A few years ago, I woke up in hospital with no memory of how I’d got there. The cause? Alcohol. I knew I’d had a problem from the moment I’d started drinking, always taking it further than my friends. I can’t pinpoint when, but at some point I realised I needed to drink in the morning to avoid feeling sick. After a period of trying and failing to quit, I travelled on holiday to Spain where - without the medical help needed to safely detox from alcohol - I suffered a seizure. I somehow made it back to the UK, eventually coming round in hospital.
Not many people expect to spend their early twenties in a hostel and I’m no different. After leaving hospital just over a year ago, I went to a rehab and I’ve stayed off drink ever since. I’ve done a lot of work on myself and although the idea still makes me slightly nervous, I’m ready to take that next step and get into work.
When I first came to Beam, I’d been considering sports nutrition as a career. But I struggle with anxiety and think this would prove a barrier to enjoying work as a personal trainer. Instead, I’ve settled on carpentry. I loved doing crafts with my friends from a young age and many of them went on to work as carpenters and feel happy in their jobs. I think it’s the idea of creating something that appeals - it really allows me to take pride in my work. With your help to start training, I’ll have a trade for life.