The most compelling stories we can tell you about our work, come from our clients. Please read this collection of hope-filled, life-affirming stories told by First Step clients.
I was adopted from South Korea when I was 10 months old. My sister was adopted too, also from Korea, and we were raised in a small country town in New South...
Arielle is a 32-year-old woman who has been on a journey of recovery after being diagnosed with Substance Use Disorder, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Generalised Anxiety Disorder. As she neared the final...
Duncan is a 58-year-old indigenous man who moved to Melbourne in his 20s for work and found community connections in and around St Kilda. He is sociable, loves a chat and a...
Antonio grew up in out-of-home-care and by his 18th birthday had lived in 22 'homes'. He doesn't talk much about what happened there except to say, “Heroin chose me. It looked up...
Brad and Fay* were in love. They had spent their life together, raised children together, and navigated life’s ups and downs together, including the use of drugs and alcohol. Brad was quiet...
My life before ResetLife was fuelled by alcohol and drugs, in particular cocaine. I was an addict and didn't know it. In February 2015, my business of 18 years was put into...
‘What impact has ResetLife had on my life?’ When I entered the ResetLife program I was completely lost. I had been admitted to the Alfred psychiatric ward for suicidal ideation by Police...
Home was never a happy place. I don't have many memories of my childhood, but what I do remember is dark. I always tried to be a good girl, but even when...
The impact that ResetLife has had on my life has been profound in every aspect. Prior to joining the program my life was in chaos. I feared for my future and my...
Tony was attending a men’s behavioural change program at Star Health when he met First Step Legal lawyer Elizabeth. Tony was in his early 30s, couch surfing, dependent on methamphetamine, alcohol and...
I cannot even begin to describe in words how grateful I feel towards everyone at First Step. Here is a little bit about my story and how ResetLife changed my life.I started...
Our client, we’ll call her Sophia, is a 32 year old professional, working full time in advertising. She completed university, was excelling at work and showing great promise. She was kicking goals...
Everyone knows me and the fact that I am not shy when it comes to calling people out over stigmatizing or discriminating behaviour. I reached out to you in desperation when I needed...
Nancy is a 32-year-old woman with a quick wit, a love of good company and a real artistic flair. She has diagnoses of major depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder...
Heath* is a patient of Dr Niall Quiery at First Step. Heath had a colourful and varied professional life, though now at the age of 62 is facing a number of challenges...
Growing up, I was a very unhappy kid. I had anxiety and depression and didn’t fit in. I got picked on and was an outcast. I started messing around with marijuana and...
God, how I hated my ringtone. The sound of it, the feel of its vibration in the pocket of my jeans, flooded my soul with black dread. Because I knew it was...
The Road Home project sees our unique integrated team embedded in crisis accommodation 1 day per week. Working with Launch Housing East St Kilda, a First Step Legal lawyer, GP and mental...
I grew up in a typical Aussie home in the ’80s. Big sprawling house. All the neighbourhood kids hanging out together. My three sisters and twin brother playing at the pools in...
Sammy is a 22 year old gifted artist and talented writer. Sammy is a survivor of sexual abuse, perpetrated by her stepfather. She was referred by Headspace Elsternwick, when it was determined...
The first time I drank to black out, I was 14. By then, I was already bulimic. As the only child of an emotionally distant single mother who failed to protect me from...
I joined the ResetLife programme straight out of yet another detox. To be completely honest, I didn't have much hope for the programme. I just thought it would give me a few weeks extra...
I first became aware of the Long-Acting Injectable Buprenorphine (LAIB) six years ago at The Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and Other Drugs conference. I clearly remember thinking, as Professor Nick Lintzeris...
