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Substance use & recovery · Find your starting point

Substance use & finding support

You may be worried about your own use, a medicine you rely on or someone you care about. Start with the concern that fits. You do not need a label before you can ask for help.

Find your bearings Your tools & next steps
A conversation can start with what you want to change.
01 / Get a clearer picture

Use, dependence and a disorder mean different things.

Using a substance does not, by itself, establish a substance use disorder. Assessment considers control, continuing use despite harm, effects on daily life and the particular substance involved.

Physical dependence can develop with some prescribed medicines. It deserves medical attention, but does not automatically mean a use disorder. Tell a clinician about your circumstances rather than trying to fit everything into one addiction label.

Based on NHS · NIDA Data Share · NIH · ASAM and partner societies

A conversation can start with what you want to change.
A visual explanation

Choose a starting question, not a label.

  • What concerns you?

    Control, health, daily impact or a medicine

  • What is involved?

    The substance, product and prescribed context

  • What could help?

    Relevant assessment and local support

  • What matters to you?

    Your goals, circumstances and preferences

Conversation areas around substance concerns. These are not diagnostic stages, a score or a required sequence. Source: NHS
A closer look

Words can describe different parts of your experience.

Using a substance, becoming physically dependent and having a substance use disorder are different concepts. Assessment considers the pattern and its consequences. A prescribed medicine may lead to physical dependence without establishing a use disorder.

If a label feels difficult, you can start by describing what concerns you. You do not need to settle the terminology before asking for help.

Based on National Institute of Mental Health · MSD Manuals

Your health, everyday life and own priorities all belong in the conversation.
Find a useful starting point

Explore the experience you want to understand.

These pages explain different patterns. Choosing one does not suggest a diagnosis.

A closer look

Why not list every substance questionnaire?

DAST-10 is a separate drug-problem screening measure with a historical name. It excludes alcohol, has distinct versions and cannot stand in for a medication review. It remains a research reference here, rather than an extra questionnaire you need to complete.

Based on NIDA Data Share · NIH

02 / Make sense of what has changed

Start with what has become difficult for you.

These examples can help you describe a concern. They do not apply in the same way to every substance or determine a diagnosis.

Control & choice

Using more often or for longer than you intended.

Everyday impact

Finding it difficult to reduce use even when you want to.

Health context

Use affecting relationships, responsibilities, health or things you value.

Your support

Cravings, withdrawal concerns or several substances interacting.

Based on NHS · NIDA Data Share · NIH · CDC

In everyday life

Look at what is happening around the use.

The same substance can sit within very different circumstances. These areas help organize a conversation; they do not add up to a diagnosis.

  • Control and choice

    Whether the pattern differs from what you intend, and what happens when you try to change it.

  • Health

    Physical symptoms, sleep, mental health and medicine use that need attention together.

  • Daily life

    Effects on relationships, responsibilities and activities that matter to you.

  • Circumstances

    Housing, support, access to care and other pressures around you.

A conversation map, with no numerical risk ranking.

Based on National Institute of Mental Health · MSD Manuals

03 / Put your experience into context

Your context matters as much as a questionnaire.

A health professional can ask about what you use, how it is taken, prescribed medicines, changes over time and the effect on your life. Ask how information is handled and what confidentiality limits apply before sharing sensitive details.

TAPS and ASSIST have substance-specific questions and professional follow-up. They are not interchangeable with an alcohol-only or cannabis-only measure, and do not produce one universal addiction score.

Based on NHS · NIDA Data Share · NIH · World Health Organization

Your experience, in three prompts
  1. 1
    Your concern

    What would you like help understanding or changing?

  2. 2
    The context

    Which substances or prescribed medicines matter?

  3. 3
    Your options

    What support can you access, and how is information handled?

Make a few notes
Room for your questions

An appointment can begin with your main concern.

A service may ask what you use, how the pattern has changed, and about your health and living situation. Some assessments include physical checks or tests. Ask what each part is for and how the information will be used.

You could bring one example of a difficulty and one thing you hope support will make easier. This is preparation for a discussion, not a requirement to disclose your history here.

Based on NHS · MSD Manuals

04 / Explore your support options

You can explore support before deciding every goal.

You can choose what feels useful, with room for your circumstances and preferences.

Based on NHS

Support around substance use

Primary care or a local substance-use service can help you consider treatment and ways to reduce harm. Support may include talking treatment, medicines for some conditions and help with physical health or practical needs.

Your wider circumstances

Your goals and circumstances belong in the discussion. Housing, money, caring responsibilities and mental health can affect what is manageable. Ask what help is available locally and whether you can speak to a service directly.

Understand your options

Different parts of care can work together.

Medical care, psychological treatment, practical support and peer support have different roles. The mix depends on the substance and your needs. Care for a co-occurring mental health condition should be considered alongside substance-related care.

  • Clinical assessment

    Understand health needs and whether withdrawal or other immediate risks need medical attention.

  • Psychological support

    Work on patterns, coping and changes you want to make.

  • Practical help

    Address circumstances such as housing or access that can affect treatment.

These roles can overlap; they are not compulsory stages.

Based on National Institute of Mental Health · NHS

Make room for what helps

Choose the information that fits the concern.

Alcohol, opioids and prescribed sedatives have different treatment and withdrawal considerations. If you are unsure about changing a substance or medicine, seek individual medical advice rather than using a general screen to decide what is safe.

Based on NHS · MSD Manuals

05 / Choose your next step

A little clarity. A place to start.

Explore a tool, prepare a conversation or find someone to talk to. Choose what feels useful to you.

Questionnaires you might hear about

If you are unsure where to start, TAPS describes a broad first conversation. ASSIST is a different professional pathway. You do not need to work through every measure or share answers on this page.

TAPS

A starting conversation across substance categories.

Tobacco, Alcohol, Prescription Medication and Other Substance Use Tool

An adult primary-care tool with an initial screen about the past year and substance-specific follow-up about the past three months. Prescribed use and nonmedical use need different context.

What it can and cannot tell you

The exact form, digital-use permission and follow-up branches have not cleared release here. Its substance-specific results do not form one addiction score or establish a diagnosis.

Official measure information

Based on NIDA Data Share · NIH

ASSIST

A broader conversation linked to professional support.

Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test

WHO developed this for primary care, with questions and follow-up relating to individual substances and an intervention pathway.

What it can and cannot tell you

Full administration, branching and digital-use permission remain under review. It is not a self-guided withdrawal assessment or a combined score across substances.

Official measure information

Based on World Health Organization

These measures are explained here, rather than administered. You can ask for support without a score or a diagnosis, and choose how much to share in your first conversation.

Something you can use today

Practical guideYour words

Prepare for a conversation

A few prompts to help you explain what you have noticed and what you would like help with.

  • A simple notes builder
  • Copy your notes to keep
  • No account needed

You decide how much to write and share.

Find your words
Support directorySomeone beside you

Find your next kind of support

Explore where to begin with everyday support, professional help or an urgent conversation.

  • Ways to ask for help
  • Country-specific crisis contacts
  • Support at your own pace

If you need urgent help, go straight to support.

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You can start right here

Your first sentence does not need to be perfect.

You could explain what has changed and ask for an appointment to discuss it. If you are worried about withdrawal or medication changes, say so at the start. You do not need to wait until things feel worse.

Based on NHS

“I am concerned about substance use and would like to discuss my options without having to decide a diagnosis first.”
Make it sound like you
Things you may be wondering

Your questions, with room for nuance.

You can read just the answer you need.

Do I need a diagnosis to contact a service?

You can ask about a concern before knowing its name. Describe the effect on your health or life and ask what assessment or support is available locally.

Based on NHS

Can mental health care happen at the same time?

Co-occurring concerns need consideration together. Tell each clinician about the care you receive elsewhere and ask how they can coordinate it with your consent.

Based on National Institute of Mental Health

Does physical dependence prove addiction?

No. Physical dependence can occur with prescribed treatment. A clinician considers the wider pattern rather than drawing that conclusion from withdrawal alone.

Based on MSD Manuals

Will every substance concern need the same treatment?

No. The substance, health needs and circumstances affect the options. A general questionnaire cannot choose a treatment or assess acute safety.

Based on NHS · MSD Manuals

Keep exploring, if you want to

Related topics.

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Mental health assessment

Understand screening, a fuller assessment and care planning, and prepare questions about your needs without having to diagnose yourself first.

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Supporting someone

Find ways to listen, offer practical support and help someone reach care while looking after your own needs and responding to immediate safety concerns.

Understand & explore

Topics can overlap. These links are for reading, not a suggestion that you have another condition.

Where this information comes from.

Use this hub to learn and prepare questions. It does not diagnose you or recommend a personal treatment plan. By Selfmora editorial; sources checked . Updated .

Additional explanations and examples: sources consulted . Examples illustrate ideas; they do not assess your personal health. Your questions

Our editorial approach