Sharing life stories about recovery from substance use in higher education settings

Involving People with Lived Experience (PwLE) in the development and delivery of teaching provides a more in-depth insight and authenticity to students learning about important social concerns like substance use. Involving PwLE is recognised as an approach to teaching and collaboration which is beneficial for those involved as learners and (if done correctly) for those who gift their time to sharing their opinions and experiences. More is known within the literature about the benefits for academics and students in relation to involving PwLE in the development, design, and delivery of teaching, less is known about how PwLE experience their involvement and how they prepare for their involvement in the process. In this reflective chapter, we utilise our own collective experiences of working with and/or supporting the involvement of PwLE in the development of teaching resources and teaching practices. The reflections contained here are based upon own highly subjective experiences of working with and supporting PwLE to get involved in the development of resources and delivery of teaching content. From these reflections, we hope that you the reader is able to understand more about how PwLE and this will encourage you to become engaged with this process. In doing so, we hope you also gain some insights into your own teaching practices and learning needs.