We were out on the rehab mini-bus the other day, a bit like the day trip in ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’, in order to go to the local swimming pool for a bit of light relief. Things didn’t quite shape up that way. The group were milling around outside the pool when I saw one of them begin to have a full-on seizure, which can happen if you suddenly stop abusing certain substances, including alcohol. I called an ambulance, and the rest of the group rushed toensure our friend was ok and not choking on his tongue or whatever. My primary concern was that he’d bashed his head on the way down, as there’s no way of breaking your fall when you seize up like that. The paramedics arrived in literally about two minutes (the hospital is just around the corner from the swimming pool) and took control of matters.
Anyway, wind forward a couple of hours and someone came up with the kind idea of buying our friend a get well card, which did the rounds, producing a list of hilarious and totally unsympathetic comments, including: ‘Seize the Day!’, ‘Seize the moment my friend’ and (my own contribution), ‘Get well soon Julius Seizure’.
On a more serious note, it reminded me why we – my brothers and sisters in recovery – are here. I can’t speak on behalf of Julius Seizure’s problems, but what I do know is that substance addiction is a potentially fatal, and certainly life-changing, condition if not addressed properly. It feels like a holiday camp here and the camaraderie is amazing. I’ve experienced it myself from another patient (a reformed bank robber, no less) who bought me shoes and clothes, because I’d turned up with literally nothing but the clothes I was wearing. But the reality is, if we don’t help ourselves beat addiction, we’ll either die or go irreparably insane – it’s as simple and as tragic as that. ‘Julius’ remains in hospital and is getting the help he needs and we pray for him every night.
One day at a time.
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