Seeing the people I mentor trying to do something positive with their lives is amazing.
For me, exercise was a big part of maintaining my strong recovery. So now, I want to help other vulnerable people get fit and healthy, so it can support their recovery too.
Many years ago, my life was a complete mess. I got mixed up with the wrong crowd. I tried to get out, so I abandoned my house. I ended up living on the streets and was dealing with addiction. Life was bleak. I knew if I didn’t get help, I’d end up dead.
One day, someone handed me a recovery service leaflet. I had the leaflet for days, before finally gathering the courage to call them. Single Homeless Project (SHP) was the service. They saved my life. I’ve been clean for 4 years now. And for the last 15 months, I have been volunteering as a Peer Mentor with the same organisation - as you can probably tell, I love it! That's me on the leaflet ⬆️
Now, I'm lucky to have a new home, but I have housing debts. Having a stable job and income will allow me to clear the debts and end the eviction notices.
This new training will open so many more doors for me. Through the mentoring, I've already got my Level 2 Award in Introduction to Counselling Skills. My goal now is to get a job working within the community and recovery services. I can’t wait to just work hard and be able to benefit the lives of lots of different people from lots of different backgrounds.
Jamie is working with Beam as he is at risk of homelessness For personal reasons Jamie has chosen to use a pseudonym rather than his real name.