There may be many reasons why someone chooses not to have their camera on during a SMART Recovery meeting. Our goal as facilitators is to create a welcoming space and encourage participation. We are here to meet people where they are and allow participants to be responsible for their own decisions and behaviors.  

Our Facilitator Manual addresses how we handle “Quiet Participants”. On page 57 you can find guidance on how to gently encourage participation in a meeting setting. We acknowledge that there are some differences between participation in a face-to-face meeting compared to a virtual meeting. In a virtual meeting, a participant may choose to hide their face, whereas that is not an option in an in-person setting. Some participants prefer online meetings in lieu of an in-person for some of the following reasons:

• Privacy – this person may be shy, have social phobias, or may not look or feel their best that day.

• They are nursing. A lot of new mothers in recovery may have to feed their child and may not feel comfortable doing so while on camera.

• They are in the Pre-contemplative/Contemplative Stage.

• They may be at work or driving. A Participant may be on a lunch break, they may need this meeting but would not be able to be fully engaged because others may be around.

• There may be a safety issue if the participant has an unsupportive partner or family member.

• The participant may just be observing to see if SMART is a good fit for their recovery.

Sometimes for a participant just being around their peers who are also working on their journey with addictive behavior and knowing that they are not alone may be all that they need that day.

While SMART does not require participants have their cameras on to attend a meeting, we understand that some of our volunteers have this requirement. If your meeting is one that requires cameras to be on, please reach out to our Meeting and Volunteer Department at volunteerhq@smartrecovery.org to let us know so we can add a note to your meeting listing. We would like for participants to be aware of the requirement prior to attending so they can plan accordingly.

If you would like to share your thoughts or concerns, please join us as we discuss this topic on November 1, 2023, at 12:00 pm EST during the Volunteer Lunch & Learn. If you are unable to make it and have some thoughts to share, please feel free to email our Meeting and Volunteer Department at volunteerhq@smartrecovery.org or our Culture Change Lead, Jasmine Hilbert, directly at  jhilbert@smartrecovery.org.