3 years ago my life was pure chaos.
I had lost my job due to suffering prolonged bouts of anxiety, for which I had used alcohol as a coping mechanism. I had become dependent on alcohol. I could not function, nor leave my house, I was socially isolated and living on benefits.
Eventually I went through a residential detox. For this I will always remain grateful as it provided me with the opportunity for what came next which in essence has changed my life completely. I was signposted to a service called Double Impact. They offer the vital support and aftercare for those seeking a life abstinent from alcohol and substances. Without which I can almost guarantee I would not have gone on to achieve the success I have.
I started at Double Impact as a student of the academy, participating in the essential skills courses and peer support that they had to offer, from time management skills to event organising . From there I went on to do accredited training in Mentoring and eventually became a volunteer mentor at the Academy myself for a year, winning the honour of ‘mentor of the year award’. The feeling of community and belonging, having a sense of belonging and having both trained staff and peers support me along the difficult road to recovery, I accredit very much to Double Impact and it’s team.
From volunteer I started to seek out employment. I successfully secured full time employment with Framework as a support worker in a residential care home for those with ongoing and long-term issues with substance and alcohol misuse. The skills that I developed through Double Impact have been crucial to my work there and have since lead me to recently being promoted to the position of Senior Support Worker and now sees me in the position of creating a specialised recovery team within the service, developing team members and delivering the same kind of support that I myself received from Double Impact.