LETTERS AND COMMENT
HERE ARE SOME QUOTES FROM THAT VERY FIRST CONFERENCE IN 2008 …
‘ If we wait for things to come to us , we could be waiting ages . We need to get a collective voice .’ Si Parry ( Morph
user group , Southampton )
‘ If you can spend money putting me in prison , or rehab , or a straitjacket , why can ’ t you spend money putting me on an IT course ?’ Delegate
‘ What could policymakers do better ? They could trust service users to set and fund their own agendas . They would then be in a better position to do what they wanted to do .’ Delegate
‘ We need to come up with focused ideas that have high impact … A lot of people don ’ t put enough bloody effort into user involvement . Some people have done this spectacularly well . Don ’ t reinvent the wheel – use what works . We need to bring up the next generation of user involvement ; it ’ s up to us .’ Jimi Grieve ( NUN )
‘ Let ’ s be productive in changing what we can change , rather than spending months on what we can ’ t .’ ( Delegate )
‘ A lot of potential talent and experience is lost due to the use of inappropriate language – where folk tend to switch off rather than try to work out its meaning . First impressions last and are hard to dispel .’ Delegate
‘ There ’ s a strong feeling that we want to communicate through user groups and not be sterilised by government procedures .’ Delegate
‘ Peer-led services provide better services – it ’ s a fact . If funding was pulled for service user involvement , we would see an increase in lapses .’ Delegate
‘ There needs to be more cohesion between service user groups to get a national service user voice . Delegate
‘ I see the way forward as service users being an independent network . Outcomes should be based on service users , not commissioners .’ Kevan Martin ( NERAF )
‘ Every service user group should meet up and bounce their ideas off each other .’ Delegate
CREATIVE OUTLET
I was very moved to read Jody Lee ’ s story ( Poet ’ s Corner , DDN , May , p18 ) and his explanation of how poetry has helped him express himself and talk about some of the dark parts of his addiction and how having a creative outlet has helped him process the grief and anger at the time he has lost through his addiction .
Having an outlet for creativity is a huge benefit when it comes to processing your emotions . While a lot of services provide art therapy and other ways of doing this it doesn ’ t always have to be a formal process and can be something that can be done in private or as part of a club or support group .
You meet many very talented creative people who are in recovery or still using , some of whom have written for national publications , worked in film or TV , or have had books published , there are people I have met in treatment services who have played with world famous bands in front of large crowds and there are artists in recovery communities who have exhibited around the world .
While it is fantastic that talented people like Jody are sharing their thoughts in a way that can help and inspire people in similar situations , it is important to remember not having a recognised talent shouldn ’ t stop you engaging in a creative hobby to improve your own wellbeing .
Just because you haven ’ t drawn a picture since primary school , that the last poem you read was a limerick about Devizes , or the closest you have come to performing musically was with a kazoo in a Christmas cracker it really doesn ’ t matter . No one will judge you , there is no right or wrong , just have a go and maybe you will find the process itself rewarding . Miriam Tench , by email
BARE MINIMUM
There seems to be some confusion among the great and good about the rate of alcohol deaths in Scotland . On the one hand , we have more than 30 charities and medical experts saying that the country is ‘ sleep walking back to record levels of alcohol deaths ’ ( DDN , May , p4 ), yet many of these are the same organisations that have been heralding the success of minimum unit pricing north of the border . In that case , just how high would deaths have gone without it ?
MUP seems to be one of those areas – a bit like Portugal ’ s drug policy – where the results are seemingly so muddy and inconclusive that both sides can use them in their arguments . Studies have shown that MUP , unsurprisingly , has had little impact on the amount of alcohol consumed by dependent drinkers , who will often go without essentials like groceries and heating to find the extra money . Surely if a policy isn ’ t helping those most desperately in need then there isn ’ t much use to it ? The Scottish Government ’ s consultation on restricting alcohol marketing is all very well , but I have a suspicion that ultimately these things don ’ t have all that much impact either . I agree that seeing an alcohol ad might be triggering for someone in recovery , but problematic use of substances is the result of life circumstances , not adverts .
Maybe the Scottish Government needs to ask some fundamental questions about why the levels of drink- and drug-related deaths in its country are still so shockingly high . It may well be , as many predict , that the drug death levels are about to start coming down after the SNP government belatedly realised that it had ‘ taken its eye off the ball ’ and started putting some money into it , and I ’ m sure if that happens the government will be shouting about it from the rooftops . But , as Dave Liddell says in the same issue ( P16 ), the rates have been so astronomically high that a fall at some point is ‘ inevitable ’, and even if the number does go down ‘ it ’ s still colossal ’. Paul Roberts , by email
‘ The key things for service users are : be less confrontational and more dynamic ; keep knocking on doors ; be realistic about what can be changed .’ Delegate
‘ Why am I the only commissioner from my area being funded to come to this conference ?’ Delegate
DDN welcomes all your comments . Please email the editor , claire @ cjwellings . com , join any of the conversations on our Facebook page , or send letters to DDN , CJ Wellings Ltd , Romney House , School Road , Ashford , Kent TN27 0LT . Longer comments and letters may be edited for space or clarity .
/ ddnmagazine @ ddnmagazine www . drinkanddrugsnews . com
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