25 stories
- Paul D. -
![](https://doubleimpact.org.uk/images/content/25th-anniversary/pauld.jpg?v=1725369700)
“The most important thing is to pick yourself up and live in the moment while looking towards the future. Things can and will change, just give it time”
I started drinking in my early teens. Drinking was always a family activity: work hard, play hard mentality. This continued into my twenties, nothing odd there I thought, everyone was in the same boat. I was still studying at Uni until 28 years old and I guess this perpetuated the ‘student lifestyle’ long past the time I should have retired from it. Drinking escalated in my mid 30’s: work stress (horrible job, long commute, challenging people). COVID meant I could work from home, and well, drink from home too. Dangerous combination. It just spiralled from there; difficult family relationships, seizures, hospital treatment (long) pancreatitis, a fall which resulted in a fractured shoulder which I’m still recovering from.
Double Impact has been crucial to my recovery. Initially the one-to-one meetings (and follow-ups) were illuminating. It was helpful to have an honest and non-judgemental conversation about where I was and to scope out what I needed to do to not get back on track, as such but to order my life and unclutter my mind, in a sober way
The biggest difference was the group sessions. I was sceptical at first, and a bit embarrassed, nervous and cautious. That was a silly reaction in hindsight: it’s extremely useful to listen to other people’s experiences, how they go about achieving recovery and ultimately living fulfilling lives. I’ve learnt here that it’s a common goal if you want it, it’s shared. But everyone may approach, and come at it from a different background, different experience, and different angle. The best thing about my recovery is clarity also the realisation that the past is the past, it happened and can’t be altered so why not put my efforts into a future that I want?
My advice to someone who is still struggling is to make it a shared experience and listen to others. Even if you don’t entirely relate, there will always be common threads that you’ll understand. Don’t beat yourself up about things that could be broken like relationships, finances, and of course, relapse. All of these things may happen- the most important is to pick yourself up and live in the moment while looking towards the future. Things can and will change, just give it time.