Living Free

Bree discusses how her gambling progressed from social use of poker machines to becoming a serious problem in her life in her early twenties.  She recently found recovery from her extreme gambling harm from poker machines in Gamblers Anonymous and has since sought to highlight the inequities in the gambling industry that promote problem gambling as an individual issue rather than a societal proble...

The Medically Supervised Injecting Room in North Richmond is a space where people who inject drugs can do so under medical supervision. This means that they can inject their drug without judgment and with access to health care and social support. The facility was opened in 2018 as a two-year trial and has been operating since then. On 7 March 2023, Premier Daniel Andrews announced that legislation...

Jasmin grew up in a very dysfunctional family, with a very young mum and an addict father. Her mum left after extreme family violence, leaving 4 year old Jasmin and her younger brother with her abusive drug addict dad. She was finally reunited with her mum a few years later but suffered ongoing deprivation and abuse into her mid-teens. Around 13 years old Jasmin was being bullied at school and als...

Jack discusses how his gambling progressed from scratchies as a birthday present from his Gran, underage punting at country races with a school friend to becoming a serious problem in his life before he turned 18. It affected his school and personal life and he moved on to sports betting and drinking when he left school.  He found recovery in Gamblers Anonymous a few years ago after going to rehab...

Michael had a happy childhood but sought out alcohol early in his teens to help him fit in and then used marijuana to limit his binge drinking. Mitch noticed his character change and sought professional help to straighten out his life and relationships. Through his interest in alcoholism, drug addiction and recovery he sought out the Dopey podcast (https://dopeypodcast.com/) and the Soft White Und...

Janina and Heather grew up in families affected not only by alcoholism but by the trauma of war. When they joined Adult Children of Alcoholics and Dysfunctional Families they heard the stories of others with diverse experiences of trauma and began to make sense of some of the long-lasting detrimental effects of their own experiences. In this conversation, Janina and Heather discuss the traits comm...

Dale had a happy childhood, but his ADHD meant that he had trouble relating to others and couldn’t concentrate at school. He sought out marijuana early in his teens to help him cope with life and at 19 years old found himself in detox and attended Narcotics Anonymous for the first time. Dale wasn’t ready for NA and he couldn’t relate to the stories he heard about harder drugs and IV use – but that...

Damitra was born in Sri Lanka and came to Australia with her family at the age of 2. One of 13 children, Damitra often retreated into a world of her own thoughts. It was 1968 and the community into which the family moved was racist. This impacted Damitra's experience at school, where she was conscious of her difference to the other students. Although Damitra's father was a drinker, she did not fee...

Laura had a happy childhood but became angry, belligerent and attention seeking as she grew older.  She started smoking and drinking in her early teens and engaged in plenty of risky behaviour. Laura’s drinking progressed slowly but her alcoholism started to take off in her early 20’s and took over her life from her mid 20’s. She married and had 3 kids, managed to stay sober whilst pregnant but ne...

Yaakov discusses how his gambling progressed from playing the pokies underage at a local pub to becoming a serious problem in his life before he turned 18. It affected his school, work, family and personal life.  He found recovery in Gamblers Anonymous and after many years and a few busts has now built a contented life without needing to gamble. GA helped Yaakov to understand and overcome his addi...

Poonam spent her childhood in a village in India, enjoying a happy family life and success at school. With little knowledge of alcoholism, she was unprepared for life with the man she married, and she experienced much uncertainty and despair as she tried to cope with her husband's drinking. Eventually, on the recommendation of a colleague, Poonam found her way to Al-Anon. There she learned how to...

Janine grew up in a family where sharing good food was an expression of bonding and love, but when she began to experience issues with her sense of identity and belonging at school, she became concerned about her weight. She began dieting but found that after each diet she gained more weight. The pattern continued until Janine's weight gain was beyond her control and so was her preoccupation with...

Glenn's journey of recovery from alcholism is one of set backs and triumphs. Diagnosed with anxiety from an early age, Glenn has suffered from perfectionism, avoidance, procrastination and isolation as he spend his early days trying self soothe from a turbulant home life. From the outside growing up, he had all the material things a kid good need but all he ever wanted was his friends happy home l...

Barry shares an insight into his early gambling on horse racing as a teenager then progressing on to a poker machine addiction and his ongoing recovery through Gamblers Anonymous. Now over 18 years without gambling he shares how his live is so much more relaxed now that he doesn’t have a second, hidden life. If you’re having trouble with gambling, or have a friend or family member that does, then...

Tom was a happy child with loving parents, brought up in home where there was no drinking, but his maternal grandmother had died an alcoholic. As a young man Tom was quite shy and sometimes felt separate from others, but when he had his first drink of alcohol he found an ease and confidence that he had not had before. This led to daily drinking, difficult relationships and eventually what Tom desc...

Fleur’s story of recovery reflects the true meaning of the saying in the rooms of AA “Keep coming back”. Fleur never felt comfortable in her own skin growing up. She reflects on the different toxic behaviours she used as a child before picking up a drink to make her feel safe, like obsessive compulsion, food and self-harm.  Coming from a small country town and being the youngest of five girls (inc...

Alison comes on the show for a second time and shares an insight into her poker machine addiction and her recovery through Gamblers Anonymous. Now over four years without gambling she shares her experience and how her attraction to excitement led her seek out pokies and develop an obsession with gambling. If you’re having trouble with gambling, or have a friend or family member that does, then may...

The Residents for Victoria Street Drug Solutions Incorporated (RVSDS) is a group of Yarra residents who successfully advocated for a Medically Supervised Injection Centre (MSIC) to be trialled within the Victoria Street, Richmond precinct to address the high levels of public drug taking, unacceptable rates of overdoses and fatalities, and the associated drug dealing, crime and risk to public healt...

Tanya and Leigh are Peer Support Workers at for Doors Wide Open - a peer-led community support service that assists individuals and families impacted by Alcohol and other Drugs (AOD). DWO also offer support for people impacted by homelessness or rough sleeping. Tanya and Leigh share their lived experience of being helped by Doors Wide Open to break their addiction to methamphetamine (ice) and to g...

Jane was on the show in February 2021 and comes back nearly two years later to discuss how Alcoholics Anonymous meetings have continued to help her to recover and return to a normal life without dependence on alcohol. Jane talks about rebuilding trust with her family and friends, being clear-eyed and on the ball at work and helping other alcoholics trying to recover from alcoholism in the fellowsh...

Claudineia Wong is a group facilitator at SMART Recovery Australia. SMART Recovery is an international organisation that assists people in recovery from addictive  behaviours through group meetings based on the principles of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy. In this episode Neia discusses the role of the group meetings in helping people to cope with urges, maintain motivation to recover from their prob...

Brenden shares his gambling journey and insight into his pokies addiction and his recovery through Gamblers Anonymous. Now three and a half years without gambling he shares his insight into how his early behaviour, anxiety and attraction to excitement led him seek out pokies and gamble obsessively for 13 years. If you’re having trouble with gambling, or have a friend or family member that does, th...

Carmen grew up in Germany in a family where there was alcohol abuse and violence. In her adult life, she developed a compulsion to control her eating and fell into a pattern of food restriction followed by bingeing. Carmen found herself preoccupied with food and when she realised it had become a problem began to look for help. A therapist's advice to eat in moderation did not work for her but thro...

Rhonda started life in Ontario, Canada, but as a young child moved with her alcoholic father and three siblings, without their mother, to another province, Alberta. Here she grew up with a father whose neglectful behaviour forced Rhonda and her siblings to fend for themselves. Rhonda took refuge in school and benefitted from the care of teachers who noticed her and gave her opportunities. As an ad...

Claude grew up in an immigrant family and always felt a bit of an outsider. His dad didn’t drink excessively but he suffered years of physical violence and subsequently depression because of his father’s rage. Claude sought out alcohol at and early age and started using drugs as well as a teenager. He left school early and did an apprenticeship, but his drug and alcohol use severely impacted his w...