This week on the Recovery Toolkit Podcast, Richie is joined by Cheryl, a trauma-informed practitioner who works closely with people affected by gambling harm.

With years of experience supporting others through recovery, Cheryl shares how trauma, unmet needs and early life experiences can often lie at the heart of addiction.

In this thought-provoking conversation, Richie and Cheryl explore the power of asking the right questions. Cheryl describes how, in just a few moments of honest dialogue, people can experience powerful realisations about their own journey. These moments of clarity can become the first step towards healing.

Together, they reflect on the importance of self-awareness in recovery and how tools such as reflection, connection and curiosity can help build a life beyond addiction.

Whether you are navigating your own recovery or supporting someone else, this episode offers insight, encouragement and new ways of thinking about what drives addiction and what helps to heal it.

If something in this episode resonates with you, subscribe for more. You can also join the EPIC Community.

In this powerful and moving episode of The Recovery Toolkit Podcast, Richie Paxton sits down with Malcolm, who shares his long and complex journey through recovery after alcohol misuse and gambling harm.

This week, we bring you a slightly different and very important episode. We're joined once again by Jo from EPIC Restart Foundation, who bravely opens up about an experience that’s rarely talked about: lapse and relapse in recovery.

Jo shares her personal journey of having a lapse, and the fear that came with it – fear of losing her job, her identity, and everything she had built. But rather than hiding away, Jo showed incredible courage by speaking out and reaching out to her colleagues. Her story is a powerful reminder that a lapse doesn’t mean failure, and it certainly doesn’t mean the end of the road. She talks about the warning signs; not getting dressed, avoiding exercise, neglecting self-care.

Things came to a head when Jo found herself on the verge of breaking one of her core values: honesty. That moment became a turning point. Jo made the brave choice to talk, and in doing so, took the first step towards getting back on track. Having relapsed earlier in her recovery, Jo reflects on how much she’s learned. This time, she knew how vital it was to communicate how she was feeling to those closest to her. In doing so she was able to take control and avoid a full relapse.

Jo also speaks honestly about the added pressure of working in the gambling harms sector. She worried how being honest would affect her work, her colleagues, and those she supports. But the response she received was nothing but supportive – a real lesson in the importance of planning ahead and having a strong support system. By focusing on the things that keep her well, like going for walks, singing, and making space for self-care, Jo feels like herself again. She also highlights how vital it is for organisations employing people in recovery to have clear, compassionate policies in place.

EPIC Restart’s person-centred approach made all the difference. Jo wanted to share her experience so that anyone feeling isolated or ashamed knows they are not alone. Her message is clear: prioritising recovery isn’t just about staying well – it’s what makes it possible to keep doing the work you love and supporting others along the way. We’re incredibly proud to have Jo back on the podcast. This is a conversation you won’t want to miss. 

In this powerful and moving episode, we sit down with Poppy, a woman whose journey through addiction, chaos, and healing offers hope and inspiration, especially for young women. Growing up surrounded by addiction and dysfunction in Middlesbrough, Poppy was drawn to the chaos she knew so well. Abuse and domestic violence became a normal part of her life, and alcohol and drugs were her way to cope. She travelled far and wide trying to escape her pain, only to realise she couldn’t outrun herself. Poppy opens up about how chaos once felt safe, how she built stories to survive, and how hard it is to break old patterns. But she’s committed to growth and continues working on herself every day, especially as she strives to become an emotionally available mum for her daughter. Now living in recovery, Poppy reminds us that it’s not all “pink fluffy clouds.” Life still throws challenges, but today she faces them in a far better place. She’s found safety in connection, healing in community, and joy in the small things - like starting her day at the gym and working in a place where she can be herself. Poppy’s recovery has not only changed her life, but also sparked healing in her family. She’s rebuilding her relationship with her dad, and her brother has entered recovery too. Most powerfully, she’s learning to connect with her daughter in a whole new way. This episode is a testament to the power of recovery, the importance of connection, and the resilience of the human spirit. We offer free support across the UK, meeting people wherever they are in their recovery journey - whether reaching out for the first time or seeking continued support with long-term recovery. Our programmes, which include a range of online support and face-to-face events, are shaped and driven by lived experiences of gambling harm. https://www.epicrestartfoundation.org/pages/our-programmes