Breaking the Grip: Treating Crystal Meth
Addiction Among Gay and Bisexual

In the summer of 2006, the GLMA undertook a project to investigate the causes and extent of methamphetamine use among gay men and other men who have sex with men (MSM), options for treating methamphetamine dependence, and how best to get methamphetamine-dependent gay men into appropriate treatment, as well as to explore other issues and controversies associated with these issues.

Project staff analyzed available scientific literature on methamphetamine use by gay men and conducted focus groups in five cities in which methamphetamine use among gay men is thought to be widespread. The focus groups were made up of healthcare providers experienced in treating gay men for methamphetamine dependence, clinical researchers, and health policy experts who have studied methamphetamine use.

The purpose of the study was to provide guidance to healthcare providers, medical and public health institutions, and policymakers about how best to respond to the issue, and, more generally, to comment on media and general societal responses. This included clarifying understanding of the problem of methamphetamine – both the magnitude of the problem and how it manifests itself in the gay community – as well as prevention tactics, treatment strategies, and general cultural attitudes about methamphetamine. 

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Advisory Committee for the Breaking the Grip Project

Joseph Amico, MDiv, LISAC, CAS
Grant Colfax, MD
Edwin Craft, DrPH, MEd, LCPC
James W. Dilley, MD
Thomas Freese, PhD
Gantt Galloway, PharmD
Perry N. Halkitis, PhD
Thomas W. Irwin, PhD
Steven Lee, MD
Joseph Neisen, PhD
Steven Shoptaw, PhD
Michael Siever, PhD
Barbara Warren, PsyD