“For me, it was more than removing substances from my everyday life, I wanted to clean up the mess around me and most importantly the mess inside me.” Rhea was working 4 days a week, had childcare responsibilities, and used cocaine every day. She told us “I was a functioning addict, I couldn’t do anything without taking drugs.” She hid her use from her family, friends, employers and the whole world.
She told us about her experience reaching out for support:
“When I first called Turning Point, I was really scared and anxious. I was questioning myself, was I doing the right thing or not? I was worried I would be judged, especially as I have a daughter. Nick, who I first spoke to, was so nice, he made light of the situation. I knew he could tell I was worried. The conversation felt easy, it wasn’t intrusive at all, and it felt like baby steps.”
Rhea shared with us how her key worker helped her to understand the process of her emotions:
“It was so beneficial having a key worker, the amount of one-to-one support I got was so important in getting me to where I am today. It was the feeling that someone cared when there was no one else there. My key worker just got it, they understood me and taught me so much about addiction. Most people don’t get it!
It wasn’t just support around drugs, I got support around emotional and mental wellbeing. This helped me to be more self-aware, gentle and mindful with myself. I felt like Turning Point knew more about my emotions than I did!
They helped me understand my triggers around strong emotions and how trauma affects my emotional regulation. It would go from one extreme to the other, I’d use if I was angry, sad, disgusted, guilty and using would also make me feel these emotions. I’d also use when I was really happy, I’d try to get that happy to the highest point!
Once I got my head around my triggers, understood the process and how to regulate my emotions, understood my trauma and set myself boundaries, I finally found peace. I chose peace over the using chaos every single day.”
Rhea is now back working 4 days a week at her job in finance and spends as much of her free time with her daughter.
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