Interview with Michael Waters: Recovery Park Run in Leeds

We spoke to Michael Waters a group worker from 5 Ways Recovery Academy in Leeds. 5 Ways is the aftercare part of Forward Leeds, the city’s drug, and alcohol service. The aim of the service is to support sustained recovery so, once people are abstinent from their substances, 5 ways support them in staying that way.

How are you doing?

Hi Lucie, I’m well thanks!

Can you tell me a bit about Recovery Park Run? Where did the idea come from and what was the thinking behind it?

Running is something that’s quite dear to me personally and was a huge pillar of my own recovery from addiction. Exercise, in all its forms, not only keeps us in shape physically but does wonders for our mental health too. It releases endorphins and dopamine, helps fight depression and anxiety, and gives us structure and measurable goals that really help us build back self-esteem. There’s a social dimension to it too, of course, when you begin running with people you’re meeting new faces, you’re building those positive connections, and you’re getting that sense of belonging.

Leeds is pushing to be an Inclusive Recovery City. There’s a global movement to establish cities worldwide where recovery is not only visible but celebrated, and this really begins with outward-facing events where we bridge the gap between the recovery community and the rest of the public. It was following a meeting about Recovery Cities that the idea came about for a Parkrun takeover, inviting people in recovery to take part in and volunteer for the event.

Why specifically Park Run?

Partly due to the strong benefits of exercise in recovery, and partly because of the level of exposure possible. Parkun is a very well-established weekly running event. They host 5k runs every Saturday morning at 9am at 11 locations in Leeds – and over 1,200 nationally. They’re very well attended, and the people who go already keenly value health and wellbeing. With that in mind, we thought it would be a great setting to celebrate recovery and spread the message that people do overcome dire addiction problems and go on to be thriving, healthy members of society.

I am really interested in ways that we can integrate conversations about people that use drugs, addiction, and recovery into mainstream activities, by its nature it’s kind of subversive and destroys some of the existing stereotypes and narratives that people hold about people with lived and living experience of using alcohol and other drugs dependently. It’s a brilliant idea to bring the conversation to Park Run, a mainstream activity that attracts people from a broad range of backgrounds. 

On the day at the Woodhouse Moor Parkrun, there were around 700 people present, and around 40 of us that are in recovery and sporting the apparel of our communities. We were able to bring together service users from 5 Ways, Forward Leeds and St. Annes Detox/Rehab services – some running, some walking and some marshalling the event as volunteers. Every marshal on every corner on the route was a somebody in recovery.

There was also a huge showing from Recovery Runners, who are a fantastic, rapidly-growing community who take runs out from Leeds Dock every Sunday morning. They’ve been doing great work and have been for over two years, and it was great to present a united front championing recovery on the day.

We had a stall with literature about Forward Leeds, 5 Ways and St. Annes, and people approached us who were perhaps concerned about the drinking or drug use of people they knew, and we were able to have those conversations and inform people about the support available. In addition to those we actually chatted to directly, events like this really challenge stigma and improve name recognition of the services, and of recovery full stop. The overall impact was the spread of hope.

What’s next?

With the success of the first Recovery Parkrun, we’re keen to repeat the event going forward, so I’ll be approaching other locations of the Parkrun in Leeds to try and set up a similar thing. I’d also encourage other recovery services to do the same thing – every service in every part of the country will have Parkruns going on, and it’s a great space for spreading the word.

Do you have any suggestions / advice for people of how they can go about setting up their own anti- stigma activities in existing community spaces or at established events?

Don’t ask, don’t get! Events should be willing to host a presence of people for the sake of challenging stigma. It’s not as though you’re selling something, or just there to raise your own profile – it’s a universally beneficial message.

If organisers recognise that, and your message is positive, people will welcome it. When one person recovers from addiction, the whole community wins – society wins – so when breaking stigma is the aim, you’d be more welcomed than you might expect when approaching organisers to jump on to existing events. Only good can come of it for everyone involved, so just reach out.

Do you think we can ever really beat stigma?

We’re certainly up against it. Time-honoured stereotypes and media depictions don’t help, nor does everyday language around the subject. The attitudes around addiction as a moral failing are still rife – “they’ve done it to themselves” etc. – along with negative assumptions about people’s character, and whether or not people can actually come back from it. If we keep celebrating the successes of communities in recovery, in a visible way, we can make a start on reshaping these attitudes.

Longer term, Inclusive Recovery Cities aim to go further than that and build an evidence base that people in recovery contribute significantly to their communities.

How do you stay hopeful?

Every single day as a group worker in an aftercare service gives me more hope that we can change people’s minds about addiction, because I see people change their minds about themselves. A lot of stigma around addiction is internalised over many years, and to support people as they slowly overcome that self-blame and low self-worth is a privilege. It assures me that attitudes can change, we just need more communication.