Detach with love

The story of a son’s spiralling descent into alcohol addiction and the effects on one ordinary family and their fight to save him.

The Detach with Love Campaign


Core themes underpinning the campaign

  • Alcohol dependency affects people from all backgrounds
  • Alcohol misuse and it's dreadful consequences can happen to anyone
  • Ignoring alcohol as a major social issue delays finding solutions
  • We are all part of the solution
  • There are no fast solutions to alcohol dependency

David was a normal young man when he left home to go to university. He shared with many others the hopes, fears and exuberance of youth. Eight years later he lay dead in a flat in Brighton as a result of his alcohol addiction.

His was a fast track to certain death. His alcoholism consisted of heavy bouts of binge drinking interspersed with periods of sobriety.

When he was drinking he was driven and unreasonable and lacked judgment, when he was sober he was a beautiful person; kind considerate and always hopeful.

When he was sober he gave us hope that there was a future. When he drank he seemed to lose all desire to live.

For every young person with a drug and alcohol problem there are parents and families who also need information and support. I know; we did. We know, we desperately sought solace from others in a similar position.

We are determined that David’s short life and experiences of addiction should not be in vain.

We have set up this web site in an attempt to do something about the lack of joined up thinking amongst good people who exist to help alcoholics.

We wish to continue to draw to the public’s attention the lack of help for young vulnerable people. Where ever possible we want to provide advice and solace to other parents who are suffering as a result of this dreadful illness.

We will

  • Contact, lobby and bring issues to the attention of those who we feel need to know or those who need to be better informed
  • We will write letters and publicise and share our work on a web site
  • We will make sure that David’s suffering and that of his family will not be in vain.
  • We will be a part of the solution wherever possible
  • We will support professional people and charities who are trying to provide a service for addicts

We will not

  • Be judgemental
  • Be political
  • Be anti alcohol
  • Be unrealistic in our expectations
  • Support organisations that puport to help but do not deliver