peter
“On the 5th of February, I came down to wish my mother a happy birthday before I went to work and found her dead… She’d have been 45 that day. She was my best friend and my idol, and I was her only child. I was broken. After about a week, people stopped being around all the time and that’s when I reached my lowest. I was in such a dark place and did anything to feel nothing… But after a while, it just wasn’t working anymore, and I had to take more and more to feel the same… I’m not a stupid person, I was always very independent and had a strong will… So soon, I had to realize I can’t keep doing this, but I thought I’d be able to handle it alone. It led me to 3 overdoses in 2 weeks… The doctor told me they’d have to section me, and I was in quarantine for 48 hours. This was when I realized how it feels when your freedom is taken from you… After 14 sessions of counselling, I learnt that through my darkness I’d gained strength. I’m now more content with life than I’ve ever been. I have a family home in my name, I have a new job that I couldn’t be any happier with and I’ve the most caring, supportive friends that I wouldn’t have made it through without. I’ve never been more excited about the future. I often think about how much more I would lose if I let the darkness grow over me… There is always a way to go. You just have to take one day at a time. It does get better, you just can’t be afraid to take the help people want to offer you.”