Addicted?: How Addiction Affects Every One of Us and What We Can Do About It

Description

This book is about addictions of all kinds. Addictions to smartphones, sex, games, social media, gambling, money, but most of all to alcohol and drugs. The words 'addict' and 'addiction' are loaded with baggage. Not just in Australia, but the world over, addicts are considered to be sub-human, if not alien. This book aims to reclaim their dignity. It aims to rescue the word 'addiction' from its kidnappers and restore its humanity. It offers personal accounts from inspirational people who have found themselves in the grips of such addictions, and their amazing stories of survival. At the Ted Noffs Foundation, Matt Noffs and Kieran Palmer spend their lives working with young people who have serious and often debilitating drug addictions. This book shares the tools they use every day. It offers insights into why addiction takes place and why it's a natural part of being human. It journeys across the spectrum of addictive behaviors, from social media to drugs like heroin. It questions the assumptions and begins to debunk the myth that all addiction is identical and predictable. Addiction is something that could affect any of us. This is a book that everyone should read.

Matt Noffs is the co-founder of the Street Universities and CEO of Noffs Foundation, Australia's largest drug and alcohol treatment service provider for young people under 25.The Noffs Foundation is a leader in providing drug and alcohol services for young people in Australia. Working in the social sector has been part of Matt's life for as long as he can remember. The Noffs Foundation was founded in 1970 by his grandfather, Reverend Ted Noffs and Margaret Noffs. The couple established Sydney's The Wayside Chapel, set up the first drug referral centre in Sydney and co-founded Lifeline in 1963. Work in the drug rehabilitation field was continued by Matt's parents. As CEO of the Noffs Foundation for a new generation, Matt, with his partner Naomi, established and now runs an early intervention service known as The Street University, in Sydney's west and southwest, which aims to reconnect kids with their communities and help them discover their innate capacity.