A client of Acorn Recovery Projects has achieved something during his recovery journey which meant far more than just crossing a finish line.
Three months into his recovery, Jensen completed a 10k run in Morecambe after setting himself the challenge during a care planning session with his support worker, James.
After first arriving at Acorn, he wasn’t in the best physical shape. Like many people coming out of addiction, he was dealing with low energy, poor nutrition, and the general toll that substance use takes on the body. But around six or seven weeks ago, while talking through what he wanted to work on, he said he wanted to push himself and try a 10k run.
It wasn’t something he said lightly. He’d managed about 6k before, but this was a big step up. Once the idea was out there, he committed to it, and James committed to supporting him.
They chose Morecambe for the run, and what happened next showed exactly what Acorn is about. One of the service’s bus drivers came in on his day off to drive them there and back. A group of clients travelled too, just to cheer him on. Nobody asked them to; they just wanted to be there for him.
The run itself wasn’t easy. Jensen found it tough, physically and mentally. At one point he said he “fought some demons on the course”, but he kept going without stopping once.
James said: “There were times he was struggling, but he didn’t stop. He kept going. He battled through it, as much a mental test as a physical one. We’re all extremely proud of him.
“If he can do this in three months, where will he be in the next three?”
Exercise plays a huge role in recovery. Many people arrive at Acorn physically run down with poor physical health, malnutrition, low energy, even injuries they hadn’t realised they had because substance use masked the pain.
Training for something like a 10k naturally encourages better eating, better sleep, and better routines. There’s structure, there’s self-discipline and, along the way, confidence and self-worth start to build again.
Everything Jensen did while preparing for the race, the training, the healthier choices, the discipline, will go a long way in supporting his recovery just as much as the therapy and peer support around him.
