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15www.sthelensreporter.co.uk St Helens Reporter, Wednesday, November 21, 2012

advertising featureNational Alcohol Awareness Week 19 to 23 November

IT’S time to talk about drinking.That’s the theme of this year’s Na-tional Alcohol Awareness Week,

 which aims to get people talking about the health risks, social problems and stig-mas around drinking.

But local health experts want to go astage further – and turn that talking intoaction.

For leading consultants believe St Hel-ens could be sitting on an alcohol timebomb – with the excesses of today becom-ing the epidemic of tomorrow.

In this health special, we show how easy it is to get help now.

Dr John McLindon, Consultant Gastroen-terologist at Whiston Hospital has seen somealarming changes over the last few years.

Over the past ten years the averageage of death from liver disease had plum-meted to just 59. The condition is now thefth commonest cause of death in the UK – and the only major disease that’s still onthe increase. The biggest contributor to the

condition – around 60 per cent - is alcoholconsumption.“At Whiston we’re seeing increasing

numbers of people with alcohol-relatedharm,” said Dr McLindon. “As well as liverdisease, alcohol is linked to high blood pres-sure, nerve and brain damage and a rangeof other serious problems.

“But the real tragedy is that so much of this harm is preventable. People eitherdon’t realise that drinking above the rec-ommended limits increases the risk of harmto their health - or they’re unwilling to seekhelp or advice, potentially because of thestigma associated with alcohol problems.”

SO WHO’S AT RISK?

 Absolutely anyone - there’s no such thing asa stereotypical drinker. While males agedbetween 35 and 55 are one of the biggestcauses of concern, alcohol-related illnessaffects men and women of all ages fromevery social group and income bracket.

St Helens Council’s Director of PublicHealth Liz Gaulton said: “Our local serv-ices support parents, clubbers, profession-als, older people, indeed anyone who needssupport. They can come to us with theirown problems or their concerns for their

partner, or other family member.” A growing concern is the number of 

 young women who are drinking heavily.While the side effects now may not be obvi-ous, by their time many of them reach their40s and 50s they could be looking at someserious health issues.

But even older people are increasinglyfalling into the ‘at risk’ category.

The availability of cheap drink in super-markets can turn the occasional tipple intoa nightly ritual – with potentially dangerousconsequences.

HELP IS AT HAND

In St Helens we have services that are mod-ern, discreet, condential and free and offer

a whole range of support from advice abouthow to build a healthier lifestyle through tosupport for people with very intense needs.The message is simple - don’t wait until thingsget out of hand before seeking help.

St Helens GP Dr Steve Cox, who’s alsoChief Operating Ofcer of the local ClinicalCommissioning Group in St Helens worked

 with John McLindon and other key stake-holders to set up an Alcohol Nursing schemeat Whiston Hospital.

It’s the unit’s job to make sure peopletreated at the hospital for an alcohol-relatedcondition are linked into support and longer-term care in the community.

Dr Cox said: “There have been several

positive developments in St Helens in relationto alcohol misuse. We now have alcohol nurs-es at the hospital and a new alcohol treatmentservice in the community run by Addaction.”

If you feel you would benet from advice- but are reluctant to seek support directly,discuss it with your GP. They will advise youon the options available.

“And whatever you do, don’t worry aboutbeing judged! This is a common issue whichaffects us all, especially when times are hardand there’s a temptation to use alcohol to re-lieve stress. The reality is that it could makethings a lot worse.

ADDACTION – FRIENDLY, CONFIDENTIALADVICE AND SUPPORT

There are three Addaction Centres in StHelens. All are staffed by experienced, quali-ed and understanding professionals who arenot there to judge – but to help.

 Addaction are a leading UK specialist drugand alcohol treatment charity. People are at

the heart of everything that they do, along with a belief that effective treatment needs tobe tailored to each individual. Help and sup-port is available to adults aged 19 and over inSt Helens who need advice about their drink-ing. The support you receive is based on yourneeds - with you making decisions about yourgoals and priorities.

HELP OPTIONS INCLUDE:

Talking therapies and problem solving– what do you need to have in place forthings to improve?nGroup work or one to one sessionsn Help to overcome the unpleasant ef-

fects that people sometimes experience when they try to control their drinking ordrug use.nHelp for parents who want to be in goodhealth for their childrennHelp to access other support and treat-ment services in the communityn Support from people who have been in

 your shoes and who have either met or are working to meet their own personal chal-lengesn All you have to do is take the rst step –by calling: 01744 610555

CONCERN: Alan Crawford welcomesservice users to one of the three

local Addaction centres,

Raising awareness about the health risks, social problems and stigmas around alcohol

Gemma’s storyTWELVE months ago, Gemma completed her second de-tox for alcohol. She managed to stay alcohol-free for a fewweeks but then her drinking took over again.

Social services quickly became involved and her childrenwere taken out of her care and placed in their father’s care.Gemma ended up in a psychiatric hospital for several days.

But then she heard about the Addaction recovery centreand started attending in February this year.

“I was a mess,” she said. “My whole life was a mess. So Iattended the centre on a daily basis and this began to addsome structure to my life.

“I engaged in the various group therapies and began towork on myself. I have been sober now for four and a halfmonths and my life has been completely turned around.

“I now have joint custody of my children; I am now able tobe the mum to them that they deserve. I have a new life now,I will be eternally grateful to the recovery centre for what ithas done for my children and I.”

Let’s talk about drinking

HELPING HAND: Service users andstaff At the Addaction Centre.

DAVE’S story is all too typical. One morning he woke up ina Salvation Army hostel - hung over and still drunk from thenight before.After a lifetime of middle class success, he’d failed to spotthat he was simultaneously becoming increasingly depend-ant on alcohol. Over several years he lost his family, his

house and just about everything else.After the hostel incident he realised he’d reached rock bot-tom – and sought help.He said: “My rst contact with Addaction started that day- when I made an appointment with an alcohol worker. Hetook me along to the recovery centre, took me through therecovery process in a friendly, supportive way, and eventu-ally introduced me to a group of other people committed torecovery.“Now I’ve been able to reclaim a life - from what I can onlydescribe as a living death. I was encouraged to contributeto groups, gain qualications and eventually share my owngrowth with others starting their recovery journey.”

Dave’s story

Call 01744 610555