The addiction crisis in North America has been covered widely in the media. In fact, one in 10 Canadians will struggle with addiction in their lifetime and 50% of those individuals will seek help--but then only 50 per cent of those individuals stay "sober" a year after getting "clean." From use of prescription opiates, to the daily use of alcohol, addiction touches each one of us. People suffering with addiction might be our fathers and sisters, mothers and sons, they might be the lawyers, doctors, plumbers and accountants and other professionals we deal with. In short, we all know someone who is either openly struggling, or suffering alone. Naturopathic doctors are in a unique position to be able to help identify addiction and compulsive behaviors in our clinical practice. Our added length of visits, and our use of counselling techniques in our day-to-day practice, allows us to screen, assess and refer to the appropriate health professional (if not an ND). Learn the basics about addiction, the neurobiology, statistics and gain some useful screening tools to bring back to your private practice and home.