Your stories

Your stories inspire others but they also inspire us

Mahana Southern Maori Mental Health & Addiction: Hunter Chisholm

Two-week long “benders” became a normal part of my life but I started sabotaging everything else. Nga Kete supported me to stop drinking and I have been alcohol-free for just […]
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Manawa Ora, Mahana: I'm Excited For My Alcohol-Free Future

Heavy drinking for 40 years, leading up to more than an 18-pack of beer a day allowed me to blank out the pain I was feeling from childhood trauma, but […]
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Te Waka Tuhono: Te Waka Tuhono Enabled Me To Reconnect

A rough childhood set me on a dangerous path of drinking, drugs and parties throughout my teenagers years, but the Te Waka Tuhono Kaupapa enabled me to find myself again.  […]
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Whanau Ora: The Support Meant The World To Me

I returned to my hometown of Invercargill a few years ago and I’ve lived through some difficult times ever since. My partner was addicted to methamphetamine. I had no idea […]
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Whanau Ora, Gambling Harm, BFC+: Mark Jessett

I spent years gambling excessively and smoking methamphetamine to block out past trauma I hadn’t dealt with properly. But it was ruining my life and I couldn't see a way […]
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Mahana Southern Maori Mental Health & Addiction: Sam Payne

Pictured: Sam Payne with her son Nixon. As a teen, a traumatic event and a breakup sent Sam Payne’s life spiralling out of control. For over a decade, she was […]
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