Volunteering: Paul T's story
Friday 25th June is a date I’ll never forget, because it’s the day my life hit rock bottom. I woke up in the morning with agonising stomach pains and was taken to intensive care where I was treated for acute necrotic pancreatitis, a rare illness that few people survive. Eight days later, after near lung failure, I woke up on a ventilator.
It goes without saying that I feel incredibly lucky to be alive today. It’s part of the reason that I’ve become a peer mentor with CRI, because I want to dedicate my life to helping others who are going through something similar. I don’t ever want anyone else to feel that loneliness, that despair and pain. I want them to know that there’s somewhere to go before it gets that far.
My key worker, volunteer coordinator and all the staff at CRI have been absolutely brilliant. I can’t believe how much more confident I feel now, it’s a complete transformation. My life is so full now - I volunteer for CRI, am currently in training and I run a guitar group. I’m also in a classic rock band and I’m proud to say I played my first gig, sober, in February this year. I was, I’ll admit, scared stiff but it was absolutely amazing – the crowd were behind me 100%, because they know my story.
Coming to CRI has genuinely been a life-changing experience for me. I have a photo of myself that was taken in the intensive care unit where I’m all covered in wires and tubes. I love that photo now because it shows just how far I’ve come.