Strength-to-strength

After more than a decade of working hard and playing hard in my spare time, my lifestyle finally caught up with me; I burnt out in spectacular fashion, descending into addiction, losing my job and my home in the process.

Anthony

I was doing ok until the first COVID lockdown hit. My medication for my mental health was stopped because they thought I had traits of bipolar. My counsellor just gradually didn’t ring me anymore. And because I didn’t have anything, I started self-medicating with cocaine and alcohol, and it just spiralled. I tried to deal with it all myself.

Sam

I didn’t pick up my first drink until the age of 20 but from that point, I drank very heavily. In the mid-1990s, cocaine became part of my story as well and the consequences started to kick in.

Leo

The first time I got in touch with Via, I was pregnant and I’d been in recovery for about a year. I’d been to rehab and wanted to know what support was around me when I came back as I didn’t know how I’d act after I had the baby.

Clara

My recovery began with Via and i-access in May 2024, a few weeks into my sobriety. I felt lost, broken and very alone. I was scared, apprehensive and angry about what my future would look like without alcohol.

Charlotte