A reformed alcoholic from Fife has shed light on a life of despair and eventual recovery in a new book aimed at inspiring others to break free from addiction.
Methil man Liam Mimnaugh spent most of his youth and adult life addicted to drink and drugs, which brought him close to death on more than one occasion.
In his new book – Many Places To Save One Life – Liam pulls no punches documenting the spiralling chaos and a hand-to-mouth existence of years of alcoholism.
He was so oblivious that for a period he was hobbling around, unaware that he had broken bones in his feet.
But despite scenes of violence and despair, Liam also manages to capture acts of love and kindness that eventually helped him to recover.
Fife man’s mum ‘was convinced I would die with nothing’
Now nearing 13 years sober, his book aims to offer hope to others and proof that there is a way out when all seems lost.
“First and foremost I wrote the book to say thank you to my mum for her undiminished love for me,” Liam told The Courier.
“I put her through sheer hell for years, so much so that she was convinced I would die with nothing.
“Therefore she kept a suit in her wardrobe so she would have something respectable to bury me in.
“Her love was unswerving for me despite all the worry and grief I piled on her because of my addictions.
“The book is my way of repaying her love, that helped me in my journey to recovery.”
Liam is nearing 13 years of being sober
Liam, 44, was born in Lanarkshire but his life of addiction took him around the UK and even abroad.
“I started off drinking expensive whisky but that didn’t last long,” Liam explained.
“Next thing you know you are reaching down the back of the sofa for pennies, shoplifting and bumming from fellow drinkers to get you through the day.
“Vodka and cocaine were my favourites but it soon ends up being whatever you can get your hands on.
“In the worst times I’d sleep with a can under my pillow.
“It was there to stop other alcoholics from stealing it but also there as my first drink of tomorrow to stop the shakes.
“Alcohol masks lots of things; it saw off the demons but only temporarily.
“My drinking got so bad that it was only when I sobered up that it was discovered I had been hobbling about with broken bones in my feet for some time.”
Despite numerous stints in rehab, it wasn’t until he went to a rehabilitation programme in Dundee, run by fellow former addicts, that Liam finally started to see the light.
He said: “I’d been on £600-a-day rehab programmes that were nothing more than business ventures.
Methil man’s book offers message of hope
“It was only when I met other ex-alcoholics running the Dundee programme that knew the pain I was going through.
“Then I began to believe there could be a way out.”
Liam is now happily married to Dawn, has a family, a job and a life he says is worth living.
Furthermore, he is also now a writer, with a book, available both digitally and in print, that has entered Amazon’s best-selling charts.
“The book is my way of thanking all those who played a part in getting me to where I am today,” said Liam
“It’s also a signal to those going through the suffering now that there is hope and a way out and you can make it.”
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