Levin to host 'tough love' seminar

Author and drug rehabilitation expert Peter Lyndon-James will give a seminar in Levin as part of an upcoming tour.

Renowned Australian drug rehabilitation expert, author and former addict Peter Lyndon-James will present a seminar in Levin as part of an upcoming tour of New Zealand in August.

Lyndon-James is the founder of Australia's strictest rehabilitation centre Shalom House and the author of Tough Love: Tackling drug addiction and seeking change.

He is set to deliver a series of seminars in New Zealand in response to what he describes as a drug epidemic gripping the country.

"Methamphetamine is the most evildrug to hit the face of this planet and we've only seen
the beginning of it, it's going to get bigger and bigger," he said.

"People are smoking meth like they did cannabis, not realising that the effects don't just
affect them but the whole family and in turn its structure. By the time they realise, it is
too hard to turn back."

Author and drug rehabilitation expert Peter Lyndon-James will give a seminar in Levin as part of an upcoming tour.

Lyndon-James will give presentations aimed at equipping families with the tools to
help their loved ones overcome addiction.

He will also be holding presentations for multiple organisations around the country, including social workers and Corrections facility staff and inmates.

Lyndon-James said his method of tough love, or cause and effect, is about showing
families how to bring a person to the point of wanting to change, rather than forcing
them.

"Often parents and family members think they're doing the right thing trying to help their
loved ones in addiction by putting a roof over their head and paying their bills, but they
are in fact doing the wrong thing. It is sad to see that some of them are prolonging the
inevitable by shielding their children from the consequences of their choices," he said.

"I'm not going to tell you what you want to hear, I'm going to tell you what you need
to hear."

Lyndon-James, a recipient of numerous Australian of the Year awards, is a former
addict who turned his life around, after spending 26 years in and out of prisons and
institutions.

He said he believes the community should not have to pay for the rehabilitation of drug addicts and runs the only rehabilitation centre in Australia that uses an entirely self-sufficient funding model.

The Levin seminar is open to the public and will be held from 7pm to 10pm on Monday 19th August at the RSA building, 5 Devon St.

For further information and to book, email amanda@lyndonjames.com.au, call or text +61 419 011 709 or visit www.peterlyndonjames.com.au