), and introduced harsh anti-drug fines, incarceration, or even death. However, the period since 1990 has seen increased public health rather than legal response, in association with recognition of addiction and injection drug use as well as concerns about AIDS and HIV among injection drug users. This recognition was characterized by an increase in use of pharmacotherapy, expanded detoxification and treatment resources, and prison clinics.
There has been a growth in non-governmental organization (NGO) involvement including the 12-step mutual-help group, Narcotics Anonymous (NA). In fact, 26% of all NA meetings worldwide take place in Iran, the availability of which is second only to the United States.
In fact, 26% of all Narcotics Anonymous (NA) meetings worldwide take place in Iran, the availability of which is second only to the U.S.
Congress 60 is primarily funded by donations and all positions are voluntary. Congress 60 involves fellow users (called travelers) and family members and friends (called companions), and includes both physical activity and other activities to create a recovery community. Each meeting features a speaker and small group discussions are held three times a week after work.
Like Alcoholics Anonymous and NA, Congress 60 uses two books to educate members about the challenges of addiction and encourages a “renovation of the individual’s beliefs and views of himself, family, society and the universe.”
Congress 60 views the journey to recovery as a three-step journey:
*All steps are used to reconstruct personal identity, relationships and daily lifestyle.
However, unlike AA and other MHOs, Congress 60 involves medication and physical activity, therefore, creating a more comprehensive and multimodal recovery community.
Congress 60 has successfully created a recovery community that integrates many individuals with SUD and offers a broad spectrum of services that can create a more comprehensive recovery environment and culture.
Through additional research on Congress 60, other MHOs may be able to help expand their recovery communities to better serve their populations. Congress 60’s combination of abstinence-based and medication assisted therapy may inform opioid treatment in the United States where these treatments are often exclusive; combining both approaches at different stages may help assist long-term recovery, but awaits further study.
Learn more about Congress 60 on their website or through a paper written by William L. White.
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