From recovery

What people wish they had been asked.

Replies marked shared guidance are drawn from what people commonly say in meetings, clinics, and the early days. They are not a live chat and they are not a doctor. Anything marked on this phone was written on this device and stays here.

• Something elseWhat do you wish someone had said to you on day one?

  Shared guidance · A few years on

  You do not have to feel motivated. You have to get the next hour somewhere the drink, the drug, or the bet is not making the decisions. Eat something ordinary. Tell one human the true version, not the tidied one. Motivation is a poor employee. A plan that still exists at 9pm is a better one.

  Shared guidance · Through a clinic

  If you have been drinking heavily every day, or you are on benzodiazepines, day one is not a solo cold stop. Ring a service or 111 before you pour the rest away and white-knuckle it. I wish someone had said that louder than 'just be strong'. Strength was never the missing piece. A supervised plan was.

• AlcoholI want to stop drinking, but I am scared of the first few days. What actually happens?
• AlcoholI keep telling myself it is not bad enough for a clinic. How did you know it was time?
• Cocaine or crackThe comedown is when I always go back. What did you do with those hours?
• Heroin or opioidsI am frightened of being ill if I stop. Did a clinic really help with that?
• CannabisPeople say cannabis is not addictive. I cannot sleep without it. Did anyone take that seriously?
• GamblingI do not take drugs. I just cannot stop chasing the loss. What helped before the next deposit?
• Something elseI slipped. I do not want to tell anyone. What did you do the same day?
• TabletsI have been on these tablets a long time and I am scared to come off. Who did you talk to first?
• Something elseSomeone I love is using. What helped, and what made it worse?