‘Transforming Pain Into Power: The Story of North Wales Recovery Communities’
Available as a paperback (£16.99) or Digital version (£4.99)
‘In this inspirational book, a series of personal stories are interwoven into chapters focusing on how the exciting initiative North Wales Recovery Communities (NWRC), which is based in Bangor, is helping people recover from serious substance use problems and related issues. The impressive success of NWRC rests on the foundation of people in recovery helping others overcome their addiction. The book highlights the importance of a variety of factors in facilitating recovery, in particular the role of connection and relationships. It shows how NWRC members have impacted positively on their wider local community, including feeding local residents in need of help during the Covid epidemic when government bodies were unable to do so. The author covers a wide range of topics, including factors that facilitate recovery, the role of trauma and disconnection in the development of addiction, and brain mechanisms underlying the healing process. He emphasises that society can learn a great deal from recovery communities like NWRC, and from people who have transformed their Pain Into Power.’
‘David provides a wonderful narrative that blends the growth of this peer-led recovery initiative with the stories of people in recovery and friends of recovery, distilling essential lessons for any area or group that aspires to create a vibrant recovery community… Congratulations on a fabulous achievement.’ David Best, Professor of Addiction Recovery
‘This book is an extraordinary work of social history, alive with the voices and experiences that have shaped a remarkable recovery community.’ Emeritus Professor Wendy Dossett
‘Transforming Pain into Power by David Clark is a transformative guide that combines ground-breaking, community-centred principles and practices with heartfelt insights into recovery… An inspiring, must-read resource for individuals, families, practitioners, and policymakers alike.’ Cormac Russell, leading expert in Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD)
I received the following message about the book from Carlie Atkinson, CEO of We Al-li Programs:
‘I found your book incredibly moving. What you’ve created is much more than a book about addiction and recovery. It’s a testament to the power of community, the importance of being seen and valued and the extraordinary capacity people have to transform pain into purpose. I was struck by the way you held together rigorous research, lived experience and deeply personal storytelling without ever losing sight of the humanity at the centre of it all. The stories invite the reader in with honesty and vulnerability, while the broader narrative offers hope and practical wisdom for anyone wanting to create spaces where healing can flourish.
What resonated most strongly for me was the thread of connection running through every page. The recognition that recovery doesn’t happen in isolation but in relationship, through belonging, mutual care, purpose and the simple act of walking alongside one another. So much of what you describe echoes what many of our mobs have always known… that healing is relational and that communities themselves can become medicine.
I was also deeply touched by your reflections on trauma and healing and by the way you acknowledged the work of Mum and myself through We Al-li. It felt respectful, authentic and woven naturally into the broader story rather than included as an afterthought. Your willingness to look beyond dominant systems and recognise the wisdom held within our mobs approaches to healing speaks to the openness and integrity with which you have approached this work.
Above all, this book reminds us that people are far more than the worst things that have happened to them or the struggles they have faced. It is compassionate, hopeful and deeply needed. Congratulations, David. You should be incredibly proud of what you’ve achieved.’