Originally Posted by
AlonebutHopeful 
I have one more question and then I'll leave this debate to those who know what they are talking about (I had no idea this could be a touchy subject, so I do apologize for that). When I go to NA and someone is talking about cocaine addiction, would I not be able to identify with them becuause I was able to put cocaine down? I don't know, would you? Just kidding, but that's something only you can decide. In my experience i tend to ignore the specific substance and listen to the experience. I can almost always relate. This is why we don't mention specific drugs(or try to) in NA meeting. Listen for similarities not differences. There are a number of drugs I have done and put down. Just like alcohol. It's pain pills that have their claws in me. By the rationalization that alcoholics are so different, shouldn't we have sub groups for all the different drugs? Or. do we?
Well there is CocaineAnonymous and i'm sure they're others out there that i'm unaware of. It is my personal belief, and that of NA, that we suffer from the disease of addiction which is all encompasing. This works for me with my experiences with different substances but more importantly the phenomenon of craving, obsession, and compulsion that occurs relative to drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, even non substances to include people. My disease manifests in numerous ways. It says in the big book that alcohol was but a symptom. The same is stated in the NA basic text. I cannot overemphasize how much i think that this line of questioning/thinking boils down to semantics though.
As stated, the solution is the same and it also cannot be overstated the importance of identification with your fellows in recovery. This simple principle is what spawned NA, as there were people in the fellowship of AA who better identified with eachother in terms of their drug experiences and addiction in the broad sense, so they branched out and started NA with the help of people in AA.
I am of the opinion that this a wonderful thing. I find any perceived issues between the fellowships to be pointless endeavors and wates of mental space as they all exist, and in my simple view, this is for a reason. May anyone looking for a solution in the 12 step process find whichever fellowship they best fit into.