Just home from work and reading this. Great article again! Absolutely agree on so many points. I have to remain nameless / another name to protect my job but from own experience and indirectly working with addiction everyday. My job would surprise you if you knew. As no one would guess if you saw me in real life, that has all these emergency admissions.
So many ways you are right. I work with addiction daily indirectly and during job have met 6 people with exact same trauma and experienceas me. Out of them all I'm the only one that 'made' it. Wasn't an emergency detox that made it click. Its was using several tools. Id share more anonymously of course, simple reason of job protection. I used several different methods at right time. Now? Unrecognisable, and makes sense. Ive not thought of drinking since.
Brilliant piece, and only took 2 GPs to finally piece together what i'd said for years. Pathways in and pathways out. Great work 👏 not one size fits all - its not getting better and I see this daily. Funding cuts to sectors, no research combined. Modest amounts could fund research. Look forward to reading your work!
What saddens me most is that you feel you have to remain anonymous to protect your job. That says a great deal about how we still view addiction and recovery. We talk endlessly about tackling stigma, yet many people who have rebuilt extraordinary lives still feel they must hide that part of their story for fear it could cost them professionally.
Perhaps that's one of the clearest signs that stigma hasn't disappeared at all. It has simply become more polite. We celebrate recovery in principle, but too often remain uncomfortable with the people who embody it.
I'm delighted you "made it", and your experience reinforces exactly what I was trying to argue: there are many pathways into addiction and often many pathways out. Recovery is rarely one intervention or one conversation. It's usually the right help, at the right time, combined with determination, relationships, hope and the opportunity to build a different life.
Thank you for taking the time to write such a thoughtful comment, and thank you for the work you do every day.
Again spot on! Reason I have to remain anonymous (just now) is my job role, who i work for. As I say it would surprise you and also part if the problem, or hinders successful outcomes at times. Plus my children. But my actual job requires it, about as much as I can give away. Im open everywhere else I simply dont drink.
Its exactly that. Many pathways in and out, with work spotted ine particular pattern, which needs researched. I had countless admissions, wasnt until I got 2 supportive Drs, and used everything I knew would work for me, it all clicked. What works for some is not the same as others. How could I get a just eat delivered at 10am when clearly bad?
Latest round of cuts, will disproportionately effect outcomes. If anything its regressed. I see addiction everyday. Listen. Some have walked my shoes, seeing them, signposting whilst not being able to give away I was at their stage at one point, or much worse. They see a shirt and tie. But get all the empathy that I can give. Plus the ones who choose there own pathways out - are the ones who ha e been given choice not direction. The rates are a disgrace, and still celebrated to be drunk here. Until you say you have a problem. Then suddenly, for a lot of people, that ostracised opinion starts. Even in courts- its not compassion in many cases. Default of do this or that. Looking forward to reading your further work 🙏
Thank you, Grey. I really appreciate you taking the time to share more of your story.
What you've described reinforces that recovery isn't a conveyor belt. There are many pathways in, and often many pathways out. The common thread is that people are treated as individuals, given genuine choices, and supported to find what works for them rather than being told there is only one acceptable route.
The fact that you're able to offer empathy to people because you've walked in their shoes, even if they never know it, is a remarkable gift. Never underestimate the difference that quiet compassion can make.
Thank you again for your encouragement and for your thoughtful insights. I hope one day you'll feel able to tell your story more openly, because I suspect it would give hope to a great many people. Until then, I'm grateful you've chosen to share some of it here.
Brilliant post so many pathways to recovery , so many factors to a person's drinking or drug taking. Suicide rates also. Great article. Everything plays a part. Youve hit nail on head. I worked out my own way of getting sober, what stopped my hospitalisations, what got a lot back. Right support and right time. Much more joined up thinking needed particularly NHS and Mental Health. Great post.
Thank you, that really means a lot. Your right. There are many pathways into addiction and there are many pathways out. The mistake we keep making is trying to squeeze every person into a single model. Recovery is deeply personal, but it also depends on whether the right help is available at the right moment. I'm delighted you found your own way and got your life back. We need a system that makes that possible for far more people, with addiction, mental health and the NHS working together instead of passing people from one service to another. Stories like yours remind us why raising our expectations matters. ❤️
Part 2 can be found here https://annemarieward.substack.com/p/the-questions-that-forced-me-to-clarify-024?r=2io0u9
Just home from work and reading this. Great article again! Absolutely agree on so many points. I have to remain nameless / another name to protect my job but from own experience and indirectly working with addiction everyday. My job would surprise you if you knew. As no one would guess if you saw me in real life, that has all these emergency admissions.
So many ways you are right. I work with addiction daily indirectly and during job have met 6 people with exact same trauma and experienceas me. Out of them all I'm the only one that 'made' it. Wasn't an emergency detox that made it click. Its was using several tools. Id share more anonymously of course, simple reason of job protection. I used several different methods at right time. Now? Unrecognisable, and makes sense. Ive not thought of drinking since.
Brilliant piece, and only took 2 GPs to finally piece together what i'd said for years. Pathways in and pathways out. Great work 👏 not one size fits all - its not getting better and I see this daily. Funding cuts to sectors, no research combined. Modest amounts could fund research. Look forward to reading your work!
Thank you, Grey. Your comment means a great deal.
What saddens me most is that you feel you have to remain anonymous to protect your job. That says a great deal about how we still view addiction and recovery. We talk endlessly about tackling stigma, yet many people who have rebuilt extraordinary lives still feel they must hide that part of their story for fear it could cost them professionally.
Perhaps that's one of the clearest signs that stigma hasn't disappeared at all. It has simply become more polite. We celebrate recovery in principle, but too often remain uncomfortable with the people who embody it.
I'm delighted you "made it", and your experience reinforces exactly what I was trying to argue: there are many pathways into addiction and often many pathways out. Recovery is rarely one intervention or one conversation. It's usually the right help, at the right time, combined with determination, relationships, hope and the opportunity to build a different life.
Thank you for taking the time to write such a thoughtful comment, and thank you for the work you do every day.
Again spot on! Reason I have to remain anonymous (just now) is my job role, who i work for. As I say it would surprise you and also part if the problem, or hinders successful outcomes at times. Plus my children. But my actual job requires it, about as much as I can give away. Im open everywhere else I simply dont drink.
Its exactly that. Many pathways in and out, with work spotted ine particular pattern, which needs researched. I had countless admissions, wasnt until I got 2 supportive Drs, and used everything I knew would work for me, it all clicked. What works for some is not the same as others. How could I get a just eat delivered at 10am when clearly bad?
Latest round of cuts, will disproportionately effect outcomes. If anything its regressed. I see addiction everyday. Listen. Some have walked my shoes, seeing them, signposting whilst not being able to give away I was at their stage at one point, or much worse. They see a shirt and tie. But get all the empathy that I can give. Plus the ones who choose there own pathways out - are the ones who ha e been given choice not direction. The rates are a disgrace, and still celebrated to be drunk here. Until you say you have a problem. Then suddenly, for a lot of people, that ostracised opinion starts. Even in courts- its not compassion in many cases. Default of do this or that. Looking forward to reading your further work 🙏
Thank you, Grey. I really appreciate you taking the time to share more of your story.
What you've described reinforces that recovery isn't a conveyor belt. There are many pathways in, and often many pathways out. The common thread is that people are treated as individuals, given genuine choices, and supported to find what works for them rather than being told there is only one acceptable route.
The fact that you're able to offer empathy to people because you've walked in their shoes, even if they never know it, is a remarkable gift. Never underestimate the difference that quiet compassion can make.
Thank you again for your encouragement and for your thoughtful insights. I hope one day you'll feel able to tell your story more openly, because I suspect it would give hope to a great many people. Until then, I'm grateful you've chosen to share some of it here.
Right help, Right moment. That's exactly it! At last, so refreshing to hear!
Thank you for taking the time to say so.
Brilliant post so many pathways to recovery , so many factors to a person's drinking or drug taking. Suicide rates also. Great article. Everything plays a part. Youve hit nail on head. I worked out my own way of getting sober, what stopped my hospitalisations, what got a lot back. Right support and right time. Much more joined up thinking needed particularly NHS and Mental Health. Great post.
Thank you, that really means a lot. Your right. There are many pathways into addiction and there are many pathways out. The mistake we keep making is trying to squeeze every person into a single model. Recovery is deeply personal, but it also depends on whether the right help is available at the right moment. I'm delighted you found your own way and got your life back. We need a system that makes that possible for far more people, with addiction, mental health and the NHS working together instead of passing people from one service to another. Stories like yours remind us why raising our expectations matters. ❤️