Stu’s story
Stu had been rough sleeping for several years and struggled with drug and alcohol addictions.
Stu has many physical health conditions, including cirrhosis of the liver and other issues due to his alcohol dependency over the years. He also has historical fractures to both legs and wrists and metal plates in both legs, affecting his daily mobility.
When he first came into our home, he was an ‘entrenched alcoholic’ and stated he ‘did not want to live’. He was disconnected from staff and outside support services. He had no bank account and required daily care support. Our team worked with him to access the financial support he was entitled to, opened a bank account, and set up a budget to maintain his benefit income and avoid accommodation arrears, which had previously affected his tenancies.
Stu health was such that he was consuming up to 448 units of alcohol a week, he would often become doubly incontinent, and his mobility would be seriously affected, leaving him at a high risk of falling. Often, Stu would forget to take his medications, which in turn would leave him in pain, and he would self-medicate with alcohol. The team regulated and ensured the pharmacy provided his medications weekly, enabling him to manage his health conditions better. Over time, Stu has reduced his alcohol intake to between 16 to 28 units per day. During this time, his drug habit has also reduced. As Stu said that he really wanted to give up alcohol entirely and we were able help him access additional support from Turning Point, as well as providing him with further abstinence sessions with Alabaré staff.
From time to time, Stu struggled with money as he was often found to be a victim of financial abuse from others, which meant safeguarding measures had to be placed on his bank account to reduce his daily withdrawal limits to just £25 per day as a coping measure.
Stu says that things are looking much brighter now. Although he still requires support to maintain his universal credit and assistance with paperwork as he has literacy difficulties, he is now in receipt of the right benefits for his health conditions, which means he has been able to clear previous debts.
Despite several setbacks, which have included recovery from a fall during which he lost further independence and a liver cirrhosis diagnosis that said he has years to live rather than years and years, Stu is determined to continue engaging with his support and Turning Point, which he hopes will lead to a residential rehabilitation programme.
Over the years, his chaotic lifestyle meant Stu had lost touch with his family, but through staff assisting in him setting up social media accounts, he has been able to reconnect with his brother. Stu is looking forward to moving into his own property while continuing to work with others to maintain his recovery.
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