The pull of an addiction can lead those in its sphere to feel as though they have nowhere to turn. However, for Brock University students, an available resource is ready to help.<\/p>\n
Students who are struggling with addiction to substances, gaming or gambling, or are concerned about someone in their life who is struggling, have access to complimentary on-campus support from Addictions Counsellor Tiffany Scriver.<\/p>\n
The service, organized through the Student Wellness and Accessibility Centre<\/a> in partnership with Community Addictions Services of Niagara, aims to engage students struggling with an addiction or its effects by offering appointments in Brock\u2019s Student Wellness and Accessibility Centre<\/a> every Wednesday and Thursday.<\/p>\n Scriver said addiction can prevent students from engaging in their studies and other aspects of university life.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it moves them away from their priorities around their school work and can affect their time management and productivity,\u201d she said. \u201cIt can also impact their choice to get involved in extra curriculars, leisure, varsity and volunteer activities, which can lead them to feel isolated.\u201d<\/p>\n To help alleviate the effects of addiction, Scriver works individually with students to establish goals and develop self-care strategies such as using breathing techniques, emotion regulation and time management.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are very client-centred,\u201d she said. \u201cThey are not mandated to be here, and we don\u2019t work on a one-size-fits-all model. Instead, we support harm reduction within a continuum to help each student recognize why they are using something and how it is affecting their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n Available supports are similar for students who have been affected by someone else\u2019s substance use, gambling or gaming.<\/p>\n \u201cIt starts with a conversation about how they\u2019ve been impacted, what\u2019s going on and what they have tried to do to support their loved one, as well as take care of themselves,\u201d said Scriver.<\/p>\n She also noted it can be challenging for students to recognize their own addiction within a university environment where certain activities are more common.<\/p>\n \u201cThe use of substances at the post-secondary level is a fairly normalized experience,\u201d she said. \u201cSocietal influence is that there is a notion to party and have fun, and substance use is part of that culture, which can make it tougher to self-identify an addiction.\u201d<\/p>\n Scriver offers a welcoming environment that teaches harm reduction through dialogue and reflection, which she says students excel at.\u00a0To those who may be unsure about counselling, Scriver has a simple message.<\/p>\n \u201cYou are not alone. Your story is valid, worthy of being heard and change is possible. It starts with booking an appointment so that we can begin a conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n To arrange an appointment with Scriver, students can contact her directly at tscriver@cason.ca<\/a> or get a referral from any member of Brock\u2019s Student Wellness and Accessibility Centre<\/a>.<\/p>\n Students in need of immediate, 24-hour assistance can call\u00a0Counselling Services\u00a0<\/a>at 1-833-276-2533 or the\u00a0Good 2 Talk Hotline<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Students who are struggling with addiction to substances, gaming or gambling, or are concerned about someone in their life who is struggling, have access to complimentary on-campus support from Addictions Counsellor Tiffany Scriver.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":60477,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7484,3319,1],"tags":[6245,926,5877,5056,8259],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60476"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/26"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60476"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60476\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":60486,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60476\/revisions\/60486"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/60477"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60476"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60476"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60476"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}