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Addiction recovery residents reunite with family as lockdown lifts


By David Porter

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Residents at a north-east addiction recovery service have been reuniting with their families as lockdown restrictions have been lifted.

Paul Beaton of Teen Challenge
Paul Beaton of Teen Challenge

When lockdown was announced, those at Teen Challenge’s men’s facility, Sunnybrae near Fyvie, and women’s refuge, Benaiah near Mintlaw, were in the midst of a “year out” to rebuild their lives.

The programme allows participants to enjoy individual days out, building up to weekends away and eventually graduation.

However, due to lockdown, they were unable to leave – with staff instead setting up Zoom and Facetime sessions with loved ones.

But now that lockdown has eased, face-to-face visits have resumed, with one dad able to see his 15-year-old son, and a mother reunited with her three children, for the first time in weeks.

Teen Challenge’s Paul Beaton commented: “As with everyone across the nation, our centres have been impacted by the lockdown and subsequently our residents have found themselves navigating unique programmes, as they’ve been unable to enjoy the recreational elements outwith the centre, and have been unable to re-establish relationships with their loved ones.

“Our men and women have done remarkably well and shown real resilience to press on and they are undoubtedly coming out the other side all the stronger for it.

“Now, we as staff get to experience one of the very best parts of our job – seeing our men and women, who are healthy and whole, reunited with their families.

“That connection and restoration of those relationships can have a huge impact on an individual’s recovery as they find freedom not only from drink and drugs, but crucially the hurts, guilt and shame they feel for mistakes they’ve made; which often lie at the root of their addictions.”

Teen Challenge North East Scotland is now also able to take new intakes in to Sunnybrae and Benaiah.

If you or a loved one are caught in the chaos of addiction and would like more info on the year-long Teen Challenge programme, please visit www.tcns.org.uk or call Sunnybrae on 01651 891627.


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