addictions counsellor training

Motivational Enhancement Therapy: An Intro for those Pursuing Addictions Counsellor Training

Motivational Enhancement Therapy is a person-centred approach that focuses on improving an individual’s motivation to change (Good Therapy, 2018). When working with clients suffering from addiction, counsellors are tasked with encouraging the client to take responsibility for themselves and...

Getting Your Addiction Counsellor Diploma? Why Destigmatizing Addiction is Important

For those struggling with substance abuse and other addictions, one of the biggest challenges they face is the stigma surrounding addiction. Stigma is essentially discrimination against an identifiable group of people (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2021). In relation to substance abuse or other...

Considering Addictions Counsellor Training? How to Integrate Mindfulness Into Your Approach

For those struggling with addiction, practicing mindfulness can be extremely beneficial throughout the path to recovery (Conyers, 2020). Mindfulness, traditionally a Buddhist practice, has been used for thousands of years as a way to become fully present and aware (Cole, 2020). Essentially,...

Helping Clients Overcome Feelings of Shame with the Help of Addictions Counsellor Training

Shame and addiction are closely related. People who feel high levels of shame, for example, are more likely to develop an addiction to drinking or gambling (Bilevicius, E. et al., 2018). Such feelings can lead to a negative circle whereby the addiction causes shame and that sense of shame in turn...

4 Facts About Shopping Addiction for Students Beginning Addictions Counselling Training

For many people, shopping is nothing more than a harmless pastime, as they use their disposable income to buy clothes, shoes, household items, and other consumer goods that promise some degree of pleasure or utility. For others, however, shopping can cross the line into an addiction, as they...

A Snapshot of Alcohol Consumption in Canada for Students in Addictions Counsellor Training

Alcohol is the most popular drug in Canada by a significant margin. According to data from the 2015 Canadian Tobacco, Alcohol, and Drugs Survey, 76.9% of Canadians aged 15 and over reported drinking alcohol at least once in the past year. Despite its broad social acceptance, however, alcohol is the...

Using Your Addictions Counsellor Training to Reduce Stigma

Research has suggested that members of the public hold significantly more negative views towards those dealing with addiction issues compared to other forms of mental illness (Barry, McGinty, Pescosolido, & Goldman, 2014). People are less willing to have a person with a substance use disorder...

The Link Between Addiction and Loneliness: An Intro for Those in Addictions Counsellor Courses

The tactics imposed during the global ‘war on drugs’ divides public opinion. Many people believe that addiction and the factors that contribute to it are not well understood. Drug and alcohol misuse are often the result of loneliness or depression and those who have an addiction turn to...