About UseWise

This program helps you uncover your habits around alcohol, smoking/vaping, cannabis, and/or gaming/social media. You can choose to explore just one or multiple categories. You'll discover how your use fits into your life right now and how to build a healthier balance - with the help of facts, reflective exercises, and practical tools.

You’ll learn:

•How your use affects your daily life, routines, and long-term goals.

•Whether your views on substances and screens match up with reality.

•How to become more resilient against both internal and external pressures - like unhelpful thoughts, peer pressure, and social settings.

•Ways to introduce healthier habits and handle situations where you’re more likely to use.

UseWise takes about 20-30 minutes per week for 1-5 weeks. With the support of a personal e-coach and tips based on scientific research. 

What Students Say

I liked that the program is structured in an accessible and motivating way. I particularly like the short motivational pieces, such as the fact that the diary does not have to be perfect. The concrete benefits of quitting, such as the 2000 euro saving per year, also make it very tangible. 

Some modules were more practical and others with more theory, which is very nice for the variation.

I also like how the emphasis in the program is on cutting down on alcohol, rather than quitting altogether. It's really about taking control of consumption and I think this could resonate with almost anyone.

A Glimpse Inside

Detailed Description of the Content

Methods & techniques

  • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for problematic substance use and gaming

  • Motivational interviewing

  • Self-monitoring

  • Goal-setting

  • Self-efficacy

  • Cooper (1994) motives for drinking/substance use: coping (internal/negative), conformity (external/negative), enhancement (internal/positive), and social (external/positive)

  • Coping skills training

  • Outcome expectancies

  • Stimulus control

  • Behavioral activation

  • Protective behavioral strategies

Categories

  1. Alcohol

  2. Smoking/Vaping

  3. Cannabis

  4. Gaming/Social Media

Modules

The modules have the same structure for each category but content and examples is adjusted to each category

  1. The first step

  2. Helpful thoughts

  3. Resilient under pressure

  4. Social use

  5. Healthier habits

Chapters per module

1. The first step

  • Insight into your use

  • What is ‘normal’?

  • Pros & cons analysis

  • Your goal for change

  • Wrap-up

2. Helpful thoughts

  • Thoughts-Feelings-Behavior

  • Thoughts

  • Feelings

  • Wrap-up

3. Resilient under pressure

  • You ↔ the group

  • Confident in social settings

  • Action Plan

  • Wrap-up

4. Social use

  • The benefits-reflection

  • Social use: expectations v.s. reality

  • Overcoming temptation

  • Wrap-up

5. Healthier habits

  • Triggers and pitfalls

  • New recipe for relaxation

  • Take healthy distance

  • Wrap-up