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PODCAST

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma

Believe in People is the UK’s leading podcast dedicated to addiction, recovery, lived experience storytelling, and the power of peer support in transforming lives. Produced by ReNew, the series brings honest, unfiltered conversations with people who have faced addiction, homelessness, trauma, stigma, prison, relapse and recovery and found a way forward.Hosted by Matt Butler and produced by Robbie Lawson, each episode provides real insight into the experiences behind substance use, the roots of

education

All Episodes

62:29

Secret Drug Addict: Anonymous Recovery, Ego and...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/04/23

In this episode of Believe in People, The Secret Drug Addict joins us to discuss anonymous recovery, addiction stigma, and the reality of long-term sobriety. We explore themes of addiction recovery, trauma, peer support, mental health, and the lived experiences that shaped their journey. This conversation challenges assumptions about addiction and visibility. We explore why anonymity can be a form of protection rather than shame, and how removing identity allows the message of recovery to sta...

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23:11

Kieran McCartney: Cocaine Culture, ADHD and Recovery...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/04/16

In this episode of Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma, Kieran McCartney joins us to discuss cocaine use, ADHD, grief, and recovery. Best known for his "win or walk" deal with Lord Sugar on the BBC show, The Apprentice, Kieran opens up about the pressures behind success, the loss of his father, and how that led to increased cocaine use. We explore the normalisation of cocaine culture in the UK, the link between alcohol and stimulant use, and how substances can become tools f...

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57:10

Nadine Balmer: Three Years Later, Methadone Free and...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/04/02

Three years on, Nadine Balmer returns to the Believe in People podcast, and her life looks very different. In this episode of Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma, Nadine Balmer joins us to discuss long-term heroin recovery, ADHD, neurodiversity, identity, stigma, and rebuilding a life after addiction. Her first appearance became one of the most downloaded episodes of the series. This conversation shows what happened next. Now six years free from illicit substances following a ...

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4:04

Believe in People EXTRA: The Ketamine Reality Check

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/03/30

This short episode of Believe in People EXTRA features a short focused clip from our conversation with Dr Caroline Copeland Dr Copeland is a Senior Lecturer in Pharmacology & Toxicology at King’s College London, and the Director of the National Programme on Substance Use Mortality. Today she explores ketamine use, polydrug risks, drug adulteration, and the growing dangers within today’s drug supply. Dr Copeland will be joining Believe in People for a full-length episode in the comi...

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55:21

Cara Cox: The Detox Factor, Heroin Addiction,...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/03/24

She had the “perfect” life on paper and still didn’t want to wake up. In this episode of Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma, Cara Cox joins us to discuss trauma, addiction, repeated relapse, and long-term recovery. We explore how childhood loss, family alcoholism, emotional instability, and internal loneliness shaped her relationship with substances from an early age. Cara speaks openly about drinking to blackout as a teenager, using cannabis and ketamine, and later pro...

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10:30

Believe in People EXTRA: Listening Without Judgement

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/03/16

In this special episode of Believe in People: EXTRA, we present a unique collaboration with Apple Music and the Radio Academy Award-winning podcast Classical Connections, hosted by world-renowned pianist and composer Alexis Ffrench. Originally broadcast as part of the celebrated 60-Second Sonata segment, Alexis invited host Matthew Butler to share a deeply personal reflection on trauma, addiction and stigma. In response, Alexis composed an original piano piece that can be heard at the end of ...

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55:37

Neil Firbank: Heroin Recovery and The National...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/03/06

In this episode of Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma, Neil Firbank joins us to discuss heroin addiction recovery and how connection and purpose can transform lives. We explore themes of addiction recovery, trauma, peer support, mental health, and the lived experiences that shaped Neil’s journey - from homelessness, injecting and suicidal thoughts, to treatment, group work, and building what became the National Recovery Games. This episode offers practical insight...

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9:57

What Does Tourette’s Really Feel Like?

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/02/27

In this episode of Believe in People Extra, Bea Wood joins us to challenge one of the most common myths about Tourette’s - that it is simply about swearing. Bea explains the difference between coprolalia and the more common motor and vocal tics that shape everyday life and the need for constant safety awareness. The conversation explores intrusive thoughts and urges, why suppressing tics can make them worse, and how anxiety and social context can intensify symptoms. We also examine the ...

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59:52

Finley Worthington: Ketamine Addiction, Blood Jelly,...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/02/25

Finley joins Believe in People to share his lived experience of ketamine addiction and recovery, and how a substance that first felt functional and harmless became physically and psychologically destructive. We explore how early use of cannabis and cocaine progressed into ketamine, why it can feel controlled at first, and how denial allows harm to escalate unnoticed. Finley explains ketamine bladder in clear, practical terms, the impact on family and identity, and the turning point that force...

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10:30

Recovery vs. Recovered?

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/02/20

This episode of Believe in People Extra explores one of the most debated ideas in addiction: being recovered rather than simply in recovery. Young Lee unpacks the difference between cured and recovered, explaining the “twist of the mind” that precedes relapse and why the real powerlessness isn’t the first drink - it’s the thought that comes before it. Using a simple Terminator analogy, he describes how addiction doesn’t say “I might be back” - it says “I’ll be back.” Young also reflects on be...

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50:50

Lucy Rocca: Soberistas and Grey Area Drinking - The...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/02/12

Lucy Rocca joins Believe in People to share her candid story of alcohol misuse, trauma, and recovery, and the creation of Soberistas, one of the earliest online sobriety communities for women. Lucy takes us back to the 1990s, the rave scene, early drug use, and the beginnings of binge drinking that quickly became unsafe. She explains how alcohol escalated in adulthood, how motherhood and “outward stability” can hide the reality of harmful drinking, and why shame keeps so many people silent. A...

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9:25

Stronger Without Steroids?

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/02/06

This short episode of Believe in People Extra features a focused clip from our conversation with Adam Maxted - UK wrestling star, personal trainer, and two-time Love Island contestant. Adam speaks openly about steroids, testing cycles, image and performance enhancing drugs, cutting through myths around quick results and explaining the real difference between use and abuse. He reflects on gym culture, body image pressure, and why many people turn to these substances without fully understanding...

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57:39

Paula McGowan OBE: Oliver's Legacy - Autism,...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/01/29

Paula McGowan OBE joins Believe in People for a full, in-depth conversation about her son Oliver, whose death led to the introduction of The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training across health and social care in England. Paula explains how people are too often doubted, judged, or written off in services, how distress is misread as behaviour or non-compliance, and how bias, fear, and rigid systems can escalate harm. Drawing directly from Oliver’s story, this conversation challenges professio...

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5:22

Why Tier 2 Oliver McGowan Training on Learning...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/01/23

This short episode of Believe in People Extra shares an exclusive preview from our upcoming full conversation with Paula McGowan OBE, whose son Oliver’s death led to the introduction of The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training across health and social care in England. This preview focuses on one critical question: why Tier 2 training matters, and why listening to people with lived experience is not optional, but essential for safety, dignity, and life itself. Paula explains why Tier 2 training m...

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86:27

Chiedu Oraka: The Black Yorkshireman. Culture,...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2026/01/15

In this episode of Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma, Chiedu Oraka, one of the UK’s most distinctive emerging voices in rap, also known as The Black Yorkshireman, joins Matt to discuss dual identity, stigma, and the turning points that reshaped his life. Born and raised on a Hull council estate in a Nigerian household, Chiedu grew up balancing two worlds: cultural expectations at home and the pressure to fit in outside - while carrying the weight of how others perceive...

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9:42

Questioning Your Drinking? One Simple Shift That...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2025/12/31

In this episode of Believe in People Extra, Amy Jo Johnson shares why she chose to stop drinking - not because her life had fallen apart, but because alcohol was making her anxiety louder and everyday life harder to manage. She shares the simple mindset shift that helped her most: giving herself permission to drink, and realising she didn’t actually want to. Amy Jo also reflects on how not drinking changed her friendships, why some social situations stopped feeling fulfilling, and how having ...

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61:46

Joe Sealey: Cocaine Addiction, Alcohol and Recovery...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2025/12/24

In this episode of Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma, Joe Sealey joins us to discuss cocaine addiction, alcohol misuse, grief, and recovery. Known to millions as a cast member on The Real Housewives of Cheshire, Joe shares the story that existed long before the cameras - the career-ending injury that ended his football dream, the sudden death of his father, and how trauma and loss of identity pulled him into addiction. We explore themes of addiction recovery, trauma, peer su...

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9:15

Struggling to Stop Drinking? What Michelle Heaton...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2025/12/12

In the first episode of Believe in People Extra, our new spin off miniseries, Michelle Heaton speaks openly about what it feels like to want to stop drinking and not be able to. She explains the medical dangers she didn’t understand, the shame that kept her stuck, and why addiction isn’t about a lack of willpower. Michelle shares the moment that changed everything: seeing someone else in recovery who had what she wanted - and realising she didn’t have to do this alone. This short episode expl...

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72:58

Alcohol, Relapse, Women’s Recovery Spaces & Breaking...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2025/12/05

In this episode of Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma, Patti reflects on a lifetime shaped by silence, trauma, and survival. Growing up in a dysfunctional home in 1970s San Francisco - marked by alcoholism, emotional neglect, and parents who barely spoke - she began using alcohol and drugs at just 13 to escape overwhelming pain. By 16 she had lost her mother to alcoholism, a loss that profoundly shaped her understanding of addiction, identity, and generational trauma. Patti s...

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83:05

Andy Woodward (Part Two): Trauma, False Accusation,...

Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma ·

2025/11/21

In this episode of Believe in People: Addiction, Recovery & Stigma, we conclude our two-part conversation with Andy Woodward, who reflects on the long-term psychological effects of childhood trauma and how those experiences shaped his later struggles with alcohol use, anxiety and identity. Andy shares how a false rape accusation in 2015 became a devastating turning point - stripping away the structures that once grounded him, including careers in both professional football and policing. W...

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94 results

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