Maria's story began when she travelled on a plane alone at 11 years of age to come to Australia. She started drinking at 13 and began smoking crystal meth at 15 years old. By 18 she was selling her body for a living and spent her 20's modelling, dabbling with marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy and LSD. Alone and confused, she thought she had it all while partying with socialites, fashionistas, politicians, celebrities and going out with Yakuza, Triad and 5T gangster boyfriends. Her bipolar frenzy took her to 129 cities working in any capacity to support her bad vices and crazy lifestyle. Finally she decided she has had enough of the self-inflicted pain, unconscious need for suffering and self-perpetuated heart aches. From this moment on, she decided she wanted to reclaim her life back and regain her self-respect. Today, she continually fills her mind with self-development, educational and academic pursuits of excellence. In 2012, she completed her Master of Public Health (MPH) at the 47th ranked Best University in the world (University of Queensland). Her passion, Coaching With Substance is a registered Public Benevolent Institution with a charitable vision to eradicate the harms caused by addiction, addictive behaviours and co-morbid mental illnesses, one client at a time. As the Founder, she spends her waking moments dedicated to her cause & life purpose. This book was written to inspire the reader of the soul's capacity to change. The stories of guilt, humiliation, dishonour, indignity and shame are told in brutal honesty and with courage. It impresses upon you that a happy ending is available to anyone who seeks to find it and works hard to maintain it. There is a light at the end of the tunnel so long as you don't give up trying and you kill your addiction before it kills you. ... the best book I have read about bipolar, suicide and addiction - Blair Harding, voted world's no. 1 business ACTIONCoach in 2011


... A Must Read - Pam Brossman, 10x No. 1 Amazon Best Selling Author (pambrossman.com)