"I first came across Change Grow Live in 2017. I was using drugs at the time - crack cocaine and heroin. For a while I hadn’t really realised I had a problem, but by then I had in my mind that I wanted to stop and change my life. So it was the perfect time for me to find out about it.
I learned about them by word of mouth. I didn’t know anything about the service but I was told they provided a good service for people with addiction, so I went along to the office they had in Bishops Stortford. I just took the opportunity.
They helped me a lot. They gave me the tools to cope with everything. They pointed me in the direction of other services like housing, health, all the kind of stuff that’s very relevant. Now my life has changed massively.
Coming to Change Grow Live has helped Jose to realise that being positive and trying something new can change your life.
Before, I lost everything: my house, my money, my dignity. I've been able to really reclaim and rebuild myself physically and mentally. Life makes sense. I’m in a much better state and more positive for the future. I’ve got a sense that I have a purpose.
Through volunteering, I see something in my future and know that I can still make something out of my life. I can make a difference in someone else’s life, and that’s the most important thing to me.
Jose has realised he can make a difference in someone else’s life.
I’d tell anyone who is going to a service for the first time that it’s normal to be nervous. It’s a symptom. No one goes to a detox centre without fear, but it’s a part of the process. You'll have your concerns, but don’t let that put you down. Be positive and try something that will change your life."