At 30, Meg* found herself in a place she never imagined.
Born in Poland and migrating to Australia at 13, Meg struggled to adapt to a new culture and language. Isolated and disengaged, she left high school early and began experimenting with drugs. What started recreationally soon escalated into ice and heroin use.
Weekends of casual use spiralled into full-blown addiction. Now a mother of two young children, Meg feared she was losing not only herself – but her kids.
At her lowest point, Meg made a brave decision: to seek help. That’s when she found Odyssey House NSW.
A chance to change
Entering rehabilitation without her children was one of the hardest things Meg ever did. But she had a plan: to get well and bring her children home.
“I was relieved when I arrived,” she recalls. “I saw the bigger picture — I needed to learn how to live. It wasn’t easy, but the therapeutic community gave me hope. I looked at people graduating from the program and thought, ‘That could be me one day.’”
And it was.
Being separated from her kids was extremely challenging. After 2 months, Meg left the program to get her children and rejoined the program. Luckily there was space for her and her kids to stay at the Family Recovery Centre to complete the Parents and Children’s Program – a specialised pathway that enables parents to recover alongside their children. Meg completed the recovery program whilst caring for her kids and ensuring their needs were met, as well as her own.
Today, Meg is thriving. She’s a Case Manager at Odyssey House’s Family Recovery Centre, helping other parents rebuild their lives and reconnect with their children.
“Parents need to have their children with them during recovery,” she says. “It’s not easy, but it’s essential. We teach parents how to rebuild bonds, how to create a safe, loving environment. That’s how cycles of trauma and addiction are broken.”
“I feel so passionate about what I do,” Meg adds. “When you see a parent learning to reconnect with their child – when they realise they can do this – it’s incredible. It’s slow. It takes time. But it works.”
Breaking the cycle for women and families
Addiction can be deeply isolating, especially for mothers. Shame, fear of judgment, and a lack of family-friendly recovery options often keep women trapped in harmful cycles.
Women are presenting to Odyssey House NSW with higher rates of anxiety, depression, PTSD and increasingly complex needs. Among their clients, women are more likely to report experiencing mental health issues, with 67% having a diagnosed condition, compared with 55% of men. From 2024 to 2025 the proportion of women reporting amphetamines as their primary drug of concern to Odyssey increased significantly from 35% to 39%.
Odyssey’s Family Recovery Centre is one of the few places where parents can undergo treatment while living with their children. While parents receive therapeutic support, children get help to heal from trauma – all in a safe, non-judgmental environment.
“No one plans to have children and also have an addiction,” says Meg. “There’s so much guilt. But when parents start to believe in themselves, that’s the turning point. They see a different future for their families.”
How you can help
Recovery is hard. Breaking the cycle is hard. But the rewards – safe, thriving families and a future full of hope – are worth it. Meg’s story is just one powerful example of the impact Odyssey House NSW has every day.
This year, the annual Odyssey Women’s Lunch invites you to help create more stories like hers.
Funds raised directly support the program that helped Meg recover and reunite with her children – funding trauma-informed care, therapy programs, and essential resources for families.
Every ticket, every table, every donation is an investment in women and children rewriting their futures.
The event is hosted by Natalie Barr (Sunrise) and features a panel of inspiring speakers including Dr Cathy Foley AO PSM, Bonnie Hancock, Distinguished Professor Larissa Behrendt AO, and Sarah Macdonald.
*Meg’s name has been changed to protect her privacy.
About Odyssey House NSW
Odyssey House NSW has been running since 1977 and has supported more than 50,000 people turn their lives around in their fight against alcohol and drug addiction. From humble beginnings, the program has expanded to be one of the largest and most successful alcohol and other drug rehabilitation services in Australia.