Hey @SomethingElsie, thank you for joining the Forums and sharing your experiences with the community!

It sounds like you have been through a tough time and are strong and resilient. It is unfortunate that family don't always support us in the way we would expect or need. And setting up boundaries is important to protect ourselves. It takes courage to do what we need and if that is creating distance then the brave thing to do is what you have with yours.

Self-medicating can be challenging to deal with as it is not always the best option and particularly long term. Being able to identify that you are misusing substances is a really amazing place to be in your recovery. Sometimes we need to reach out for a little extra help, I encourage you to contact Adis QLD Homepage | ADIS (health.qld.gov.au).

The Forums are a great place to reach out to your peers and I will pop a link to a post that describes other threads you can connect: Looking for a space to connect with others? Find a... - SANE Forums

Thanks again for being part of the community here on the Forums!

Take care

RiverSeal