Saying Bye to the Bottle

INDEPENDENT LIFESTYLE

Saying Bye to the Bottle W

ith our modern day culture being fuelled on social events and our casual nights at the pub it is no surprise that substance abuse is an ever growing problem, with both drugs and alcohol now being more accessible than ever.

How and why a person becomes dependant on substance can vary greatly, but the life changing effects will always be the same.From struggling parents to mislead teenagers, every person can receive help and not have to be a victim of substance abuse.

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espite the number of people seeking help increases each year, the support available is never failing and is always improving amongst the communities that need it. Such support can come in forms of local and free social groups which supply professional help, along side personal stories of those in similar situations. In some groups like these people who have over come their addiction problems also have the option of becoming a mentor themselves so they can then go on to support people still suffering. This technique not only helps the mentor continue to stay “sober” but also it allows them to connect more with other people suffering as they know what they’re going through exactly. A group that acts in this way that has been incredibly successful in helping people, especially in the town of St. Helens, is the group known as Addaction.

Addaction works with their patient across the nation in a professional, but compassionate manner, as they are determined to help everyone who walks through their doors. Not only do this group offer private help but they also hold weekly meetings, which can be anonymous or open, in which people who suffer from addiction share there stories. These sessions offer the basics of what anyone body needing help wants to hear; that they are not alone.

I had the incredible, eye opening experience of sitting in in on of these meeting and had the chance to listen to their individual stories and found it showed first hand just how dramatically people’s lives could be effected by substance abusing.

Within 15 minutes of being part of their conversation I witnessed a man speak out for the first time about his addiction to codeine and how it nearly tore him away from his wife, and it was one of the most courages acts of raw emotion I have ever witnessed.

Whilst holding his wife’s hand, 37 year old Tom Harrison* told the story of how his addiction started from a rugby injury and dramatically resulted in him suffering from an overdose which nearly cost him his life, “Every morning I’d wake up and throw done a strip (of tablets) or two and I told myself I was doing it because I wanted to do it, not because I needed to”.

There was a moment after Tom had finished speaking when the room fell silent.

It was clear to tell that there wasn’t a single person who didn’t sympathise with his story because they’d all been there themselves.

I learnt that it was this bond of all having similar demons that made them stronger as a group, showing just how effective

these kind of support groups can be. From seeing both people who have recovered from their substance abuse problems, and those still determined to over come them, it was evident that support groups such as Addaction are a simple but effective method of treatment.

Statistics show that in 2014 one in eleven people from ages 16 to 59 had tried an illegal drug, but more shockingly was that this number almost doubled when focusing on ages 16 to 29. This substance abuse being more dominant in younger people is also evident in what age groups are more likely to heavy drink (more than 12 units) once a week, meaning this group of people were more likely to “binge drink” excessively.

When mentioning this to the Alcohol and Drugs abuse session leader of the St Helens AddAction group, Jess Thomas, she “expected these results” and say says she “see’s it everyday in her work, it’s not as shocking as it us to be”. Jess has worked as a group mentor for 16 years now and claims she has helped teenagers as young as 15 that have become dependent on alcohol; “a lot of the younger teenagers that come in have a problem with drink, these are the lucky ones.

Most just see it as normality and the problem

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worsens, some even falling into drugs”.

It was clear to see when speaking to Jessica she is a very strong woman with such determination to help those in need she has devoted her life to her support group. The love she has for her work can not only be seen in this support agency, but also in so many groups across the country.

However this hard work and adherence is even more evident in all those people who have now over come their substance abuse, and have once again regained control and freedom within their lives. At the end of the meeting I was approached by an elderly man rolling an oxygen tank who after some brief conversation pointed at Jess and told me she was the reason he is still breathing today. So many people like Jess work daily across our country as unsung heroes with the only aim of helping others.

“Get Help Before it Destorys You”

Some of the members of groups such as those like AddAction have actually already defeated there dependance problems but because they know first hand how hard the battle can be, return to show support and act as a beacon of hope for those still struggling.

Speaking to a 3 year “sober” member of the group, James Thompson, he told me how the death of his wife had led him to find comfort in drinking but how over the course of 4 years it cost him his relationship with his children and his grandchildren. Listening to his story he described his life now as “the happiest (he’d) been in a long time” and his advice for people who need help, as brutally simple as it seems was “If you think you have a problem, you probably do. Get help before it destroys you”.

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James also explained how help is incredibly accessible with your local GP and is there everyday for anyone, people just need to be willing to accept it, which for some is the biggest step to overcome. The NHS has both online and personal support to offer with professionally trained staff giving the best possible advice for each patient.

Getting help is increasingly accessible to everyone who wants it. Speaking to nurse, Marie Sharples, who works on the A&E department of Whiston Hospital, Liverpool, she describes some alcoholics as if they were “regulars in their local pub” and how some members of the public are “almost expected” on a daily basis. However these people don’t see it as a problem, simply a lifestyle choice.

Speaking to all these people really did open my eyes to the people suffering from substance abuse, they have simply lost control over their own lives and for many of them it takes a brush with death to make them realise this. This was what it took for a young man in the discussion group who had become addicted to cocaine. He spoke of when his best friend found his body, leading him to wake up in a body bag in the back of an ambulance after his heart restarted itself he “scared himself into getting the help (he) needed”. The strength that is needed for people to finally regain control over their over what could be years of abuse is extraordinary . But not impossible.

Having control over your own life is a fundamental and basic human right, substance abuse stops a person having this right. As heartbreaking as it is speaking to people in this situation, the end goal is

freedom from whatever their dependent on, and from speaking to people who have gone through the tunnel and come out the other side it is worth fighting for.

For your own sake and for the sake of those who love you.

(* changed names to keep sources anonymous)