Alcohol Awareness Week 2021

You’ve probably already heard about Alcohol Awareness Week. It comes just before the festive period and has been quite rightly growing in importance year upon year. We already know and have said before, the pandemic has exacerbated people’s alcohol consumption and has sadly led to a rise in alcohol-related deaths. As industry specialists we have seen an increase in demand for support with alcohol usage. This increase in alcohol use will have left a lasting impact on people and families, and they will need support like ours at Aquarius ahead.  

The theme this year is ‘alcohol and relationships’ and as a provider of both alcohol use support, and family support, this year’s theme couldn’t fit our ethos better. At Aquarius, marking Alcohol Awareness Week is always hugely important to us, but this year especially so given the impact of the pandemic on people’s alcohol consumption. Raising awareness and signposting to the right support has never been more necessary, so all week we’ll be shouting about our services and how they could support you and a loved one you may be worried about.  

“I didn’t think about there being options of help for me, I just wanted my daughter to get the help she needed, in the first appointment it was explained that I could get support too. Someone gave me a call and I have never felt such relief, I could finally talk about the impact on me, the stress I was feeling and the sadness I felt. I could talk about it openly without being judged or feeling like a bad parent.” A family member we support

Our support at Aquarius encompasses supporting the whole family through someone’s substance use. We offer support for everyone affected, not just the individual. This could be a family member, a child or young person, a friend or even a neighbour who is feeling stressed or worried about a person’s substance use. We offer 1:1 counselling, address safeguarding concerns for impacted young people, peer-led family support groups and much more. Find out more about our support here. 

“You gave me the opportunity to get my boys back, to see how I could work with them and to understand what they needed. At a time when things felt so dark after my son passed  you welcomed me and allowed me to sit and talk. The service you provide saves lives and has helped me so much.” A family member we support

We are looking forward to marking the week on our social media. Here’s what to expect from us this Alcohol Awareness Week: 

  • We will be raising awareness around alcohol and relationships. 
  • Letting you know more about the support we offer at Aquarius – including our family and hidden harm services and how they support people impacted by a loved one’s substance use. 
  • We’ll be sharing personal stories from the people we support and their experiences of a family member’s alcohol use. 
  • We’ll be sharing what our services are getting up to across the Midlands for Alcohol Awareness Week.
  • We’ll be signposting to support options. 

Make sure you follow us on Twitter and like our Facebook page to keep up to date.