**Please note that this post is not a screening or diagnostic tool. This post is an opinion piece written by a counselling psychology student and is intended solely for educational purposes. If you are concerned that you or a loved one is struggling with addiction, please reach out to a healthcare provider for clinical assessment and treatment.**

What is Addiction?

When people speak about addictions, they usually associate it with drugs such as alcohol, cannabis, or controlled substances. However, addictive behaviours are not restricted to just substances and it can take many forms, like gambling, sex, food, shopping, social media, or even relationships. It may look like diving into work and neglecting balance in your life. It might be a set of patterns that play out in interpersonal relationships – whether romantic, professional, platonic/friendships, with family members – where you gravitate towards certain people or realize specific dynamics that reoccur.

Addictive behaviours are usually something we use to soothe ourselves when we feel like we have no other resort. It’s a coping response that, at one point in time, served a purpose. When it comes to gambling, maybe the thrill of winning provides you with an adrenaline rush that you crave but don’t get at work or at home. Perhaps sex allows you to feel a sense of release from the pent up emotions in your body and mind. Counting calories gives you a sense of control whereas bingeing allows you to lose control, even for just a moment. With substances, maybe your drug of choice allows you to numb yourself or escape from the overwhelming stress you face each day. The point is, the addictive behaviour stemmed from a place of survival and was a protective mechanism, but now is interfering with your life.

What Addiction is Not

Addiction or addictive behaviours are not a moral failing. You are not a bad person nor are you broken, defective, or beyond help if you struggle with addictions. I also don’t believe that addiction is a disease (although, if conceptualizing addiction as a disease is helpful for your recovery, I can understand why). The addictive behaviour(s) that you struggle with does not have to be a lifelong battle and it doesn’t have to take over your life. Most importantly, you do not have to walk this journey alone.

Signs of Addictive Behaviours

If you’ve read this far, I’m willing to guess that either you or someone you care about might be struggling with (an) addictive behaviour(s). Here is a brief, non-exhaustive list of some signs that someone could be living with an addiction:

Being overly preoccupied with someone, something, or an activity:
○ Spending a lot of time thinking about or planning when they get to be or engage with person, thing, activity
○ Spending longer periods of time recovering from person/thing/activity (P/T/A)
Interacting with, using, or engaging with P/T/A more or longer than intended
Experiencing cravings and urges
Needing more to obtain original or desired effect
Neglecting commitments
Neglecting social, personal, professional, academic activities and/or relationships
Continued interactions, use, or engagement with P/T/A despite negative impacts on:
○ Physical, psychological, emotional, spiritual health
○ Finances
○ Legal matters
Withdrawing or isolating (more than usual)
Sudden or inexplicable change in behaviour(s)

When to Seek Help

Addictive behaviours are typically ones that bring us temporary pleasure or relief at the expense of our overall well-being. A familiar phrase to describe this is “short term gain for long term pain.” It often involves an urge and/or cravings of some sorts. A sign that we may be engaging in addictive behaviour is if we are acting not in accordance with our morals and values, if we are searching for some type of gratification (usually instant gratification), or when we participate in activities that do not benefit us yet we do it nonetheless.

This does not mean that anyone who has some type of unhelpful thinking style or does one of the things listed above is then an “addict” or needs professional help. Part of being human is that we are not perfect. But a combination of the above symptoms could be an indication that someone is at risk of an addiction, and some type of intervention might be helpful. Remember, reaching out for help is a sign of strength. If there are concerns about you or a loved one, I invite you to book a free consultation with someone from our team to see if therapy would be useful.

For more information and/or support, visit:

https://canatc.ca/challenging-stigma/
https://canadiancentreforaddictions.org/substance-behavioural-addiction/ -
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3354400/#:~:text=Behavioral%20addictions %20such%20as%20gambling,by%20acting%20out%20the%20behavior

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