Does CATC treat addictions to substances other than opioids?

CATC is currently focused on treating Opioid Use Disorder. That said, our patients often present addiction to opioids and other substances, i.e., alcohol, cocaine, and methamphetamine. Our expert addiction treatment specialists support them in meeting their personal recovery goals.

How do I get started on a Methadone or Buprenorphine program?

CATC offers same-day intake appointments in all our centres. We recognize that when you are ready to start your recovery journey, we need to be ready to support you. From our location page, select the location that is nearest to you and then either walk-in or call 1-877-937-2282 to start your intake virtually.

What should I expect during an intake appointment?

Our Intake appointments usually range from 60-90 minutes. Our CARE team will capture your medical history, discuss medication options, share information on how the treatment program works, and prepare for your initial assessment with an expert addiction medicine physician. You do not need a referral to start on our programs, walk-ins are welcomed. You will be asked to present your provincial health card to see a physician.

What are the costs of the program?

Our programs are usually delivered at no cost to the patient. In some cases, patients may have to pay for their medications or counseling services that are not covered by their provincial health plans. Our CARE teams will work with you to help determine the best plan to get the costs of your care covered.

How can I ensure that my personal information is kept confidential?

All client information is considered confidential. We will not release your personal health information to anyone without signed consent from you unless it is required by law.

I recently found out I was pregnant and need help; can I use Methadone to help with my withdrawal?

Methadone is a safe and effective way to manage opiate dependency during pregnancy. Treatment with Methadone prevents opioid withdraw, which can be dangerous for your baby. View our resource on Opioid Use Disorder During Pregnancy.

When can I expect to be free of my opioid addiction with treatment?

Addiction is a chronic and relapsing condition. Every patient, depending on their history and recovery goals, will take a unique recovery journey. The ultimate goal of the program is to improve our patient’s quality of life across many dimensions – including ensuring the presence of a home, a job, and a friend for those who have lost so much because of their addiction. Methadone and Buprenorphine/Naloxone (Suboxone®), when taken as prescribed, are safe and effective medications. This decision to taper off these medications should be made with your physician to ensure the best chance of success for you and prevent sudden onset withdrawal. People who are most successful at tapering off treatment, have generally been abstinent from illicit drugs for more than a year and are demonstrating a high level of functional stability, i.e., gainfully employed, presence of positive/supportive social relationships.

How often do I have to come to the treatment centre?

Your visit frequency will change as your stability increases. In early recovery, you will see your doctor 1-2 times a week to get your dose adjusted and you will see your pharmacist daily for the first 2-3 months. As your drug use declines, you will see your physician less – usually 1 time per month and visit your pharmacist 2-4 times per month. CATC offers integrated medical and pharmacy services, so there is no need to visit multiple locations.

When can I get my medications to take at home?

Once you have been on the program for 4-8 weeks you may be eligible for take-home doses. You will start with one dose, and as you gain stability these will increase. There are clinical guidelines that our physicians follow to determine take-home eligibility; physicians also utilize their clinical judgment based on your specific situation.

How often do I have to complete a urine drug screen during treatment?

Frequency of Urine Drug Screens also changes as you become more and more stable. In the first few months of treatment, you will be required to produce a urine sample 1-2 times per week to help the physician understand your use patterns. We also use urine drug screens to ensure that you are taking the medication that is being prescribed, as diversion of prescription medications is common. In some cases, your physician will ask for a random urine drug screen; this practice helps us identify and prevent any unsuspected medication diversion that may be occurring.

If I use drugs while on the program, am I kicked off?

Absolutely not. We recognize drug use and relapses are part of the recovery journey. It is important to remember that using other drugs while on Methadone or Buprenorphine/Naloxone (Suboxone®) can be dangerous. There have been reported deaths because of the combination of Methadone with alcohol, opioids, cocaine, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, and/or tranquilizers. If you have been prescribed or are using other medications, please disclose this to your CATC physician so they can make an informed decision on your treatment.

Do you recommend Methadone or Buprenorphine/Naloxone (Suboxone®)?

The best medication for you is based on many factors and the decision should be made with advice from your physician. Both medications have their pros and cons and there is emerging evidence that medication choice should be influenced by the amount and type of opiates that are being used. In a recent survey of our patients, 67% of those who had tried both medications said Methadone worked best for them. This is consistent with data reported from other countries. Because CATC offers several medication types, you can always transition between medication types to see what works for you. Have a specific question? Please call us at 1-877-937-2282 or email info@canatc.ca.

Alcohol Addiction: Signs, Risks and Treatment Options

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Alcohol Addiction: Understanding the Signs, Risks, and Treatment Options

Alcohol Addiction: Understanding the Signs, Risks, and Treatment Options

If you’re reading this, you might be quietly wondering about your relationship with alcohol. Maybe you’ve caught yourself thinking “Am I drinking too much?” followed quickly by “It’s probably fine, lots of people drink like this.” Those conflicting thoughts are completely normal. Many people who eventually seek help describe months or even years of that same back-and-forth.

This page isn’t here to label you or tell you what to do. It’s here to help you think things through at your own pace. We’ll walk through the difference between casual drinking and more concerning patterns, explore warning signs that are easy to miss, and explain what professional support actually looks like. Most importantly, we want you to know that questioning your drinking is a sign of self-awareness, not weakness.

You’ll find information here on how to distinguish moderate drinking from risky patterns, early warning signs that often go unnoticed, why alcohol withdrawal requires medical supervision, what treatment options look like in Canada, and what a simple next step can look like when you’re ready.

You don’t need to have hit a crisis point to deserve support. If something feels off, it’s worth paying attention to.

Why This Matters

Alcohol misuse affects many Canadians, often in ways that develop slowly and quietly. The impact goes well beyond physical health. Heavy drinking affects relationships, work performance, mental health, and financial stability. Many people describe a gradual shift where alcohol moved from being an occasional pleasure to something that takes up more space than they intended.

What makes this especially hard to recognize is that alcohol is deeply woven into everyday life. It’s at celebrations, business dinners, and weekend plans. That normalization can make it difficult to notice when something has shifted. But the fact that you’re asking questions is meaningful in itself.

You’re not alone in wondering whether your drinking habits are healthy. Being willing to look at this honestly is a real and important step.

Understanding Alcohol Use as a Spectrum

Drinking habits exist on a spectrum. There’s no single hard line between healthy and harmful. It’s more about patterns, control, and the effect alcohol is having on your life.

Casual and Moderate Drinking

Moderate drinking means alcohol doesn’t interfere with your health or daily life. According to Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health, published by the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA), up to 2 standard drinks per week is considered low risk. Consuming between 3 and 6 drinks per week is considered a moderate risk, with an increased likelihood of developing certain cancers. Seven or more drinks per week is considered increasingly high risk, with a rising likelihood of heart disease and stroke.

People who drink moderately can usually take or leave alcohol. It’s not central to their routine or emotional state. They can say “I’ll skip tonight” without feeling anxious or deprived.

Risky and Heavy Drinking

Heavy drinking means regularly exceeding low-risk guidelines. Binge drinking means consuming more than 2 standard drinks on a single occasion, which the CCSA guidance links to an increased risk of injury, accidents, and harm to others.

Risky drinking patterns can include drinking to get drunk, consuming alcohol faster than your body can process it, drinking despite consequences, and needing alcohol to feel comfortable in social situations. At this stage, you might still feel in control, but alcohol is starting to affect your health, relationships, or daily functioning.

Alcohol Use Disorder

Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) is the clinical term for what many people call alcohol dependence. It exists on a spectrum from mild to severe, based on how many symptoms a person experiences. It’s characterized by difficulty controlling drinking despite negative consequences.

AUD isn’t only about how much you drink. It’s about what happens when you do. Someone with mild AUD might drink moderately but struggle with cravings or guilt. Someone with more severe AUD may experience physical withdrawal when they try to stop. The common thread is that alcohol has become a problem that’s difficult to manage alone.

Early Warning Signs to Pay Attention To

Warning signs often develop gradually, which is why they’re easy to dismiss or explain away. A few of these feelings that feel familiar don’t mean you have a problem, but several together are worth taking seriously.

Behaviour and Emotional Signs

Drinking more than you intended happens when you sit down for one drink but end up having three or four. You might notice that it’s hard to moderate once you start, or that personal rules (“only on weekends,” “never before dinner”) keep quietly shifting.

Using alcohol to cope becomes a concern when drinking is your main way of managing stress, anxiety, or difficult emotions. If you reach for a drink automatically after a hard day or during conflict, alcohol has taken on a role it doesn’t need to fill.

Preoccupation with drinking shows up as planning your day around when you can drink, feeling restless until you can, or choosing activities based on whether alcohol will be available. When drinking moves from something you enjoy to something you feel you need, it’s worth paying attention.

Guilt and secrecy often accompany patterns that feel out of control. You might downplay how much you’re drinking, feel ashamed the next morning, or find yourself being less than honest with the people around you. These feelings are themselves meaningful information.

Physical Signs

Building tolerance means needing more alcohol to feel the same effects. If what used to feel like enough now doesn’t, your body is adapting to alcohol’s presence. That’s an early sign of physical dependence.

Withdrawal symptoms can include morning shakiness, anxiety when you can’t drink, sleep difficulties, or feeling unwell until you’ve had a drink. Even subtle signs like irritability or restlessness between drinks can indicate physical dependence beginning to develop.

Health changes often arrive gradually. Poorer sleep, weight changes, digestive issues, and more frequent illness are common. Elevated blood pressure and liver changes are early medical signs that often go unnoticed without a check-up.

Impact on Work and Relationships

Performance issues can start small. Being less sharp at work, struggling to focus, or recovering from nights out more often than before. Over time, these patterns can affect your professional life in ways that are hard to reverse.

Relationship strain develops when people you care about express concern, when arguments happen more often or more intensely, or when you find yourself choosing to drink alone to avoid judgment. Isolation itself is a warning sign worth taking seriously.

Health Risks of Ongoing Heavy Drinking

Understanding what alcohol does to the body over time can help clarify what’s at stake. The risks aren’t only long-term. Even short-term heavy drinking carries real dangers.

Short-Term Risks

Immediate physical risks include alcohol poisoning, accidents, injuries, and impaired judgment that can affect your safety and the safety of others. Binge drinking can cause blackouts, leaving you without memory of what happened and potentially putting you in vulnerable situations.

Mental health is affected quickly, too. Alcohol is a depressant. The temporary sense of relief it provides is followed by increased anxiety and low mood as it leaves your system. This cycle, drinking to escape feelings that drinking makes worse, is one of the harder patterns to break.

Longer-Term Consequences

Liver damage progresses from fatty liver, which is reversible, toward more serious and permanent conditions. The liver works hard to process alcohol, and chronic heavy drinking compromises its ability to recover. Early stages often have no obvious symptoms.

Heart health is significantly affected by ongoing heavy drinking. Chronic alcohol use raises blood pressure, weakens the heart muscle, and increases stroke risk.

Cancer risk increases with alcohol use. Alcohol is linked to cancers of the mouth, throat, liver, breast, and colon. According to Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health, cancer risk begins to increase at even moderate consumption levels of 3 to 6 drinks per week.

Brain and cognitive function are also affected over time, including memory, concentration, and emotional regulation. These changes can be subtle at first and easy to attribute to stress or aging.

Alcohol Withdrawal: Why Medical Supervision Matters

If you’ve been drinking heavily for a period of time, stopping suddenly can be medically serious. This is one of the most important things to understand before making any changes on your own.

Mild withdrawal symptoms can include anxiety, tremors, sweating, nausea, and difficulty sleeping. These typically begin within hours of the last drink and, while uncomfortable, can often be managed safely with proper medical support.

More severe withdrawal can involve seizures, hallucinations, and a serious condition called delirium tremens, which requires immediate medical attention. These risks are real and are why alcohol withdrawal is not something to manage alone, regardless of how strong your motivation is.

Medically supervised detox provides around-the-clock monitoring, medication support to prevent complications, and immediate response if symptoms escalate. Medical teams support people through alcohol withdrawal regularly, with compassion and clinical expertise.

Please don’t attempt to stop drinking abruptly after a period of heavy use without speaking to a medical professional first. This isn’t about willpower. It’s about keeping you safe.

Treatment Options: What Support Can Look Like

Treatment for alcohol-related concerns isn’t one-size-fits-all. Effective approaches combine therapy, medical support, and structured care in ways that fit your situation and needs.

Outpatient Counselling and Telehealth

Outpatient support lets you maintain your daily routine while getting professional help. Sessions typically focus on identifying triggers, building coping strategies, and working through underlying concerns. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and motivational interviewing are widely used, evidence-based approaches.

Telehealth options have made treatment more accessible. Video sessions offer the same quality of care as in-person appointments with added privacy and convenience. This works well for people with mild to moderate concerns and a stable living situation.

Intensive Outpatient and Structured Programs

These programs provide 9 to 18 hours per week of structured support per day, several days a week, while you continue living at home. They typically include group therapy, individual counselling, and educational components. This level of care works well when weekly therapy isn’t quite enough, but 24-hour residential care isn’t needed.

Residential and Inpatient Treatment

Inpatient treatment provides around-the-clock support in a structured residential environment. You’ll focus entirely on recovery, away from the triggers and pressures of daily life. This includes medically supervised detox where needed, individual and group therapy, skill-building, and peer support.

This level of care tends to be most appropriate for more severe alcohol use disorder, for people who have found outpatient support insufficient, or for those who need medical supervision during early recovery. CATC’s inpatient treatment centres in Ontario offer CARF-accredited care with rapid admission available when you’re ready.

Medication-Assisted Treatment

Certain medications can reduce cravings and support recovery when combined with counselling. Options include naltrexone, acamprosate, and disulfiram, each working differently and suited to different situations. A medical assessment will help determine whether medication could be part of your plan.

Reflecting on Your Own Relationship With Alcohol

Wondering whether your drinking is a problem is already a meaningful step. Consider sitting with a few honest questions:

Have you tried to cut back but found it harder than expected?
Do you often drink more than you planned to?
Has someone who cares about you expressed concern?
Do you feel guilty or unsettled about your drinking?
Do you find yourself needing a drink to relax or feel like yourself?

If several of these resonate with you, it’s worth exploring your options. Seeking information isn’t a commitment to anything except understanding yourself better.

Some people find it helpful to try a period without alcohol to notice how they feel. If that feels impossible, or if you notice withdrawal symptoms when you try, that’s important information about where things stand, and a reason to speak with someone before making any changes.

How CATC Supports Your Recovery

At CATC, we know that reaching out takes courage. Our approach combines clinical care with genuine compassion, meeting you wherever you are in your journey.

Confidential Intake

Your first conversation with our intake team is completely confidential. We’ll listen without judgment, answer your questions honestly, and help you understand what support might look like for your situation. There’s no pressure to commit to anything.

Rapid Admission and 24-Hour Care

When you’re ready for support, our rapid admission process can often accommodate you quickly. For those needing medically supervised detox, our clinical team provides around-the-clock monitoring to ensure your safety and comfort through withdrawal.

Whole-Person Care

Addiction rarely exists in isolation. Our approach addresses underlying mental health concerns, past experiences, and the life circumstances that contribute to alcohol use. Treatment plans are individualized because your situation and needs are your own.

Support for Families

If you’re not the one struggling but someone you love is, we’re here for you, too. Watching someone you care about struggle with alcohol is its own kind of difficult. Our intake team can speak with family members and supporters confidentially, helping you understand your options and how to approach the conversation.

What to Do Next

You’ve already taken a step by reading this far. From here, the next step doesn’t need to be large.

A conversation with our intake team is a good starting point. It’s confidential, it creates no obligations, and it’s simply a chance to ask questions and get an honest picture of what support might look like for you. Many people find that one conversation shifts something. Not because it has all the answers, but because it makes things feel less overwhelming.

You deserve support that meets you with honesty and without judgment. Whenever you’re ready, we’re here.

Call CATC: (855) 937-4949

This page is for informational purposes and is not medical advice. Please speak with a qualified healthcare professional for personalized guidance about your situation.