Last year, I was interviewed by Huseyin Djemil of Towards Recovery for his ‘Journeys’ podcast. I was really pleased to be Huseyin’s first interviewee for his podcast, as I hold him and his initiative in high regard. It was also really nice to talk to him again, the first time in around 15 years.
The last time we had met was in London, at a time when I was working in the addiction recovery field. I had earlier developed a grassroots initiative, Wired In, focused on empowering people to overcome substance use and related problems. Now, Huseyin and I were communicating via Zoom, with me in Perth, Western Australia, and Huseyin in Henley, UK.
Huseyin Djemil is Senior Consultant and Trusted Advisor with 25+ years experience working in the substance use, addiction, recovery, social care, criminal justice, and not-for-profit sectors. He is Founding Director of Towards Recovery, which offers an open safe space for people in recovery from addiction and helps them find the right path for themselves. He started the Journeys Podcast last year because he believes strongly that the stories of recovering people need to be visible to give others hope.
Huseyin is also a person in long-term recovery from addiction. He describes himself as an ‘outsider that notices others on the margins and believes firmly that people in recovery are assets that make our communities stronger.’ I strongly agree with Huseyin’s view on people in recovery.
You can listen to my ‘The Power of Stories’ conversation with Huseyin, which lasted over 83 minutes, by clicking on the start bottom at the bottom of the Journeys Podcast page.
I have recently edited the Zoom video of our conversation into 12 film clips which I have posted to a new YouTube channel I have set up, Our Recovery Stories. Here are the titles, links and summaries of these 12 film clips.
- Personal Introduction: Huseyin asks me to introduce myself – ‘how you are, where you are and who you are, now… and were.’ [4 mins 31 secs]
- Learning About Recovery and Treatment: After researching biological mechanisms underlying addiction for many years, I decided to spend time with practitioners and clients at a local addiction treatment agency in Swansea, West Glamorgan Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse (WGCADA), where I learnt a good deal about the nature of recovery and the elements that facilitate treatment. [6’48”]
- Change of Career: After researching biological mechanisms underlying addiction for many years, I became disillusioned about what neuroscience had to offer in helping people recover from addiction. [3’53”]
- Daily Dose and Wired In: I describe how I developed Daily Dose, a news portal focused on drugs and alcohol, and the website substancemisuse.net as part of the grassroots initiative Wired In (formerly called WIRED) I had launched. [5’13”]
- Inspired by Natalie’s Story: I describe meeting Natalie, a recovering heroin addict who inspired me greatly, in my early days of working in the field. [3’32”]
- What Happened To You?: Huseyin talks about his own recovery and reflects on the impact of trauma. [3’48”]
- ‘My Past Has Become My Future.’: Huseyin talks about trauma and its impact, and how people with substance use problems, many of whom have experienced trauma in their past, are demonised in society. [3’49”]
- My Recovery Stories eBook: I talk about my eBook Our Recovery Stories: Journeys from Drug and Alcohol Addiction and how it developed. [6’57”]
- Recovering People and Their Stories: Huseyin and I discuss people recovering from addiction, their journeys, and their stories. Recovering people are an asset. [11’36”]
- My Current Activities: After having spent some time working on projects relating to Aboriginal people, I am now also writing and disseminating content relating to addiction recovery. [7’10”]
- Recovery is Self-Healing: Practitioners don’t fix people; they catalyse and support the natural resources of the person. [7’58”]
- Parting Comments: I summarise the three most important things I have learnt on my journey. 1. The strength of human spirit. 2. The power of human connection. 3. The healing impact of story. [4’35”]
You might find these clips of interest and value. I hope so. It was a real pleasure talking with Huseyin and I can’t wait to meet him again during my forthcoming trip to the UK. Finally, please subscribe to my Our Recovery Stories YouTube channel. I’ll be posting new film clips in the future.