*This campaign does not offer support services. If you are seeking support please view services here or phone the National Alcohol and Other Drug Hotline on 1800 250 015 or Gambler's Help Hotline on 1800 858 858*
Benn
Has a lived experience of addiction

When I had my first drink of alcohol (at age 13), I remember thinking 'this feels amazing'. For once in my life I had the confidence I so yearned for as a young lad and I was finally able to not overthink everything I did and said. While I wasn't addicted from my first drink, over time 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.
At 33 I couldn't live that life anymore, daily drinking had worn me out. I had nothing and I was a shell of a man. Suicidal thoughts were a daily feature and I was in a state of complete hopelessness. I reached out to my parents and for the first time in my life, got honest about my inability to stop drinking.
Soon enough I was in a rehab where my recovery journey began. I learnt so much about my addiction, why I drank and what I needed to do to maintain my recovery. My life 8 years later is unrecognisable to where I was, I now have freedom from the shackles of my addiction and have a level of comfort and self-belief that I thought was never possible without drinking.