'Addiction documentary shows change is possible'

A man who shared his lived experience of addiction in a new documentary said he did so to show others that "change is possible".

David Sagar's story was one of nine in Breaking the Chains of Addiction, which premiered at Cineworld Rushden Lakes on Thursday evening.

The film was commissioned by the Northamptonshire Combatting Drugs and Alcohol Partnership - a collaboration of local agencies including the police and councils.

Mr Sagar, who has been sober for almost 10 years, said it was important show people "you can go on to other things".

The 47-year-old from Desborough said he had experimented with substances from a young age and explained how he struggled to break his addiction because "I surrounded myself with people who wouldn't question [drug taking]."

He said he had tried "many times" to "make changes" to his life, but said the turning point was when a doctor told him he would be dead in a matter of months if he did not break his habit.

"At that point I thought 'I'm not done with life yet' and I started to reach out and get more support," said Mr Sagar.

He now works for Change Grow Live, a charity which supports people to move away from addiction and start afresh.

The 28-minute documentary was produced by One to One Development Trust - which is an arts charity - and follows people from Northamptonshire from the beginnings of their addiction through to their recovery.

Director Judi Alston said: "When people are in addiction, they're disconnected.

"All the people that are in the film have been through a process of becoming connected back to themselves, their communities, their families, the world and their ambitions in a way.

"That's been very interesting and very powerful."

She continued: "This is an invitation for people to get ready on their recovery journey.

"We're not here to judge what the pathway is that people take, we're just saying there are pathways.

"If life feels unmanageable then take a pathway and reach out."

Thursday's premiere was attended by representatives from north and west Northamptonshire councils and a range of support services across the county.

The Office for Improvement and Disparities, which is a government department, gave a grant to the project.

Alesha Watkins, a partnership development manager for Change Grow Live, encouraged anyone suffering with addiction to reach out to its STAR Northamptonshire initiative to access support, treatment, advice and recovery.

"Addiction doesn't discriminate, it doesn't care about your postcode, pay grade or profession," she said.

"Even the people you don't think would be coming to addiction services can come to us.

"It's just harder for those with social standing to open up and say they need that help. It's free, confidential and there's no waiting lists."

A list of organisations in the UK offering support and information with some of the issues in this story is available at BBC Action Line

Follow Northamptonshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.