BOON
April 2012 |
drinkanddrugsnews
| 13
www.drinkanddrugsnews.com
Treatment |
Voices of recovery
prevention, and Trevi also runs the ‘freedom to change’ domestic abuse
programme, which takes an uncompromising look at past and future
relationships and challenges women to strive for healthy relationships.
The children are collected at 4pm after which the women begin the routine of
parents up and down the county – organising an evening meal and preparing
their children for bed. The evening staff are on hand to help with maintaining
the bedtime routine, as establishing and maintaining a routine can provide
stability and structure and act as a sharp contrast to the chaos that many
women have been used to in the community.
For mums with younger babies, nighttime doesn’t necessarily equal rest, and
they may be woken up frequently for feeding or soothing. It isn’t uncommon to
see a few bleary-eyed mums on project in the morning, especially if their baby
has woken up bright and early ready to play!
As many of the staff and residents will attest, having children on the project
brings a huge benefit. They are a constant reminder of extent to which lives can
be turned around, and an inspiration to us all to stay positive. Despite the
enormously hard work that goes into the group and key work, seeing the bond
develop between mother and child and the simple pleasures they find in one
another’s company makes it all feel worth it.
So, it’s not your usual rehab experience. But if your client is thinking of
residential but is deterred by the thought of being separated from her children,
then a mother and child placement might be an option. After all, what we are all
striving to offer our clients is treatment options and choices to allow them to
pursue what they hope will work for them.
Hannah Shead is service manager at Trevi House, www.treviproject.org. For more
information email office@trevihouse.org and follow them on Twitter – @TreviHouse
‘Life in residential treatment
is hard. Rewarding? Yes. Life
changing? Absolutely. But
still hard work. I’ve heard
some clients say that prison
was easier – you still got fed
and watered but could avoid
the therapy.’
IN DECEMBER LAST YEAR
the UK Recovery
Federation (UKRF) facilitated a recovery
seminar in Salford, attended by recovery
activists from all over Greater Manchester. Deb
Drinkwater from Salford helped to deliver it.
Deb is particularly interested in supporting
recovery in families, as she explains:
‘We do recover. This is a fact. Recovery can
lead families to a place of improved
relationships, new perspectives, bigger goals
and increased potential. Recovery for individuals and families is not only
possible, it’s essential for the continued wellbeing of family members.
‘Those of us who are part of the growing recovery community in the UK
today experience first hand, through events, conferences and our own
networks, the powerful visible force of families, adults, children,
grandparents and siblings that are all benefitting from the recovery
journeys of their loved ones; amazing, powerful and real. There is much to
smile about, to be grateful for and to celebrate.
‘Yet outside of the recovery community you would never know it. We are
aware of the stigma and discrimination people with current addiction
issues face. Parents in recovery continue to face this long after their
addiction has been addressed. Lack of child-friendly facilities within
services that claim to support recovery, failure to fund childcare during
school holidays and the blatant disregard for the anxiety and fear that
parents face in disclosing their recovery to the wider community are classic
examples of how little thought is given to the needs of families.
‘However there are ways to overcome the stigma and discrimination
faced by parents in recovery – through the development of peer support
networks, led by parent mentors, such as the one we recently piloted for the
DAAT in Salford. The building of networks, releasing individual and group
potential and giving communities the confidence to identify their own
strengths and needs in relation to the whole family, requires both strategic
commitment from the top and confidence building within communities.
The UKRF seminars focus on the confidence building bit.
‘People attending a UKRF seminar share knowledge, understanding and
enthusiasm for the inspirational work which is going on, often quietly, humbly
and at very little cost, within our recovery communities. The asset-based
approaches introduced strengthen the understanding of the abundance
available to us all once it is identified, acknowledged and nurtured. Co-
facilitating the Greater Manchester recovery seminar with Alistair, I had the
chance to experience how this approach builds confidence and hope and
supports the beginnings of a shared vision; bringing people together around
their commitment to recovery and their similarities. We need more spaces like
these where communities, families and services come together to learn, share
andmake new friendships. In doing thiswe can grownew forms of community-
based support and truly support the diverse recovery journeys of families.
‘We do recover and, with support and commitment, recovery networks
will grow and become more visible, giving the community the confidence to
express itself and flourish, and allowing families to share their positive
experiences without fear of prejudice. Coming together as community
members first, as family members, we can learn and grow together.’
Deb Drinkwater runs DDTC, providing training and consultancy for
recovery. Alistair Sinclair is director of the UK Recovery Federation (UKRF).
VOICES OF RECOVERY
PARENTS IN RECOVERY
Coming together as family members can help
grow recovery together, says Alistair Sinclair