WhatsUp I am Dan, I was born with sedc (spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia) which is basically a rare form of dwarfism. Including complications such as scoliosis, along with hip dysplasia. Due to these physical complications, primarily the hip dysplasia it caused alot of difficulty with mobility in my youth and lead me to resort to using a wheelchair. I got surgery on my spine at age of 16 to straighten that out. I also experienced sexual abuse in my youth. Partly due to these complications, it made me feel quite isolated and introverted. Due to my disability, indifference and abuse, I also struggled with finding my sense of self, including sexual identity. My mental health took a downard spiral and had lead me into a drug addiction of 10 years, 5 of them which I attempted to recover. During my addiction it showed the dark realities of the negative concequences of drugs. My addiction went from pot smoking, party drugs and fun but towards the end I resorted to meth and heroin. Through the 5 years of attempts of recovery, I tried several different ways to recover including abstinence which didn't work. The consequences of my addiction included more sexual abuse and trauma, suicide attempts and ods. End of 2020 is when I had a serious car crash under the influence, this crash made me realise if I don't get my life together it ain't going to get together. At the age of 25 I tried to get serious about getting help from the NDIS, unfortunately I fell through the cracks. After 9 months of sobriety I ended up relapsing and even though I was trying to do the right thing, it felt that no system had my back as I felt labelled as just a junkie. Took 2 years to navigate and get accepted into the NDIS, unfortunately it made me realise that even though I was trying to do the right thing, there was some people that didn't have the right intentions for their support. It took me 27 years to just receive the DSP and be recognised as "disabled". Been a tough road, but found a real blessing out of it all, Koahani. They believed in me and actually cared for me and other clients, I am now 6months off ice and have trying to be consistent with eating healthy, fitness and slowly minimising my prescribed drugs. Everything that's happened to me has shaped who I am today and I am keen to share my story.
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