This page provides links to the home pages of a number of key peer support groups, e.g. AA, SMART Recovery. Learn why peer support is important.
‘Hope is the Word That Can Free Us From Addiction’ by o2b3
May 31, 2021
One of the things I will be doing over the coming months is to ‘bring back’ some of the classic blogs from our online community Wired In To Recovery, which ran from 2008 – 2012. People who know me will tell you that I always keep banging on about hope. Yes, hope is essential for recovery! Here’s a real powerful blog about hope which o2b3 submitted to Wired In To Recovery back in 2010.
‘I always thought that the word hope didnʼt apply to me! From where I come from I was never shown or given any hope. I was always put down and told, ‘Thereʼs no hope for you. You are no good. Youʼre bad, you are a liar. You are worthless and rotten to the core.’ When you keep hearing that said to you time and time again, you start to believe in what those people say. That this is you and thatʼs what you are. So I became the person that everyone said I was. I became all of the above, just to get back at those people that hurt me and put me down.
Factors Facilitating Recovery: A Sense of Belonging
May 11, 2021
I’ve emphasised the importance of hope, empowerment and self-responsibility in facilitating recovery. The fourth important factor is gaining a sense of belonging. Here is what I wrote in my new eBook Our Recovery Stories: Journeys from Drug and Alcohol Addiction.
“Recovery cannot be achieved in isolation. In fact, many people with serious substance problems have become isolated and alienated and this has a further debilitating effect on their already vulnerable psychological state. People who have had such problems need to belong and feel part of something. They need to feel the acceptance, care and love of other people, and to be considered a person of value and worth.
Most Viewed Content on Recovery Stories: The Top Five
October 24, 2013
And so here we are, the top five viewed content!
5. Mark Williams on Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (blog from August 28th). Professor Mark Williams of the University of Oxford talks about mindfulness meditation as an alternative treatment for depression. Mindfulness is also a powerful tool to help someone recovering from addiction.
4. The challenges of recovering from heroin addiction is a short article I wrote summarising the research of Patrick Biernacki, who interviewed 100 people who had overcome heroin addiction without treatment. You can also read a longer article about the research on this website.
Simon’s Moment of Clarity
September 12, 2013
In reading Simon’s Recovery Story, it seems that he had two major Moments of Clarity. Mind you, I’m sure he had many others along his recovery journey!
‘One day, I received a letter from the head of faculty, asking me to come to see him in his office. I’d stopped attending lectures and tutorials, and I was only attending university to collect giro cheques from my mailbox.
I knew that my addiction had come out on top again, and that I’d need all my wits about me if everything was not all going to fall down around me – my brittle facade of lies and last chances and denial that I would retreat into every time I was challenged.
‘The user as expert’ by Peapod
June 11, 2013
Another blog on WITR from April 2009.
‘When I went to look for help for my addiction, I ended up in the care of an addiction specialist. He was good at his job. He knew all about addiction.
He was impressive in terms of assessment and he knew about methadone and antidepressants and other prescribing options. His team inspired confidence in terms of their knowlege of addiction.
Unfortunately, it turned out they didn’t know much about recovery. The specialist advised against mutual aid and dissuaded me from professional counselling.
‘The astonishing power of example’ by Peapod
June 9, 2013
This blog appeared on WITR in April 2009.
‘Astonishment. That’s what I felt the first time I was taken to a mutual aid group meeting.
I was in treatment at the time in a residential centre. I was also neck deep in trouble. I had lost my job through my using. As part of the fallout from my own million megaton addiction detonation, I’d caused someone else to lose their job. The police were on my tail and I was massively in debt.
‘Hope is the word that can free us from addiction’ by o2b3
May 24, 2013
One of the things I will be doing with this new website is to ‘bring back’ some of the classic blogs from Wired In To Recovery – this has been much requested!
People who know me will tell you that I always keep banging on about hope. Yes, hope is essential for recovery! Here’s a real powerful blog about hope which o2b3 submitted to Wired In To Recovery back in 2010.
‘I always thought that the word hope didnʼt apply to me! From where I come from I was never shown or given any hope. I was always put down and told, “Thereʼs no hope for you. You are no good. Youʼre bad, you are a liar. You are worthless and rotten to the core.”
