I have been in AA for over 7 years now. It is not uncommon to go to a meeting where there is someone with 5, 10, 15 and even 20 years sobriety from alcohol. Recently the AA club I go to has started a few Crystal Meth Anonymous meetings. Someone with 6 months clean is considered an "old timer". Meth seems to be the toughest drug of all to kick--seeing the physical withdrawals they go through is disturbing, and the availability of real treatment is appalling. I was lucky I got into an in-patient alcohol rehab, actually a medical necessity since I went through 4 days of the DT's. Most meth addicts do not have health insurance that will pay for inpatient treatment and there really is no viable alternative for those first few weeks of violent physical withdrawals. At least with alcohol, the intense physical cravings, when the chance for relapse is greatest, subside within 6 months. From the guys I know that have recovered from meth, the physical cravings lasted 18 months. That is a evil monkey to get off anyone's back.