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Recovering drug addict says lockdown saved her life

Josh Sandiford
BBC News, West Midlands
BBC Chanel Walsh standing near a pub garden. There are benches behind her and there is a St. Georges flag on the roof. Behind her there is a shelter.BBC
Chanel Walsh, 34, next to a pub shelter where she used to sleep rough

Cars whizz past on a busy Birmingham road as Chanel Walsh points out a shelter in a pub garden.

It's an unremarkable if shabby structure, there to protect smokers from the elements.

For Ms Walsh, it is the exact spot she used to sleep rough while battling a drug addiction.

She has brought us here as the country marks five years since the start of the first Covid-19 lockdown as she believes the pandemic saved her life.

"If it wasn't for Covid I don't believe I would be here now," the 34-year-old said.

"With the lockdown, not going out, facing reality. 'Do I really want this life?'

"It gave me time to sit down and think about things and think where I want to be in life.

"It really gave me that time to sit back and think and sort my life out."

Chanel Walsh Chanel sitting on a sofa. She looks gaunt and tired. She is wearing a white jacket. Behind her is a half open white door.Chanel Walsh
An old picture of Chanel, who said she spent much of her 20s living with a drug addiction

Ms Walsh understands the pandemic was a difficult period for many.

"I know Covid is a very sour subject for a lot of people which is totally understandable," she said.

"But for me it saved my life. I strongly don't think I would be here right now if I'm honest so it gave me a lot of strength. I love being a mum.

"I've never once looked back. I just focus on carrying on."

Chanel Walsh in the garden of her home. There is a trampoline behind her. She is smiling and looking at the camera. She has long dark hair past her shoulders and wear half-rimmed glasses.
Ms Walsh said she had spoken out because she wanted to inspire others

Ms Walsh, from Shard End, said the pandemic forced her to confront her addiction.

She started using heroin when she was 16 and said she lived homeless for two years.

Five years on, she said life was "fantastic".

She explained how she was loving being there for her three young children - Archie, nine, Dolcie-dee, two, and five-month-old Ronan.

Those three have helped give their mother the strength to keep moving on from her addiction, she said.

"They've given me a lot of strength to carry on," Ms Walsh said.

"I just loving being a mom."

Chanel with her two children. One is a toddler and the other is five months old. They are all smiling at the camera. There is a bed behind them.
Chanel Walsh credited her children with helping her turn her life around

Ms Walsh, who has been sober for four years, said she wanted to speak out to help other people and show them it was possible for them to turn their lives around.

"I'd like to get the word out to inspire people that it doesn't matter how far you think you've gone into addiction," she adds.

"You can always come out there's always away. Never give up.

"There is an end in sight."

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