People in recovery will tell you

that addiction isn’t merely a matter of neurochemical dependency or thrill-seeking behaviour. It can also involve issues of control, security and self-worth – all of which took a hammering during the pandemic. According to data from Public Health England, more than 8.4 million people were drinking at higher risk levels by the end of 2020, up from 4.8 million in February that year. This was supported by an Action on Addiction survey showing that a quarter of us drank more during lockdown; traffic to the charity’s online support pages increased ninefold on the previous year. Similar trends have been noted for the compulsive use of porn, online gambling and other problematic behaviours.

One reason for this worrying spike is that, until recent months, many of us felt increasingly disconnected from others, says Dr Ken Duckworth, chief medical officer of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Addiction is also often stigmatised, which can result in those affected suffering in isolation. “A worrying percentage of people who were recovering from an addiction said they had relapses during the pandemic,” says Matt Thomas, communications consultant for Action on Addiction. Amid on-going economic uncertainty, and with many of us still working from home, it’s unrealistic to expect these problems to end with the vaccines.

Psychiatrist Dr Ximena Sanchez-Samper says that to fight the stigma, it is helpful to reframe addiction as an illness. “If you think about patients who have cancer and have been able to beat it, what do they call themselves? Survivors.” The men profiled here all pushed through the stigma to seek help. Beyond managing their addictions, they found something else. They discovered that sobriety wasn’t an end but rather a means to a stronger, happier, healthier life.