According to clinical research, a person with a history of substance abuse is over 4 times more likely to have ADHD than someone who have never had a substance abuse problem. It is common for people with ADHD to turn to addictive substances such as alcohol, marijuana, heroin, prescription tranquilizers, pain medication, nicotine, caffeine, sugar, cocaine and street amphetamines in attempts to soothe their restless brains and bodies. Using substances to improve our abilities, help us feel better, or decrease and numb our feelings is called self-medicating.

The problem is that self-medicating works at first. It provides the person with ADHD relief from their restless bodies and brains. For some, drugs such as nicotine, caffeine, cocaine, diet pills and "speed" enable them to focus, think clearly, and follow through with ideas and tasks. Others chose to soothe their ADHD symptoms with alcohol and marijuana. People who abuse substances, or have a history of substance abuse are not "bad" people. They are people who desperately attempt to self-medicate their feelings, and ADHD symptoms. Self-medicating can feel comforting. The problem is, that self-medicating brings on a host of addiction related problem which over time make people's lives much more difficult. What starts out as a "solution", can cause problems including addiction, impulsive crimes, domestic violence, increased high risk behaviors, lost jobs, relationships, families, and death. Too many people with untreated ADHD, learning, and perceptual disabilities are incarcerated, or dying from co-occurring addiction.

A number of health care professionals have been using The Listening Program in their work with addictive disorders. As a Naturopath and an addictions counselor, I have seen great promise with The Listening Program and my recovering clients. Although I don't encourage clients to go off their medication, I had one recovering alcoholic with over twenty years of sobriety used it to get off of anti-depressants.

A number of my clients have used The Listening Program to quit smoking, sometimes in conjunction with other methods such as hypnosis and nicotine gum or patches.

One addict with over twenty years clean discovered she had ADHD while going through The Listening Program. "It took my serenity to an entirely new level," she said. "I see, hear and feel differently. The quality of my life improved along with my ability to hear and concentrate."

The Listening Program is a powerful alternative to medications that some alcoholics and addicts have difficulty taking. For example, many recovering men and women have attention disorders and are prescribed Ritalin. One recovering methamphetamine with over a year clean relapsed after being prescribed Ritalin for his Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). "If I had known if would cause me to relapse," I would never had taken it," he said. He's now using The Listening Program and says that it works even better than the Ritalin for relieving his ADHD symptoms.