Mike Broad Counselling
Norwich

"Recovery is not for those who need it; it is for those who want it", so says Paul Boggie, a campaigner who went from heroin addiction as a teenager to serving as a soldier in the Scots Guards, protecting royal residences. This quote resonates with me as a counsellor specialising in addiction. In my work, I often notice that people who want to quit an addiction fall broadly into two groups when it comes to recovery: those who are trying to stop because of pressure from others

Do you ever notice how you speak to yourself? Many of us live with an inner critic that is far harsher than anything we would ever say to another person. If you spoke to a friend the way you sometimes speak to yourself, how do you imagine they would feel? Most likely hurt, diminished, or defeated. For many people, this critical inner voice is a constant companion. It fuels self-criticism, telling us we are not good enough, that we should be doing better, or that we somehow de

The word ‘codependency’ gets bandied about a lot - often misguidedly. It originated as a description of people living with an addicted person. Codependents were seen as people who were so busy taking care of their addicted loved one that they forgot to take care of themselves. In more recent times, the definition has grown to describe people who feel great dependence on certain loved ones in their lives and feel disproportionately responsible for the feelings of the other. As