Recovery Stories is a collection of first-hand accounts by people in recovery from or affected by drugs or alcohol. Invaluable for those looking to find new, addiction-free ways to live. It contains insights into the lives of real people who hit ‘rock bottom’ but came back again. Of interest across a wide-range of disciplines, including health, education and social services. Addiction is an illness that kills. Accused of lacking a moral compass and blamed for their own self-destruction, addicts are often forced to live on the margins of society. Afforded little sympathy or support, they may end-up involved in criminality, violence, dishonesty and face despair. They may hit rock bottom when day-to-day survival can become a delicate balance between life and death. But addiction—which occurs in every walk of life—need not be a ‘life sentence’. As this book shows, no-one is beyond turning such dire situations around. Recovery Stories is a collection of true stories of triumph over adversity. It tells how the horror of addiction can be overcome, how people can free themselves of their dependency. It is a book of hope and inspiration which will encourage all those seeking ‘new ways to live’ a full, addiction-free and successful life. ‘This book tells the stories that need to be told... Addiction is an illness and has to be seen and tackled as such’: Alastair Campbell, Ambassador for Time to Change and Alcohol Concern. From the Foreword: ‘People who are struggling with addiction have got to know that recovery is out there and it is possible... I hope that the stories in this book will help people understand that recovery is a possibility and, if you are struggling with addiction, that it is a possibility for you’: Mitch Winehouse, Founder of the Amy Winehouse Foundation. Author: Kate Jopling has spent 15 years working in public policy, campaigning or communications roles, initially as a House of Commons researcher, later in senior positions with Catch 22, Help the Aged and the Campaign to End Loneliness where she was director. She has also worked in the Social Exclusion Unit. She has won various awards, including in 2008 when at the Women in Public Life Awards MPs and peers voted her Public Affairs Achiever of the Year. She is now a consultant who spends her time “giving people a voice” by researching and writing on a wide range of social issues. Mitch Winehouse and members of his family founded The Amy Winehouse Foundation which works to prevent the effects of drug and alcohol misuse on young people. It also aims to support, inform and inspire vulnerable and disadvantaged young people to help them reach their full potential. In association with Addaction.