Cricketer Luke Sutton Reunited with Therapist to Discuss Addiction

“I needed life to stop. I needed to be cut off. I needed to be protected from me”: Former Lancashire and Derbyshire cricketer Luke Sutton reunited with therapist to discuss addiction, rehab and life in recovery

• Sports agent and former Lancashire and Derbyshire cricketer, Luke Sutton, was reunited with his addictions therapist, Sam, to discuss his addiction, treatment experience and life in recovery
• The pair met at Priory Hospital Altrincham - where Luke received treatment for alcohol addiction 8 years ago -  for an emotional conversation on how his time at the rehabilitation centre has changed his life for the better
• Luke has recently released a book, Back from the Edge, which details his addiction and recovery journey. Through the book, Luke aims to raise awareness of the  mental health difficulties that professional sportspeople experience

Sports agent and former Lancashire and Derbyshire cricketer, Luke Sutton, has reunited with his addictions therapist, Sam. In a meeting eight years following on from his time at Priory Hospital Altrincham, the pair talked about his previous addiction issues, the time he spent in Priory Group’s rehabilitation centre and the life he now enjoys in recovery.

Speaking about his addiction, Luke said: “I knew I was broken and I knew I couldn’t carry on the way I was going, but I don’t think I had that clarity to go ‘this is what I need to do’.”

Luke’s family and friends staged an intervention to encourage him to seek professional treatment at Priory Hospital Altrincham, but Luke was uncertain about their decision at the time: “When my dad came round, when I was at my friend’s house, that was when the Priory was first brought up. They had obviously been talking about it a lot, but I was completely unaware, and I laughed, and said “what are they going to do for me?”

“For the first week, I thought I was in the wrong place. I thought I was a bit better than everyone else. I’m embarrassed to look back on it now.”

Talking to the therapist, Luke said he is now able to look back at the 28 days he spent at Priory Hospital Altrincham with clarity and recognise that his friends and family made the best decision for him: “I was wrapped up in my own self-importance. I thought you know: ‘If I don’t get out in 28 minutes, my business is going to crash’. It actually ran better while I was in here.

“I needed life to stop. I needed to be cut off. I needed to be protected from me.”

Luke is now a sports agent to professionals including Louis Smith, Sam Quek, Simon Mignolet, Carl Frotch and Nile Wilson. He is also father to two children, and is soon to be married to his fiancé. Speaking about life in recovery he said: “Life is beautiful, life is difficult.

“My view on how I look at everything around me, from people, to experiences, to my children, to my parents, as a friend, is so different to what it was before I came in here. I see colour now in everything, I can hear, I know where my happiness lies now.

“This is a place where I started to change my life, and that’s a big thing you know - big thing. I’m over eight years sober, my children are going to be 11 in a few days’ time so they’ve seen those eight and a bit years and it started here, and it’s really powerful for me.”

Luke has recently written a book, Back from the Edge, where he documents his addiction and journey to recovery. He also uses the book to talk about the important lessons he has learnt and to warn of the mental health difficulties that professional sportspeople can face, raising awareness of addiction in sport and how the right support can stop others before they spiral into the same type of experiences he faced.

Visit the Priory Group website to see the video of Luke’s interview and an extended cut.