Amanda

"I had problems with substances going back 15 years. I had used crack cocaine, alcohol and marijuana, and worked as a prostitute. Then someone told me I only had two options – to go to jail or to die - and I knew I needed to change.

" I reached an all time low after taking crack cocaine and tried to kill myself several times. At one point I was sectioned for 72 hours and it was while I was in hospital that I decided I had to do something. I detoxed in a hospital and went to the drug and alcohol service. They got me into rehab but as soon as I came out I went straight to using again, because I did not believe the things they had said to me in the rehab service. Using after rehab was different though. I couldn’t get high, I just got low. I needed something to do during the day and my key worker referred me to the CRI day programme.

"Once I got there I was totally focused. I went to every session, even when I was ill and CRI had to tell me to go home. I even went in after I had been for an operation. I took it very seriously. I was determined to get into recovery – to get clean and maintain it.

" I have now joined the CRI Service User Council in London. We visit drug projects to interview staff and service users and talk to CRI about how things could be improved. I also went on the Recovery Walk in Brighton and helped organise a sports day in London during the Olympics. It was like being a kid again: it was great to have so much fun without being on substances. I even spoke at the CRI staff conference last year.

"It is important for me to remember where I was and to thank the staff for what they did for me. They wanted to help me improve my life and get back to normal living and it is amazing how they listened to me. They are genuinely concerned about people and get in touch with service users when they don’t arrive for their appointments or sessions to find out how they. They are very open-minded and the service is not regimented – they make allowances for the fact that you might not always succeed.

"Many of the staff have come through CRI services and got jobs, so I want others coming through the service to know that it works if you take it seriously and not to be discouraged. I am now doing a radio presenting course and want to get into radio voice-over work, so I feel that where I am now in my recovery, my life is now back on track."

* Name and photo has been changed to protect the identity of the service users who shared their stories with us.