Family Drug Support Aotearoa is a New Zealand wide organisation set up to support family/whānau & friends impacted by the alcohol and other drug use of people they care about. The aim is to provide support based on science, compassion and human rights. We support a harm reduction model.
Here at FDS we aim to assist in any way possible to empower families to cope with the realisation of their situation and to survive it intact. To this end we offer an 0800 telephone line New Zealand -wide, manned by volunteers offering help to diffuse crisis, proffering strategies for coping and giving any information required. We believe families are important.
They are the ones who understand their family member more so than anyone else. If left to work through issues in isolation, families can become exhausted and give up. However, when supported they can become a vital force for positive change. FDS is committed to working with professional organisations and forming constructive partnerships. Armed with collective wisdom, FDS has adopted a view of harm reduction.
Te Whare Tapa Wha (four cornerstones of health) was developed by leading Maori health advocate and researcher Professor Sir Mason Durie in 1984. It is a useful way to think about our health as a whare. The whare, has four walls with each wall representing a different dimension of health. All four walls are needed and must be in balance for the house, (or our health), to be strong.