I broke free from a life of drugs and crime and now help others do the same
DAVE SPENT 30 YEARS IN A CYCLE OF DRUG ADDICTION, VIOLENCE AND PRISON
A COVENTRY man who turned his life around after a decades-long cycle of hard drugs, crime and prison is using his experience to help others who are struggling to get clean.
Dave Bowman began experimenting with drugs as a teenager, but turned to harder stuff in his early 20s.
The last 30 years have been a selfconfessed cycle of “jail, violence, addiction, jail” with Dave spending time in prison for offences such as wounding and robbery.
He himself has been stabbed, shot and “close to death on a number of occasions”, and says that some people “think a life of crime is exciting but not when you wake up in a coma and you’ve got a bullet in you or you’re stabbed up”.
Dave simply stated: “It’s a life of misery.”
Now in his 50s, Dave has been clean from drugs for three years after taking part in Mentoring West Midlands, a programme in connection with the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner.
He undertook counselling to get to the roots of his issues and has since secured a role mentoring others who are in a situation he once found himself in.
“From 15 I was being disruptive and going into children’s homes and secure units, custodial sentences,” he said.
“I understand now after speaking to counsellors for a few years that I was already displaying disruptive and addictive behaviours long before I ever picked a substance up.
“I started at 15 experimenting with glue. I was smoking cannabis, then ecstasy and then my drug taking really got out of hand at 21 when Iwas
introduced to heroin. Then at 23, 24, I was introduced to crack.
“Then it got really messy and I was taking crack and heroin together almost every day for 30 years – apart from the time I spent in prison. I did try unsuccessfully to give it up on my own.”
What it eventually took to change the tide for Dave was help from Mentoring West Midlands. The programme has been running for six years and has helped over 150 people living on the edge of society.
The scheme focuses on addressing the underlying causes of criminality and substance misuse by engaging with individuals and providing them with positive opportunities so they can lead better lives away from crime.
It was this that helped Dave battle his demons and refocus his life away from taking drugs and committing crimes.
Dave explained: “It was when I stopped listening to the same people who were doing the same things.
“I’d wanted to change for years, but I was listening to people who were doing the same things as me and getting the same results as me, which was addiction, jail. addiction, jail, violence, addiction, jail – and then getting ostracised from most of society. It’s horrible.”
But Dave is philosophical about his time living on the edge of society.
“People who live this life are not at peace with themselves,” he said. “You know, whatever you put out into the world, into the universe, it comes back at you. I’ve been shot, I’ve been stabbed, I’ve been in comas, I’ve had car crashes, have been close to death on a number of occasions, and I’ve spent years and years in prison.
“And it’s a life of misery. Some people think a life of crime is exciting, but not when you wake up in a coma and you’ve got a bullet in you or you’re stabbed up.
“And then we need to talk about homelessness, which was also part of my experience. The shoplifting, the petty crime and being homeless and being vulnerable and being scared. Because that’s real. And that’s why I want to talk about the truth.
“Everyone I know who has lived this
kind of life and done these things, they’re not at peace with themselves, they’re not.
“You know, we’re all made from the same same sort of stuff. And what I didn’t know but what I know now is it’s okay for men and boys to be scared, to talk about the fear.
“Because I never saw that when I was a kid – my role models didn’t speak about having feelings and emotions and being scared.”
Dave is now using his experience as a former addict who lived a life of crime to help others living on the peripherals of society.
“If someone like me can do it, anyone can,” he said.
Part of his rehabilitation saw Dave receive treatment at Broadway Lodge in Weston-super-mare, a place the 53-year-old says really helped him. He has now been clean for three years after over 30 years of a life of drugs, crime and prison.
He said: “I’m working as a mentor after 30 years of hardcore class A addiction, spending a good part of those years in and out of prison; a lot of sentences – five years for robbery, three years for wounding.
“Coventry is really close to my heart. I love the city and the people who live there so I want to give back and have an impact on people who are in similar positions as what I was.
“I know what many people in Coventry think when they hear my name. You mention the family name Bowman and they sort of come to a certain conclusion and associate it with crime or whatever.
“So I want everyone to know that if someone like me can do it, anyone can.
“To coin a phrase, I was on Desolation Row, and if people have loved ones going through what I did and they think there is no hope, they can look at me going through this programme and know that there is hope it can be done.
“I thought doing this would have a more positive impact. Not only have I been through the programme but I now work for a rehab centre supporting those with substance misuse to overcome their addiction.”
If you want to hear more from Dave, he is due to appear on a podcast, Truth in the Booth, available on Youtube, Spotify and Audiobook next month.
I’ve been shot, I’ve been stabbed, I’ve been in comas, I’ve had car crashes, have been close to death on a number of occasions.