HISTORY

Founded in 2008 by Simon Lewer, Life Returning is a Northern Beaches (Sydney) Special Outreach Services (SOS) organisation, providing treatment for alcohol and other drugs (AOD) dependencies in adults 18 years and over.

During his own recovery from alcohol dependency Simon discovered there was a significant gap in the services available for addiction recovery in NSW and for that matter, in many other parts of Australia. The current protocol of NSW Health Service is for individuals with a dependency to alcohol and other drugs to self-admit to a clinical detoxification setting and to subsequently attend recovery treatment at a public sector (normally now outsourced to an NGO) rehabilitation unit. If a person belongs to a Private Health Fund they may enter a Private Clinic. Furthermore, the only services available were based on the 12-step model of Alcoholics Anonymous.

At the time of Simon’s recovery he used the public sector system, when the waiting list for rehab after initial detox was 5 weeks. Simon found this astoundingly unacceptable and vowed that if he recovered he would start an alternative option and therefore, fill this gap. Unfortunately, the gap between detox and even short-term rehab has risen to up to 10 weeks. This waiting list results in a dramatically high rate of relapse for people after detox, estimated at around 90%.

After three years working from street cafes and park benches, Life Returning saved enough fundraising revenue to open a non-clinical day facility located at Brookvale. After 7 years of helping approximately 500 people a year to quit their habit, or where appropriate, reduce their risky AOD behaviour, Life Returning still receives not one dollar of funding from any level of government or the NSW Health Service. Millions of dollars are spent by government on Education and Training, Online Websites, Youth Services and Indigenous Affairs and Academic Research, not innovative Outreach Recovery Centres such as the Life Returning model. 

Life Returning’s friends and supporters continue to tirelessly raise the necessary revenue to fund their office rent, electricity, capital equipment, insurance, promotional literature, telephones and other running costs. No person who has helped Life Returning over the last 7 years has been paid one dollar in salary.