It was wonderful for me to catch up with ‘Natalie’ whilst I was in Wales in September 2022. She was the first treatment service user I spent in-depth time with, and from whom I learnt a good deal about the nature of heroin addiction and recovery. She told me that when she was using heroin, she did not know how to stop. She could find no information about how to stop using. She knew no one who had stopped using. The solution to these problems was to keep using, letting heroin kill her pain, shame and the hatred of herself for what she had become.
Through listening to Natalie, I first started to realise the importance of key factors facilitating recovery: gaining hope, understanding, and a sense of belonging. As Wired In, we emphasised the key importance of Empowerment and Connection for facilitating recovery. We pointed out that hope, understanding (of the nature of the problem and the solution), and belonging were key factors underlying Empowerment.
