BILL HAYDEN STILL KEEN TO HELP PEOPLE BEAT ADDICTIONS

One would think that 20 years of working with people addicted to
alcohol or drugs would have left Bill Hayden jaded.

But that couldn't be further from the truth.

"It's very rewarding working in addiction because there is a very good
chance of getting a positive outcome," said the Brockville resident,
who recently retired after 17 years at Brockville rehabilitation
centre Brock Cottage Inc. as its executive director.

"Some days, it was just an emotional roller-coaster," said Hayden,
"but you have to look after your own mental health. Sometimes, it can
get you down, but I never found it depressing, even through the
inordinate number of deaths of people who didn't make it."

Brock Cottage Inc., which includes long-term residential
rehabilitation residences Brock Cottage and Tennant House, is a
non-profit registered charitable organization dedicated to the
rehabilitation of men and women chronically addicted to alcohol or
drugs.

The program gets a number of walk-ins and referrals from courts and
other rehab centres.

The program is designed to help the residents understand the nature
and destructive impact of alcohol and drug use on their lives and to
help them develop new and more fulfilling lifestyles.

Residents benefit from individually designed recovery programs,
individual and group counselling and learning life development skills.

Both houses, with a total of 38 beds, have a waiting list of up to
four months.

As a young man, Hayden struggled with and overcame an addiction to
alcohol. When he addressed it successfully, he became interested in
helping others.

Hayden got his start in addiction as a volunteer in 1966, when he sat
on the board of the Rehabilitation Facility in Hamilton, and then in
Ottawa in 1974. He later trained at the School for Addiction Studies
in Toronto.

Now in his 60s, he is an internationally certified alcohol and drug
counsellor and an internationally certified clinical supervisor.

Not one to let that go to waste, Hayden plans to continue individual
counselling in his new eastern Ontario-based business ODAAT (One Day
at a Time) Addiction Services, as well as volunteer work with Ottawa
Detox advisory board and within the community.

Over the years, new kinds of addictions have come into the picture,
said Hayden. When he started his career, alcohol was the only
substance addiction. Then overnight, cocaine users popped up.

Although he was the executive director, he worked hands-on with the
clients 90 per cent of the time. He also helped to secure the funding
necessary to get Tennant House, a rehabilitation facility geared
towards women, up and running - something he is very proud of.

He operates on three treatment theories that he applied throughout his
career.

The first is that to treat people equally you have to treat them
differently because everyone is an individual.

Second, treatment is a do-it-yourselfer.

"You give them the information and the options, but they have to do it
for themselves," Hayden said.

And third, in order to regain total health, clients have to address
their spiritual sides.

"Most of the people (I worked with) are chronics, and they lack the
part that makes them able to look around the corner and think,
'Everything is going to be OK,'" said Hayden.

Brock Cottage also advocates total abstinence, which Hayden swears
by.

"There's still such a societal stigma associated with addiction,"
Hayden said. "There's so much guilt and shame involved. But people
really do come from all backgrounds, cultures and walks of life."

He's worked with men and women as young as 18 and as old as in their
70s.

Aside from alcohol, cocaine addiction is the most common addiction,
followed by heroin and marijuana, he said.

Like snowflakes, no two addicts are alike. But they do have two things
in common, Hayden said.

"They all share a common problem and they are all good people. I've
met some of the most brilliant, phenomenal and interesting people
(through my work). The more good people you meet, the less impressed
you are with yourself."

All in all, he's found the work rewarding and stimulating. He's even
come away with lifelong friends.

"It's the things you do for people that nobody else finds out about
that count the most," Hayden said. "Some people can overcome
addictions successfully by themselves, but rehabilitation is made
easier with help and support," said Hayden.

"I think that it's easier for people to do things one day at a time.
It becomes more manageable, whether it's an addiction to cigarettes,
booze or boyfriends."

Now that's one we could all use help with.