Max grew up in a very religious family and was keen to break away from that constraint as well as competing with his twin brother.  He started drinking and using drugs as a 13 to 14 year old and Max enjoyed this until he was 16 when he developed a severe physical disability that lasted for the next five years.  Max left school, isolated, continued to drink and developed more health problems till his family got him into a succession of rehabs where he eventually found Alcoholics Anonymous and has been sober for around seven years.

Ben’s parents were drug and alcohol users and eventually separated when he was in his early teens and he continued living with his mum who regularly abused drugs. He enjoyed parties and started drinking when he was around 15 years old and left home multiple times before eventually moving in with his dad in his late teens.  Ben’s dad’s weekend lifestyle meant that his drinking increased and parents of Ben’s friends encouraged him not to drink.  However, he progressed to become an alcoholic and drug addict in his mid-20’s and after an initial exposure to AA he eventually decided to stop drinking. Ben has been sober in AA for around seven six years.

If you think that alcohol may be a problem then Alcoholics Anonymous could help you. Give them a call on 1300 222 222 or see their website aa.org.au.