Lifestyle Changes

Alcohol & Drug Services

Realising you have a problem with alcohol is the first step to getting better, but it is often the hardest one.

You may need help if:

You always feel the need to have a drink
You get into trouble because of your drinking
Other people warn you about how much you’re drinking

A good place to start is with your GP. Book an appointment, and be honest with them about how much you drink.

If your body has become dependent on booze, stopping drinking overnight can be life-threatening, so seek advice about cutting down gradually.

Tips on cutting down

Your GP may be prescribe medication such as Chlordiazepoxide, a sedative, to help with alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Alcohol withdrawal symptoms can range from not sleeping, agitation, anxiety, sweating and tremors, right through to vomiting, diarrhoea, hallucinations and seizures.

Useful contacts for alcohol & drug problems:

Drinkline is the national alcohol helpline. If you’re worried about your own or someone else’s drinking, you can call this free helpline, in complete confidence. Call 0300 123 1110 (weekdays 9am – 8pm, weekends 11am – 4pm)
drinkaware You can find some useful links and phone numbers here
Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a free self-help group. Its ’12-step’ programme involves getting sober with the help of regular support groups
Al-Anon Family Groups offer support and understanding to the families and friends of problem drinkers, whether they’re still drinking or not. Alateen is part of Al-Anon and can be attended by 12 to 17-year-olds who are affected by another person’s drinking, usually a parent
Addaction is a UK-wide treatment agency that helps individuals, families and communities to manage the effects of drug and alcohol misuse
Adfam is a national charity working with families affected by drugs and alcohol. Adfam operates an online message board and database of local support groups
The National Association for Children of Alcoholics (Nacoa) provides a free, confidential telephone and email helpline for children of alcohol-dependent parents and others concerned with their welfare. Call 0800 358 3456 for the Nacoa helpline
Caring for an alcoholic? Find out where you can get support

Healthy Eating

Eating a healthy, balanced diet is an important part of maintaining good health, and can help you to feel at your best.

This means eating a wide variety of foods in the right proportions, and consuming the correct amount of food and drink to achieve and maintain a healthy body weight.

Click on the link below for healthy eating advice for people who don’t have specific dietary requirements as a result of having a medical condition e.g. diabetes.

Further information about Healthy Eating from NHS UK

Physical Activity

Modern life means that many people sit down for most of the day. Two out of every five adults in the UK are physically inactive. In fact the average person spends twice as much time on the toilet each week as they do exercising! We now know that lack of exercise is very harmful and increases our chances of developing lots of diseases and sadly, early death. This is because physical inactivity results in bad fat (called visceral fat) building up. This in turn causes our body’s immune system to become overactive, resulting in chronic inflammation which is the driver of future disease. So becoming active reduces the bad fat, reduces inflammation and reduces the chance of developing future disease.

Even doing 10 minutes exercise a day gives a huge benefit.

So, if we spent 30 minutes a day walking (or any form of exercise) we get:-

An improved quality of life
Reduced premature death and depression
More energy, better sleep and reduced chronic pain

If exercise was a drug then everyone would be prescribed it. It has been called the ‘miracle cure’ for a very good reason!

Social Prescribing

The term ‘social prescribing’ is used to describe a service which supports people to access a range of non-medical services and activities in their local area.

Social prescribing can help people with different social, emotional or practical needs to find the right support and improve their health and wellbeing.

The service can help you:

Get support to improve your physical health
Find employment or volunteering opportunities or learn a new skill
Tackle money, housing, work or benefits issues
Cope with a particular condition or difficulty
Access ways of improving your emotional wellbeing such as befriending schemes, peer support or arts and leisure activities

Stop Smoking Service

Stopping smoking increases your life expectancy and helps improve your quality of life, not to mention making you wealthier as well!

It is never too late to stop and the NHS is here to help you.
Getting NHS support really works – it can be four times more successful than going it alone (cold turkey) and it’s completely free of charge. So why not try it? You have nothing to lose.

Weight Management

Do you need to lose weight? There are a number of online resources and local Clinics that you can access without having to see your Doctor for a referral.

Weighing too much or too little can have a number of consequences on your overall health.

Why a healthy weight range is important

By being above or below your healthy weight range you’re increasing your chances of suffering from a number of serious health problems.

Health problems associated with being overweight include: