Family Member’s Story – Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs

Support for their father’s alcohol use, process emotions after a near-fatal seizure and develop coping strategies. Family Member X was referred to Scottish Families in January after their father had suffered a near-fatal seizure due to alcohol use.

In the first few weeks of support the family member did not have many coping strategies in place and had not really had an opportunity previously to explore their emotions surrounding their father’s alcohol use which had been present throughout most of their life.

Throughout the following weeks, Family member X and their Support Worker started to discuss ways of coping with what they had experienced. We explored different ways of responding to conflict within the household and begin to start taking back control over their life and what they would like for themselves. 

In the time they have been working with Scottish Families, a huge growth is evident in this Family Member’s confidence, and they have been able to develop a relationship where we can have open conversations about how they are feeling. Throughout Family Member X’s support journey, they have been supported to begin accessing counselling through Mind Mosaic and have also expressed an interest to volunteer with Scottish Families. 

Impact of Support

Family Member X is now accessing counselling to delve deeper into their emotions and discussing next steps for what they would like for their life. They have developed coping strategies and their confidence increased.

Feedback from Family Member

“Scottish Families has helped me massively in trying to overcome trauma related to my dad and build coping mechanisms that are healthy and work for me. They are a helping hand to those that need it most and they have really guided me out of being in such a dark place. I have no idea how I would have gotten through the last few months without them, and I am so thankful for that.”