A 42-year-old man from High Wycombe who served nine months in prison for drugs-fuelled offences says he turned his life around after hitting rock bottom – and wants to help others do the same.

Chris Buckland has had numerous brushes with the law since first encountering drugs in his adolescence – including community orders for assault and criminal damage and a nine-month stint behind bars – but it was a medical episode last year that prompted him to truly take ownership of his decisions and begin the hard work of making a change.

The 42-year-old, who has autism spectrum disorder and always struggled to “understand how he feels”, decided to break the cycle of drug abuse after nearly losing his leg to an infection, worsened by the “malnourished” state of his body which meant he couldn’t fight it off.

From that point on, he’s pivoted completely to the role of a sober creative, training for a certificate in counselling and psychology alongside sharing poetry about his journey on YouTube and social media.

“I just thought ‘I can’t do this anymore – I have to find a way out’. It was a wake-up call about what I was putting my family through as well as myself.”

He signed up for a 24-week programme at Yeldall Manor in Reading and began attending Narcotics Anonymous (NA) and Cocaine Anonymous (CA) groups and, during sessions, discovered a newfound knack for poetry that has become an important way for Chris to share his experience – and hopefully provide a sense of the light at the end of the tunnel – with others who are struggling.

“I just started writing stuff down and it rhymed. A lot of it was on bits of scrap paper and envelopes, but when my friend found some of it, she started crying. She said, ‘You need to do something with these, put them out there’.

“When you’re deep in addition, it doesn’t feel like anyone wants to know what you have to say, but I started sharing them in groups and I chose to put them on YouTube because the people I want to reach are probably scrolling mindlessly and, hopefully, they’ll stumble on them by accident.”

Chris during his addiction (Image: Chris Buckland)

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He’s already had over 20 people get in touch thanking him for putting the feelings of addiction into words and has had a few difficult – but effective – conversations before referring them to local organisations or groups with the promise that recovery is possible.

It’s a rewarding role, but the 42-year-old still feels a weight of responsibility to provide the help he didn’t have – with an ultimate goal of founding a new dry house in Wycombe, a bridge between rehab and the real world to counter the shock that can accompany a jarring re-immersion into everyday life and the risk of relapse that comes with it.

“I had a phone call just last week to say someone I know had overdosed and died. The reality is that addiction kills people – you get better, or you end up dying.

“Where I’m at now is being focused and doing the work. I won’t let myself get complacent and try to focus on things like a roof over my head, food in the fridge and a good support network. I feel a million miles away from using again, but I understand those feelings and those urges.

“There was a point when it really felt like I was looking six feet down into a grave. I think it needs to come from people like me, who’ve been at the rockiest of rock bottoms, to build a bond with people who are still suffering.

“They might not feel like they can talk to a key worker or someone who hasn’t been through what they have, but I can look people in the eye and know the pain they’re going through. I want to think I went through everything I did for a reason – to see it first-hand, come out the other side, and give something back.”