John inspires book to tackle addiction

Jun 19 2008 by Alastair McNeill, Hamilton Advertiser

A HAMILTON man whose life was destroyed by alcoholism has fought his way back from rock bottom and inspired a book aimed at tackling similar addictions.

John Gillen from Burnbank spent 12 years as a chronic alcoholic before undergoing a voyage of self discovery in which he sought to understand the nature of the disease.

The 52-year-old has now spent the last six years sober, and during that time helped his partner Jane Allen, also a recovering alcoholic, write her book entitled The Secret Disease of Addiction.

“Over the past few years I have undergone a renewal and my life has been transformed,” John explained.

“Jane and myself began writing and researching the book two years ago because we wanted other people struggling with addiction to understand the disease and get the opportunity to turn their lives around as well.”

The former John Ogilvie High pupil left school in 1971 and became a jockey before running stables in Douglas.

However, his drink problem forced him to give up his career in 1990.

“Like most chronic alcoholics my life had become unmanageable,” said John.

“I took on menial jobs to earn drink money; I was just working to sustain my addiction.”

John’s decline continued and it took a serious toll on his health.

He added: “I weighed seven stones and was told if I didn’t give up drink I would die. I ended up in Wishaw General’s psychiatric ward.

“But they couldn’t tell me what the problem was, other than to stop drinking; I couldn’t get answers from doctors, psychologists or other experts.

“So I went to the Mitchell Library in Glasgow and began to read scientific text books, and books about psychology, and I then began to understand more about the disease.

“It was then that my life steadily began to improve.”

John moved to London to live with Jane a few years ago where they set up the Affinity Lodge rehabilitation centre for people struggling with alcohol and drug-related addictions.

His parents, John and Helen, sisters Ann and Elaine and brother Brian still live in Hamilton.

The book took one-and-a-half years to write and aims to explain the nature of addiction in layman’s terms.

Jane said: “Addiction is an acquired disease, and this is difficult for most people to understand.

“But when a person does come to understand it, stable recovery becomes much more possible.”

John and Jane would like to get the chance to visit Lanarkshire and talk to people suffering from alcoholism and other addictions .

“I have been through hell. I know what it is like. It’s a privilege to help others who are also suffering, and give them the chance to understand themselves and the nature of their disease,” said John.

The Secret Disease of Addiction: A Disease Which Tells Us It Isn’t One is published by Affinity Lodge at £18.99.

It can be obtained from thesecretdiseaseofaddiction.com or the distributor, yps_books.com.