Derbyshire officer’s honest blog

30 April 2021

A blog written by a Derbyshire officer which revealed how he turned to alcohol to combat stress has been shared on the national Federation’s website. 

Adam Bryan, who is Derbyshire Police Federation’s wellbeing lead, told his story as part of Stress Awareness Month.

In his honest blog piece, Adam recalls how he managed to hide what was going on to his friends and family for a long time, while lying to himself too.

“Like all officers I was overworked and under managed. This happened over some time and crept up on me,” he says, “When it hit me, it hit me hard.

“I knew what was happening to me but, like a lot of people, I continually lied to myself and my friends who spotted it. I made every single mistake along the way to what can only be described as an explosion.”

Adam goes on to explain how he soon started to heavily drink alcohol in an attempt to help how he was feeling.

“I was happy and stress free when I was a bit drunk. But once I was sober, I was remorseful, unhappy and back to square one. People refer to this as self-medicating but if we are honest, it is just alcohol abuse,” he continues.

Adam is urging people to speak up about their mental health and is calling on his colleagues in the Force to reach out to their friends, family and those around them.

Stress Awareness Month is an annual campaign which takes place throughout April. 

Read Adam’s blog.