Help is there
Addiction can be a desolate place, and it is easy to become trapped.
Recognising this and reaching out for help can be one of the hardest things you will ever do.
The most important thing I discovered when I did seek help was that I was not alone.
You Are Not Alone
Taking The First Step
I am an alcoholic and I have been in recovery for nine years, following several relapses I am now seven years sober. A call to the AA helpline in 2016 began my journey of recovery – it was a bit rocky at the start but only because I didn’t follow sound advise. Admitting that I am an alcoholic was not so hard, internally I think I had known this for decades – accepting it was a different matter.
I had a lot of contempt prior to investigation prior to making that call. In my head I was not THAT bad and I was sure I could stop when I REALLY wanted to. The truth is that I could have gone to a meeting decades earlier and identified with some of the stories being shared by fellow alcoholics. I qualified for a seat in the rooms of recovery when I was a teenager but accepting it back then would never have happened. I was having way too much fun despite the fact that I rarely remembered nights out or even nights in and near death consequences had become a thing.
My journey has taken me down a longer path but I wouldn’t change it – sharing my experience may help others to realise that there is a way out. I was an alcoholic and my life was unmanageable. I am still an alcoholic but I am sober, happy and with peace of mind that I never dreamed possible.
Around 1 in 20 adults in the UK have an issue with alcohol dependence, AKA alcoholism. That’s around 2.4 million people in the UK alone. Only a small percentage make it into recovery.
OPTIONS
Below you will find a few links to recovery programs that have helped thousands of people over the years.
Alcohol
AA works by members coming together to share their experience, strength, and hope to support each other to stay sober and recover from alcoholism. It doesn’t cost anything to attend AA meetings. To be a member, all that’s required is a desire to stop drinking.
Cocaine
Cocaine Anonymous is a community of individuals who come together to address their shared challenges and assist others in overcoming their addiction. The sole requirement for membership is a genuine desire to cease using cocaine as well as other mind-altering substances.
gambling
Gamblers Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other so that they may solve their common problem and help others do the same. The site offers various aids for the compulsive gambler including literature and most importantly a meeting finder.
Some of Many ADDICTION STATS
Data on various common addictions.
2.4 million
Adults in the UK have an issue with alcohol dependence.
4,392 million litres
Total volume of alcohol sold in the UK durring 2024.
1.3 million
GB adults are classified as suffering with “problem gambling”.
44%
Of people suffering with problem gambling are classified as “high risk of suicidal behaviour”.
£4 Billion
Each year in the UK’s domestic cocaine market.
over 50%
Of current cocaine users will exhibit cocaine-induced psychosis.