Change Grow Live

New synthetic opioids, which are much more dangerous for people using them, have arrived in the UK. Drugs contaminated with these substances have sadly led to a number of overdoses and deaths. If you or someone you know takes opioids, please read our advice on staying safe: ➡ Try not to use drugs alone, and don’t let your friends use them alone either. Take it in turns to use and wait to see if your friend is okay before using yourself. Watch out for signs of overdose, which include difficulty breathing, blue colouring to the lips or fingertips, unresponsiveness, and limp limbs. ➡ Always carry naloxone. It’s available for free from all treatment providers. If someone overdoses, give naloxone to them and call 999. #Naloxone only works on opioids. However, if you suspect someone has overdosed give them naloxone even if you’re not sure they have taken an opioid. It will not harm your friend. In some overdose cases where synthetic opioids are involved, multiple doses of naloxone may be needed. ➡ Your drugs may look the same even if they are contaminated, so always start by taking a smaller dose than you usually would. Test the strength of your drugs by taking a quarter of your usual dose to start with. Allow plenty of time to see how you feel before taking another dose. Do this every time you use. It helps reduce your risk of overdose. Remember you can always get help if you need it, whether your goal is to stop using completely or just to reduce. Reach out to your local service to find out more about the medication services available to you. https://lnkd.in/eDUPwiWf

"I've been in recovery for 21 years and during my time in addiction, this stuff wasn't around. I've had two personal overdoses. Naloxone could have been used on me. But thankfully somebody got me to hospital in time." - Terry    Terry is now part of the Northamptonshire Police training programme and helping the force to use the life-saving overdose reversal drug, naloxone.     Hear from the team at our Northampton service and find out more about the project on ITV News:     https://lnkd.in/e_RwkCti  

Together with HIT.org.uk, Turning Point, Cranstoun, and Humankind Charity, we support this year's International Overdose Awareness Day theme of "Together we can". This highlights the power of our community when we all stand together to end overdose. #IOAD #TogetherWeCan #EndOverdose

This #BelieveInPeople story comes from Jo who volunteers to give others the same belief she was shown throughout her recovery. “Everybody’s got a different experience, a different perspective, and different reasons for wanting to volunteer. I find it inspiring when I see people want to make change. As hard as it is to see people come into the service, they want help but they might not know what that help is or how to ask for it. To see them coming on and engaging, getting more conversation out of them each time. They start to open up and start talking. Especially the women, because they can identify with me. And that’s what was done for me. It was women who worked with me in this service who encourage me to attend groups and to do rehab, to make small changes at first that led on to bigger changes the more my self-esteem built up. I’ve got a few different roles here, but an inspiring moment that sticks in my mind was to do with my Peer Mentor role. I was matched up with this girl because we had very similar experience. I’d come through 20 years of heroin addiction, and she’d been through a similar time. She believed me when I told her that her life could get better, because she’d seen mine get better. She knew where I’d come from, I was at college and volunteering and starting to apply for jobs, so she started to believe that was possible for herself. We’re the same age, and all these small details helped. We were able to identify with each other. Two weeks ago, she told me she’d put an application in for college, she’d sat her driving test and had passed it, and this was someone who before wouldn’t have left the house. It’s unbelievable really, just how far she’s come. That’s one of the best moments I’ve had here. I’m in paid employment now, and I wouldn’t have done that without everything I’ve learned from volunteering. I wouldn’t have been able to sit there and talk about myself and what I’d done, and how far I’ve come.” To read Jo's full story, head over to our website: https://lnkd.in/eic4672W

Our Peterborough service is bringing support to some of the country’s most vulnerable women. Luci Weir leads EWE (Empowering Women Everywhere), the Vulnerable Women’s Project. Women who sell sex can be a hard to reach group for support services. They have been exploited, discriminated against and judged by communities, professionals and even their peers. They’ve been let down so many times, and as a result they don't trust professionals. The outreach clinic, Wildflowers, is a safe, non-judgmental space for the women, led by women. It helps them to access a range of services to support with their sexual health, physical and mental health, with a trauma-informed approach. Since Wildflowers was first launched in 2020, their cervical screening rates have increased from 19% to 93% among the women they support. Read more about the EWE Project and the Wildflowers clinic on our website: https://lnkd.in/eA9pCQfd

In this week’s #BelieveInPeople story we spoke to Vanessa, who supports people in London as a Family Worker. She told us about one of her proudest moments supporting someone through a mental health crisis “I’ve been working within the drug and alcohol field for 30 years. During that time I’ve had the fortune and pleasure of being able to help people who need support, but lack the capacity to request it verbally. About five years ago, I came across a person going through a mental health crisis. I decided to hold regular check-ins with him, and I made an agreement with him not to leave anything off the table for discussion. People need to be able to feel like they can bring anything in to our sessions and be listened to without fear of judgement. Throughout the weeks that followed, he talked and I listened. Nobody could understand how to engage with this man, they couldn’t get him to talk about the fact that he was having thoughts of suicide. When our sessions came to an end I had other professionals ringing me up and saying that he’d been telling them all about the wonderful interactions he’d had with me. It really lifted me up and made me feel so proud of the work I do. I believe this was my finest work to date, a time when I believed in someone else and also in myself. I’m not a person that likes to big myself up, but there have been some great moments that I’ve felt so proud of. That was one of my proudest moments. Another would be working with a pregnant woman who was using heroin, and we only had about ten minutes to get a doctor to confirm her pregnancy, so that she could get a prescription for opiate substitute medication from the pharmacy that was about to close. I ended up running up the road to a doctor to explain the situation, but we got her prescription just in time! Experiences like this have helped shape the person I am. I came into this work as a volunteer and throughout that time I’ve seen so much, but it’s all helped me to be a much stronger person and to understand about addiction and what’s going on with people.” Head to our website to read Vanessa's full story: https://lnkd.in/eGqpVBhV

The Believe in People podcast from ReNew has been nominated for an award at the British Podcast Awards! 🌟    Run by our service in Hull, the podcast has been shortlisted for its second award this year.    The series explores substance use, recovery, and stigma with guests sharing their own stories and experiences - look out for the Believe in People podcast in the Interview category.      The awards ceremony takes place on 26th September, and we wish them the best of luck! 🤞     🎙️Listen to their latest episode below with Love Island star Adam Maxted, discussing the impact of reality TV, Steroids & Image Enhancing Drugs and much more.  https://lnkd.in/eUnYih2P

“I can't really emphasise enough what Change Grow Live can do for people, it can change your life, and it can allow you to live a life free of drink and drugs.” Forth Valley Recovery Service is one of our Scottish services that helps individuals and families who are struggling with substance use. Hear Johnny share his experience of getting support from Forth Valley after 22 years of using drugs and alcohol: https://lnkd.in/eXnkgKR6

We’ve been working in partnership with @Gilead Sciences, The Forward Trust, Humankind Charity, NHS APA Turning Point, Via, WithYou, NHS England, and The Hepatitis C Trust to share learnings, resources and expertise about hepatitis.     Together, we are working towards the WHO target of eliminating Hep C by 2030.    This commitment to collaboration is a great example of how we can achieve  so much more together. 

In this week's #BelieveInPeople story we hear from Richard who tells us that volunteering was the best choice he ever made and about the change, growth and self-development he's experienced. “There are lots of stories like mine, and they all deserve to be shared. I’m in my 50s now and I’d been using substances since I was a teenager. Around two years ago I was on a prescription to try and give up substance, but I'd hit a wall. I felt like I had no future and was struggling with moving ahead. In 2020 my recovery coordinator recommended that I become a service user representative. I couldn’t see myself working at all, but I told them I’d give it a go. I didn’t think volunteering would be my way forward, but it turns out it was the best choice I ever made in my life. I’ve never been happier, I feel good, and that’s enough. In December of that year I had my first ever Christmas with no substances in my body, and I never thought I could live like that. The backbone of all of that has been the work I do at the Mansfield Change Grow Live office. I help with the needle exchange, I give harm reduction advice, I run four peer support groups a week – two of them over Zoom. I wasn’t too keen on Zoom at first, but the amount of people we can reach who wouldn’t usually be able to get to groups is amazing. But we still have face to face too. On Wednesdays we meet up for a walk outside at the park or the local nature reserve. Now I love what I do, I love who I do it with. I got involved with the National Lived Experience Group (NLEG) as well. I felt totally out of my depth at first, but they’re really supportive and loving. Through NLEG I’ve taken part in the Lunch with Russ and Mark broadcasts, I’ve spoken to staff about my experience with Change Grow Live, all sorts. I would have loved to stay in the group, but I can’t because I’ve just got the role of a receptionist here at the Mansfield service. It’s only the second job I’ve ever applied for in my life. I’m still stunned that I got it! I couldn’t have done it without the people around me, everyone from the people here at the service to everyone at NLEG. What people have done is show me I can be a decent human being. The things that are most important to me are my own change, my self-growth and development. If I’ve got that, I can go and do and be anything I want. And the work here, that’s just an awesome bonus.” Read Richard's full story on our website: https://lnkd.in/exKNvyCb