03/06/2026
My name is Elizabeth and I’m from the South Coast.
Before I came to The Glen, my life heavily impacted by addiction, trauma and ongoing legal issues. I’d been deep in addiction for around three years, I’d lost custody of my kids, I was in and out of custody myself, and I was just surviving each day instead of actually building a life.
I was carrying a lot of shame, fear, and exhaustion, and I honestly couldn’t see a way out of it all.
Before addiction took over, I was a successful businesswoman, a hands-on mum, and a law-abiding citizen just living a normal life. Then COVID hit while I was living in Victoria through all those lockdowns, domestic violence slowly became part of my everyday life. To cope with what I was going through whilst trying to run my company, I turned to substance use, and from there everything spiralled pretty quickly. I lost my business, my home, my family life, my kids, my self-respect and pretty quickly my freedom.
When I arrived at The Glen, I felt nervous but also relieved. For the first time in a long time I was in a structured place where I could actually slow down, look at myself properly, and start being honest about what needed to change. I begun to heal.
I learned that recovery isn’t just about stopping, it’s about rebuilding your whole life from the ground up. Trust, responsibility, self-worth and learning how to actually sit with life instead of running from it.
I learned that honesty, consistency, and just showing up every day is what makes real change happen. And I also learned I’m not alone in this, not even close. I’ve got my Glen crew riding shot gun every step of the way!
One of the biggest things for me was seeing women who had been through The Glen with similar stories as mine, addiction, DV, loss of freedom and now they’re working there!
That gave me so much hope. It honestly made me think, if they can come through all of that and rebuild their lives and now help other women, then maybe I can do it too. It showed me this actually works in real life, not just on paper.
Now, after finishing my three months at The Glen, I’ve just moved to Sydney. I’m taking it one day at a time. Life feels a lot more stable & grounded, and now I am present in my children’s lives. I don’t have custody at the moment, but I hope to get them back into my care in the future. I owe them the fight. I love them deeply, and everything I am doing is a step closer to getting them back into my care.
I’m still focusing on my recovery, learning to forgive & love myself whilst trying to become the mum my kids deserve.
I’m learning how to live with responsibility and consistency, and keep hope alive for what’s ahead even when life gets heavy, I don’t run anymore, I stay.
