After finding support through SMART Recovery Canada during his own recovery from alcohol use, Chris Steeves is volunteering and leading new in-person meetings to help people battle their addictions in Sault Ste Marie.

Steeves got support from the SMART Recovery Canada program, which has been around since the 1990s and uses science-based methods to help people manage behaviours like addiction, gambling, shopping, and mental health struggles. As a volunteer and facilitator, Steeves hopes to meet more people and help them find options when looking for support and choose a program that works best for their needs.

Unlike traditional programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous, SMART Recovery Canada focuses on giving people practical tools and empowering them to take control of their own recovery. The free meetings led by trained facilitators welcome everyone and offer both in-person and online options to help people build motivation, manage urges, and receive guidance to live a more balanced life.

Steeves found the program helpful in his own recovery from alcohol use and later became a certified volunteer facilitator to help those in the community who need help. He appreciates the program’s harm reduction approach, which supports people if they have a setback by helping them understand what happened and move forward, instead of starting over. You can learn more about local SMART meetings on the program’s website. Other local support meetings can be found on 211 Ontario’s website.

Source: Kenneth Armstrong, SooToday