Addictions over the Festive Period

Stress, depression, anxiety and loneliness are common at this time of year and people can feel like a good way to avoid these feelings is by using drugs or alcohol. For people with addictions this time of year can be particularly difficult as alcohol seems to be limitless. Either drinking too much or mixing alcohol and drugs can be very dangerous.

How can we stay safe?

So, how can we be safe at this time of year? We can safety plan for it. If you are the person dealing with the addiction its important to try and stick to some kind of routine if possible. It may help to make a plan for each day. Eating regularly and getting enough sleep are also important. Most people would advise healthy foods, plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and a good exercise regime and that is fantastic if that is what you can manage, but whatever you feel your body can cope with is fine, just make sure you eat something.

Making a budget can also help to alleviate some stress over this time. It is important that you don’t go into withdrawal as this is also dangerous, so a budget can help to ensure this isn’t an added stress.

Achievements – no matter how small !!

Ask your friends and family to help you over this time. This could be doing something simple like getting a to-do list done for each day. Nothing is too small for a to-do list. If it consists of brushing your hair, brushing your teeth and eating a slice of toast, write it down and stick to it. No matter how small, its an achievement of what you need to do to get through this time.

Self Care

If get-togethers are too much for you, arrange to do something else. Maybe a friend could visit you, or go for a walk with you. If you meditate or do yoga etc, its a great way to de-stress but if you don’t, just find the time to breathe. Find a video for relaxation, there are plenty that will help you to slow your breathing and just find a bit of time each day for yourself to relax. Drink plenty of water if you can, or make some re-hydration salts and make that a part of your to-do list, as its an important part of looking after yourself. Make sure you know the signs off overdose and withdrawal and ask for help if you need it.

Friends and Family members

If you are a friend or family member of someone facing addiction, help them to make these lists. Encourage them to get out for a walk, or have shower or some kind of self care. It would also be great to do some research about the addiction your friend or family member is facing, and look up signs of overdose and withdrawal, so that you can get them help if needed. Drug addictions will differ as will alcohol so its best you research for the individual you care about. Ask how they are feeling and be there if they need to just talk. The biggest gift you can give them is genuine care.

Support

There are a number of organisations who can help, including AA, Al-Anon and NA, local alcohol and drug organisations, but there are also others who can also support family and friends too, as well as those in addiction and you can find out more about them on these links:

Scottish Families Affected by Drugs and Alcohol:

https://www.sfad.org.uk/

We are with you:

https://www.wearewithyou.org.uk/

Stay safe everyone. M.

A Very Warm Welcome to All Our New Members :)

FACEBOOK ADVERTISING

After my very first Facebook Advertising campaign (and it was a very small campaign)  I was delighted to be able to have 65 new members sign up for the Facebook page – and hopefully you will all sign up for this blog too.  Families in Trauma is a  new social enterprise and we are aiming to record through video or audio – families who have undergone traumatic experiences – and in turn share these videos to help others on our website.

NEW PREMISES

We have fallen behind a few months due to believing that we were going to be moving premises – however, this has not materialised – and so – without boring you all with the details, I hope to be focusing more on my social media campaign and getting our videos on our website.

WEBSITE

If you do check the website you will see that there is a lot to still be done – but hopefully you will also join me along this path and share in the journey of establishing a site which can realistically have families or individuals talking about their ‘real’ experiences. I am more than happy to respond to any suggestions any of you may have.

FAMILIES IN TRAUMA

Most people who catch a glimpse of this site are drawn to the title – either because they or their family have  suffered serious trauma.  The consequences of this trauma can often be severe and when we start to look around for help – we find that, in reality,  there is not much out there! Although doctors and specialists try their best to fill our needs, there is often so much more required and that is exactly why Families in Trauma has been set up.  We need to go straight to the ‘horse’s mouth’ so to speak.

FUTURE PLANS

So we really are at the beginning of a journey together and I want to take you all along with me.  Having experienced a family trauma personally, I know, it is not something you will ever forget.   If you can’t talk  to anyone at the moment – then just follow along online or share this link for the blog or for the Facebook page with someone else if you feel it will help them. Please do everything you can to keep reading and sharing this information because you never know who it will help.

I used to wonder what is the ultimate aim of this new social enterprise , and finally realised, I don’t need to have huge goals or unachievable aspirations – if I can help just one person to get through one more day – then I have achieved a huge amount!!  We all know that a day in the life of a person suffering trauma can be endless – and you never know from the beginning of that day till the end of it – whether you will survive it – but if we can help individuals who are feeling like this to survive one more day, then we have achieved something of worth.  I do not feel this is too huge a goal to aim for and I hope you also will join me in this whenever you can.

Don’t worry if you are not feeling up to much at the moment – just keep reading and checking in – then when you feel more able – share what you can to help others.  It’s a great way to heal – one step at a time.

“Stay in the Day”

Over the last few weeks I’ve noticed that many of the people I’ve spoken to seem to be suffering with depression or anxiety.    Now it’s easy to get a medical dictionary definition of what depression is but that often doesn’t seem to help much at all. It seems, that if we have a shared experience – and we feel we can talk to others – it can be a really helpful tool as the sufferer does not feel quite so alone. In all the different areas of trauma, it seems that humans really need to “connect” with others.

Here are some of the expressions I’ve read or heard recently in personal conversations about depression:

“It’s like drowning, except you can see everyone around you breathing.”

“You feel like you are moving in slow motion.”

“You can see everyone else getting on with their lives, yet somehow or other, you’re not a part of it – it’s like you are in a bubble.”

“Everything seems hopeless.”

“Its like you have lost all interest in everything – nothing motivates you any more”.

So it’s not difficult to see why depression and anxiety are major problems when they hit!   In fact, one in 4 people will experience some type of mental health problem over the course of a year.

Most people know the usual advice given by health professionals and try to put some of it into practise. The tried and tested methods often work – but it can sometimes take us a while to get there. However sharing our experience with others, talking to trusted friends, keeping a diary, reading as much as you can about your own illness can all help – but one thing i found which was extremely helpful was to “stay in the day”!!!

What does this really mean though??   When our mind’s are racing, we cant sleep for our thoughts, its painful to remember things, we feel panic when we think about doing anything – its extremely important to rein our minds in  (just as a thoroughbred horse needs to be reined in to train it), we need to do the same with our minds. Its one of the most important things I learned along my own journey.

Tomorrow will always take care of itself – the past is done and gone – but we must live in this day – here and now!  Take little steps – do not let your mind race ahead to next week, month, or year as it is impossible to  know what these will bring.

So if you feel you may be suffering depression or anxiety, try to find out as much as you can to help yourself – and try this one tip “stay in the day”!!

 

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HELLO AND WELCOME

Hi, I’m Maggie and as this is my first post on my new site, I thought you might like to understand why I wanted to start a service  like this.

As you may imagine, I went through a very traumatic experience in my own life and it affected all our family for a very long time, and we still have to deal with repurcussions from this although we have certainly all come a long way, and I can say that there is hope – especially for those who receive the correct support at the right time.

The thing that struck me was when I met other individuals going through traumatic events, is that many seemed to suffer similar symptoms even though the circumstances were very different.

My image of getting help through a mental health service was like being handed a beautifully wrapped box of chocolates – only to be so disappointed when the box was revealed to be – empty!  I do not decry any health professionals who work hard to help others in this field, but I’m sure they will also agree that this is an area where  staff are stretched to the limit, with little resources or time to devote to the important things.

I decided that I would like to do whatever I could to help and thought it would be easier to use my own skills as a film maker to record the experiences of many different families and provide an online service so anyone could access at any time of the day or night – and did not need to wait for 6 – 12 months for an appointment.  Often, when help is needed – it is needed right now, this day, this night, as this may be the only chance to help a person to survive.

We already have a number of families lined up who have volunteered to be interviewed either using audio or video and they will be posted on the site as soon as we have a few that can be viewed.  We will also be designing training packages for others who need to provide these training skills to their staff  e.g. hospitals, social services and police etc.

Please feel free to get in touch if you have any ideas you’d like to share and I hope you will share the journey with me as I am new to this but I hope it proves to be a beneficial service for lots of people.

Maggie

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