Part 2 - 14 Days That Saved My Life: What Rehab Taught Me

(Week 2 of 4 -The Road to 2500 Days)

Most people assume rehab is rock bottom.
For me, it was the opposite. It was the moment I decided I was worth saving.

After the decision I shared in Part 1, I knew I needed support. I knew I couldn’t do this alone. And I knew that if I wanted to truly start my sobriety, I had to put myself in an environment where honesty, healing, and change weren’t just encouraged - they were required.

So I walked into rehab for 14 days.

Nervous - What happens if I fail?
Unsure - Fourteen days felt like a lifetime.
Proud - Not of the reason I was there, but of the courage it took to walk in.
Terrified - The anxiety that fuelled my addiction was louder than ever.
Determined - This had to be done.

I had no idea then that those two weeks would go on to shape everything I have in my life today.
What I learned in those 14 days didn’t just help me stay sober, it helped me rebuild myself.

1. Accepting Help Is Strength, Not Weakness

I’d spent years convincing myself I was fine. That I could handle it. That I didn’t need help.

I had even been successful in the past with defined periods of not drinking but looking back, it’s now clearer to me why consistency was so difficult. I live with ADHD, and for many people with this neurological condition, addiction can become an unfortunate pathway. The same intensity of focus that can be a superpower can also be destructive when directed at the wrong thing.

Walking through those doors was the first time I admitted out loud that I couldn’t do this alone and instead of feeling weak, I felt relief.

There is power in saying:
I need help.
I deserve help.
I am worth helping.

That was my first lesson.

2. I Wasn’t Alone. Not Even Close

Inside rehab, I sat beside people from every kind of background, tradies, professionals, parents, creatives, retirees, teenagers, grandparents, and from multiple cultures.

Addiction doesn’t discriminate.
It doesn’t care about your job, your personality, your bank account, or your reputation.

The stories were different, but the pain was familiar, and the desire to change was the same.

Realising I wasn’t alone stripped away the shame I’d been carrying for years.

3. Honesty Is the Beginning of Healing

Honesty with others is one thing.
Honesty with yourself is something else entirely.

In those group sessions, you can’t hide behind excuses.
You hear your own voice speaking truths you’ve avoided for years.
You see yourself clearly and sometimes painfully reflected in other people’s stories.

It’s confronting.
But it’s also freeing.

Truth creates space.
And that space is where healing begins.

4. Structure Rebuilds You

Rehab isn’t chaos.
It’s routine.

Meals at the same time.
Group sessions.
Personal reflection.
Exercise.
Sleep.

Simple rhythms that reset your body and your brain.

After years of running on autopilot, structure gave me grounding I didn’t know I needed. It taught me to slow down, breathe, and be present.

Those routines became the foundation I still use today.

One of the unique blessings during that time was being allowed to take my saxophone. Across the road from the rehabilitation centre was a quiet park. We were permitted to go outside provided we passed a portable alcohol test on return. Most days, I’d spend an hour in that park, just playing. Reacquainting myself with discipline. Reconnecting with music I had neglected. Letting my mind settle while my hands remembered their purpose.

5. Addiction Has a Science Behind It

I didn’t expect to learn so much about the brain.
The chemistry.
The patterns.
The triggers.
The physical dependency.
The cycles of reward and regret.

Understanding the science helped remove the guilt.
It helped me see addiction not as a character flaw but as a condition, one that could be understood, managed, and overcome.

Knowledge became a tool.
And tools became strength.

It wasn’t until I had been sober for about 6 years that I realised I suffer from ADHD.

6. Connection Is Medicine

Some of the most important breakthroughs didn’t happen in formal sessions. They happened:

• during conversations over breakfast
• in shared silences
• in moments of vulnerability
• in late-night chats with people who truly understood

We healed each other in ways we didn’t expect.
Connection became medicine.

Rehab taught me that isolation fuels addiction but community fuels recovery.

7. I Deserved a Life That Felt Good Sober

This was the biggest lesson of all.

Sobriety wasn’t punishment.
It wasn’t restriction.
It wasn’t the end of fun.

It was the start of a life I actually remembered, respected, and valued.

Rehab didn’t save me, it showed me that I was worth saving.

How Those 14 Days Shaped the Next 2,500

Everything I’ve gained since —
my presence,
my creativity,
my music,
my relationships,
my drive

all of it stems from those first 14 days.

Rehab wasn’t the end of drinking.
It was the beginning of believing in myself.

Coming Up in Part 3

I’ll share what happened after rehab. The real-world challenges, the uncomfortable moments, the old patterns trying to return, and how I stayed on track in the months that followed.

Because the truth is:
Rehab is the reset.
Recovery is the real work.

If This Brings Something Up for You

Whether this is your journey, or someone you love is struggling, please know you’re not alone.
And if you need someone to talk to, you’re always welcome to reach out.

When you choose yourself, everything else follows.