We lost our 25-year-old son to a heroin overdose. We are passionately honest in speaking about our failures and regrets because by letting light into the hidden places shame and stigma disappear and lives will be saved.

I don’t feel there is enough support for families helping their loved ones. I cannot put into words the heartache and endless exhaustion of providing around the clock care. I think families in our situation need help and support in traumatic times like these. Drug addiction needs to be recognised and treated like any other illness and disease. You just don’t know when it can happen to you.

When I became a doctor, I learned that behind every patient case was a story. When you try to understand, empathise and leave judgement at the door you don’t see the stereotype, you see the person, the human being just like you and how they came to this point in their lives

I was an active illicit opiate addict for over 35 years. I had 5 attempts at rehab, countless attempts of detox and 2 prison sentences.

My partner was more than just a "junkie" he was loving, caring and intelligent and he was afraid to seek help because the stigma of having an addiction was just too damaging. I chose to stick by him, he was more than just the heroin and now he is my amazing husband in recovery.

I begged, I stole, I lied, I was violent. I was convinced I couldn't change. Today I'm 644 days sober, I have my family back, and I have full custody of my nearly three-year-old son.

I ended up in a residential rehabilitation center at age 36 at complete rock bottom. This treatment coupled with personalised coaching, exposure to a like-minded community and a holistic approach to mindfulness and health changed my life.

I used alcohol to cope in life, to manage my emotional state, to feel comfortable in the world and to provide me with an escape from the guilt and shame I was experiencing, from constantly crossing my values each time I drank.

I started drinking at 14 and straight away the effect it had on me absolutely fascinated me. It made me feel secure, it made me feel I had courage, that I was the “life of the party”. After 21 years of being in active addiction, I found the last year my absolute worst.

I stole $400K from my employer over 7 years which all went into the pokies. I went to jail for 18 months in 2016 at the age of 64 for my crime and now I share my story because I am determined to stop others ending up in the same situation.