St Vincent de Paul Society Australia genetic logo

The St Vincent de Paul Society offers over 200 services that help people in need.

Safeguarding

Find Help

Membership NSW

Volunteering NSW

Careers NSW

Join the Social Justice Network

Vinnies Service Medallion

Vinnies Youth NSW

Donations of goods and services NSW

Gifts in Wills

Philanthropy

Fundraise for Vinnies NSW

Clothing drives, toy collections and food hampers

Corporate partnerships NSW

Financial donations NSW

Sponsorship NSW

Cause related marketing campaigns NSW

Workplace giving - community support NSW

Vinnies and the Return and Earn Scheme

Vinnies Bag O Rags

Vinnies re/CYCLE range

Vinnies Used Cooking Oil Recycling (VUCOR)

Get involved

Get Involved

<h1>Vinnies Shops</h1>
Everything you buy or donate inspires change in your local community.

Vinnies Shops

Shops

Social Justice Statements

Reports and Submissions

Modern Anti-Slavery Statements

Reconciliation Action Plan

Uluru Statement Resources

Energy NSW

Disability Inclusion Action Plan

Advocacy

About us

Contact Us

History NSW

NSW Strategic Plan

Leadership NSW

Policies NSW

Mission and Formation

About Us

News and stories

NSW Media Releases

Vision Magazine

Impact Magazine

NSW Blog

Your Kind of Good Magazine

NSW Disaster Reports

NSW Annual Reports

News and Stories

| Vinnies

Home

ACT & surrounds

New South Wales

Northern Territory

Queensland

South Australia

Tasmania

Victoria

Western Australia

National Council

SVdP Housing Australia

Keeping on the right track

Had Tyler not reached out to Vinnies for support, he envisaged a grim future that fortunately never came to pass.
“I’d either face jail or be living on the streets with pretty bad mental health issues,” Tyler reflects.
Reaching a point of desperation after consuming himself on illicit drugs, fracturing support networks and adopting a harmful mindset of self-medicating to treat his mental health diagnoses, the dire situation led him to seek professional help with the encouragement of a Narcotics Anonymous sponsor.
Contacting Vinnies for assistance prior to detoxing in a psychiatric hospital, Tyler’s initial reservations about seeking help were allayed by the caring staff on hand at Freeman House in Armidale.
“When I first came in contact with Vinnies I had no idea what I was in for; I was severely underweight and really anxious around everything that had happened.”
Having used illicit substances to self-medicate his bipolar affective and schizoaffective disorders, the support of the staff at Freeman House helped Tyler take back control and aspire to a better future.
“Those disorders were very easily treated, but not easily treated with the wrong mindset – and definitely not easy to treat when I was still using at the same time.”

Rich Text

Image

Learning a range of mechanisms to cope with his substance dependence during a six month stay at Freeman House’s intensive residential rehabilitation program, Tyler moved into the transitional program which brought greater independence, while still retaining the support networks that helped to turn his life around.
“I was able to build a lot more connections within the community via work, training options, being able to come and go as I pleased, within reason, but still be able to connect with people who weren’t just inside Freeman House.
“Being around Armidale, a very small knit community, I was able to slowly tell my story to people who are a lot more supportive which has been a huge part of my recovery too.
“It’s good to be able to connect with people on a new level as opposed to how I used to connect with people before I came to Freeman House.”
More than a year on from first walking through the doors at Freeman House, Tyler has a new outlook on life and hope for the future.
“Since I reached out to Vinnies, I actually found some form of self-worth and that there’s things that I’m good at without having to use.
“I always have the idea of goals – getting a place by myself where my brother can have a safe place to stay as well, trying to be a good influence on him and finishing my TAFE course.
“My future’s been pretty good over the last year, I can only imagine if I keep staying on the same track it will only keep getting better.”