Addictions Awareness Week: What does it take to kick the habit?

By Submitted Article

   November 18th to 24th is Addictions Awareness Week, with that in mind,  we offer this article by Andrew Burton, an Alcohol and Drug Counsellor with Northern Health:

As we mark National Addictions Week, it's important to note that beating an addiction isn't as simple as just "stopping". Recognizing an addictions problem and really understanding what lies behind it is often key to recovery.

"When did you know you had an addictions problem?"

It can be a hard question for people to answer. We think it should be easy but it's not.

I recall as a young addictions counselor many years ago, talking to a guy in a hospital bed. His fingers and toes were black, frostbitten from passing out in a snow bank in January. There were patches of dead skin on his cheeks and nose.

I asked if he wanted some help. "I'm okay. I can handle it," he said. His voice shook as he spoke, the words slurring. It was his third visit to the ER in as many months. This time he would be staying for a while.

How could he not know he had a problem? The question haunted me for some time. Later I began to understand.  Many people do recognize the problems substance use causes for them. The difficulty comes in admitting to them.

Using substances fills a need, something that the person finds absolutely essential to who they are. Sometimes I hear that getting high means not having to think about things, not having to worry. It means belonging, it means feeling stronger. It means feeling like you are part of something, a counter culture.

I seldom hear these thoughts right away. Awareness comes from reflection over time. I began to recognize that the drug fulfills a need. Whatever that need may be, it is so critically important to us that the idea of admitting to a problem becomes a frightening prospect.

"If I admit to problems connected to my drug use then I will have to change my use. I need the drug. Without it how do I cope?"

Such thoughts block our ability to clearly see the road before us. They lead us to deny, to rationalize, to minimize and to justify. Helping someone to push away from an addiction means finding ways to meet the needs they are fulfilling with the substances they use in some other way.

Dealing with emotional pain, feeling a sense of belonging, feeling capable of managing the challenges of life and feeling worthwhile make living clean more possible. Doing these things means changing elements of our environments, as well as changing ourselves.  Sometimes social connections need to change, such as where we live, how we celebrate, and how we deal with problems. Even the work we do may need to change to support a new way of being.

Helping someone with an addiction means understanding this and supporting the person in making the changes they need to make. There's a lot more involved than just flushing the dope.      

If you think you have an addictions problem or know someone who does, there are lots of things you can do. In many communities across the North, drug and alcohol counselling offices are available. A family doctor can provide help. You can also call the BC Alcohol and Drug Information Line toll-free at 1-800-663-1441. 

A call or visit could make the difference and we, my fellow support workers and I, are here to listen and to help.

Andrew Burton
Alcohol & Drug Counsellor
Northern Health

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