Finding Hope and Recovery from Addiction

Take Control of Your Future when you receive therapy from Barry Hewitt Counselling

“Our life is what our thoughts make it”

Marcus Aurelius

What is addiction

Many people are affected, directly or indirectly, by addiction, which may also be called substance use disorder if a person is addicted to alcohol or other drugs.

The indicators of addiction can be summarized using the memory aid ABCDE (ASAM, 2011):

inability to abstain
little control over behaviour
craving or "hunger" for substances or rewarding experiences
decreased ability to recognize major problems in their behaviour and relationships
a problematic emotional response.

Over the course of 2015, 13 per cent of people in Canada used at least one of six illegal substances, an increase from 11 per cent in 2013. The increases were mainly in the use of cannabis, hallucinogens and ecstasy (Health Canada, 2017).

Approximately 21.6 per cent of people in Canada meet the criteria for substance use disorder during their lifetime (Pearson et al., 2013). Males (15 per cent) are more likely to use illegal substances than females (10 per cent) (Health Canada, 2017).

Youth between 15 and 19 (21 per cent) and young adults between 20 and 24 (31 per cent) are more likely to use illegal substances than adults age 25 years or older (10 per cent) (Health Canada, 2017).

18.1 per cent of people in Canada met the criteria for alcohol abuse or dependence, making it the most commonly misused substance. More Canadians have symptoms of problematic cannabis use (6.8 per cent) than any other illegal drug (4 per cent) (Pearson et al., 2013). In Canada, 2.4 percent of the general population has a gambling problem (Williams et al., 2012).

Therapy That Makes a Difference

Evidence Based Approaches

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Motivational Interviewing

Structured Relapse Prevention

At Barryhewittcounselling.com, I can treat all your addiction issues