We are extremely fortunate to have an incredibly innovative, creative, and compassionate team, our staff go above and beyond to support our service users to reach their full potential. Nigel Kinchin, one of our area specialists has been running weekly ‘Hearing Voices’ groups within Maples for at least 5 years. We sat down with Nigel to find out how he uses his knowledge to help empower our service users in their journey to recovery.
Tell us about your role?
“My role consists of one-to-one recovery sessions and some group work, within which we work from 'The Twelve Steps and Dual Disorders: A Framework of Recovery' by Tim Hamilton and Pat Samples. My one-to-one sessions can include mindfulness meditations and daily readings. Every person is different, so I always meet them where they’re at.
The Hearing Voices group provides an opportunity to explore and understand voice hearing experiences and offers skills, knowledge, and a support network to those who attend. The groups consist of at least 3-4 people, some who are still using, and some who are in recovery.
My role in that is to create a safe space for people to explore their experiences. I’m just a small part of the process, without the other things in process nothing can be achieved. I do my little bit and others do theirs and it all works together, it’s that togetherness, alone it’s difficult, together it’s possible.” What is available to clients? “The Hearing Voices group is more of a discussion, which provides service users with
connection, acceptance and understanding, which are the fundamental principles of
recovery.
Having others who are heading in the same direction makes it easier to achieve than when you’re alone.
We also meet a couple of people from the Hearing Voices Network down at the gardening group on a Friday, the more points of discussion the better, as everyone is different, and everyone has a different experience of it. It’s about finding a process that our service users can relate to.” What have you enjoyed about your job at Maples? “The best part of my job watching the light come back in people’s eyes and seeing that spark again. I enjoy seeing service users grow into someone who is really engaging in life and living a great social life.
I enjoy being able to help people gain greater insight into their own process and giving people the tools they need to reach their full potential.”
Thoughts on recovery
“Progress isn’t a linear line, sometimes it’s one step forward and three steps back.
Recovery is exceedingly practical, it’s about replacing self-destructive behaviours with self-enhancing ones, and if you keep doing stuff that’s good for you, you’ll improve.
What I say to clients, you’re either moving towards something or moving something back, every moment and every second is a choice. One way is like you’re in a creek without a paddle, and the other way, we don’t quite know where it’s going, but it’s going to be better, it’s going somewhere and you’re in with a chance.”
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